Our first fall frosts have hit the property this past weekend. Frost delays have long been a part of golf. The goal for the Turfcare team when we have a frost delay is to minimize maintenance and get the game of golf going as soon as possible. There are factors that affect the decision as to how fast we can get game of golf out. Repetitive frosts will most certainly lead to an occasional longer delay. We can only minimize maintenance so many days consecutively. We are also in the time of season when product applications become difficult to fit in around frost and windy days. These applications during the fall are critical for successful wintering of the golf course. If we need to apply a product and have not had cooperation from Mother Nature this is another scenario that can cause a longer delay. We know that traffic on frost covered grass will cause death that can take 6 plus weeks to recover. This time of year it will not. Please refrain from walking on turf when we are in a frost delay this fall.
Range deck will return to mats next Monday September 15th. This will be setup during the course closure for aeration. Reminder that the course is closed Sunday September 14th in the afternoon and all day on September 15th for aeration. The greens are in desperate need of these cultural items and we hope the weather will cooperate. Fairway and tee aeration will begin on these days but will not be completed. The aeration process of fairways and tee’s will continue until completed this fall.
On the other side of aeration we will begin to back off on height of cut on greens as we move towards our winter heights. While the forecast is decent for the next 10 days we will stick with our program of backing off this time of year to assist in setting the plants up for a successful winter. Daily mowing will no longer take place we will alternate mowing and rolling practices dependent on ball roll and growth.
With the two light frosts we expect the battle of leaves to begin shortly. We will do our best to blow all prime play areas in the morning. Leaves will be blown into tree lines and rough areas then we will turn around and mulch them throughout the day. At times there will be heavy masses of leaves in tree lines.
We continue to deal with fox damage each morning to greens and bunkers. The repairs of the greens will be priority in the morning and we will attend to bunkers when time allows.