Tree Removals Winter 2010-2011

At the Dec. 9th Greens and Grounds meeting I presented the list of trees to be removed this winter.  After reviewing the list the Committee did not feel there was a need to approve the list as it only included trees that needed to be taken down due to conditions or was part of the on-going Management Plan that was done by StrataPoint Inc.

The list below has two categories.  The first is trees that need to be taken down due to their condition.  The second is a list of trees that were recommended (Tree Management Plan) for removal.  I have also included the page or pages from the Plan where the recommendations can be found.

Tree Removals Winter 2010-2011

At Risk Trees
#1 Willow left of fairway bunker (decline and splitting/Plan pg.103)
#4 Willow near creek (closest the green) (damage and splitting)
     Oak behind green (dead)
#5 Cottonwood left hillside (lightning)
#8 Willow and Silver Maple left of tee (damage and splitting)
     Willow left of fairway next to pond (damage and cavity at base)
     River Birch right side past irrigation controller (dying/dead)
#10 Willows (2) right off of forward tee (damage)
#16 Silver Maple right of cart path by tees (multi-stem cracking)
       Willow near pond closer to #11 (damage)
#17 Willow near forward tee (cavity)
       Pine (2) past bunker (storm damage)
#18 Oak (4) left of tee (Oak Wilt)
Clubhouse - Buckeye next to small parking lot (splitting)

Other Removals Based on Tree Plan and Turf Condition
#1 Ash and Pine behind green (Plan pg.53 pgs.16-18&29)
#2 Ash next to cart path at green (Plan pgs.16-18&29)
     Cottonwood (6) dieback (out of play)
#4 Ash left of approach (Plan pgs.16-18&29)
     Linden and Oak behind green (Turf Conditions/Plan pg.75)
#6 Silver Maple right of green (Plan pgs88-89/Turf Conditions)
#7 Silver Maple and Pine between green and cart path left side(Plan pg.92/Turf Conditions)
     Pines behind green (3 of the 5) (Plan pg.93)
#10 Silver Maple next to fairway bunker (Plan pg.107/Turf Conditions)
#12 Ash (2) left of green (Plan pgs.16-18&29)
       Silver Maple right of green (Plan pg.116/Turf Conditions)
       Linden (2) right of fairway (Plan pg.117)
#13 Ash (6) between green and #14 tee (Plan pgs.16-18,29&122)
#14 Ash (9), Tamarac (2), and Silver Maple (1) behind green (Plan pgs.16-18,29&132/Turf Conditions)
#15 Silver Maple (2) left off of tee (Plan pg.134-135)
       Pine left of approach (Plan pg.134-135)
#16 Ash (5) right of approach and Ash (4) and Silver Maple (1) behind green (Plan pgs.16-18,29&140/       Turf Conditions)
#17 Ash (3) left of tee (Plan pgs.16-18&29)
#18 Ash (2) and Oak (1) left of approach (Plan pgs.16-18,29&150)

I will continue to keep you post on our progress.

Going for a Spin.

 

Some of you may not be aware that we had a car drive down the 13th fairway across the green and then return to the tee.  Fortunately, the damage was not too severe and we were able to fix the green fairly quickly.  I think the fact that it has been so dry the last few weeks helped.  The green still has some blemishes on the left front of the green but for the most part it hasn't affected playability.

 

Fairway aerification



Fairway aerification using a walking aerator.



We have been very fortunate to have the long stretch of dry weather the past few weeks.  This allowed us to complete fairway aerification before the remainder of our crew was done for the year.  It was very important for us to get that completed as we were not able to this past spring due to weather and the golf calendar.  Aeration is a practice that is done a number of reasons but for us the most important reason on our fairways is to remove organic matter.  This allows for gas exchange and for water to get into the soil.  Organic matter is the dead grass blades and roots that have not decomposed.  They can create a barrier to water and air movement.  Our Bentgrass also loves to grow horizontally and aeration helps decrease grain (the laying over of turf) by severing the leave/stem tissue.

Dragging the fairway to move the soil back into the turf canopy.

   This year our process started with aerifiying the fairway.  Most of this was done with a roller type aerifier (similar to the ones used on home lawns, only much larger) but we did use a walking unit for some smaller fairways.  After that was completed we vertical mowed the fairway.  This was done for two reasons: the first was to help break up the plug or break the soil off the thatch and second to again sever the leave/stem tissue.  Our plan is to ramp up this practice in spring and fall when the stress to the turf from heat and humidity are not present. We hope to see if we can impact the graininess of the playing surface.  We follow this with a dragging using a large piece of fence, which removes any remaining soil from the thatch.  We finish the process by blowing the thatch into the center of the fairway and cleaning it up.  









Things not as the seem.

   Although I am not thoroughly convinced that skunks were not involved in the damage that took place this Fall, there were definitely others that were.  I spent a couple unproductive nights and a few early mornings doing some scouting for what was to blame for the ravaged turf.  In the end our live trap produced 3 Raccoons and 1 Oppossum.  For now it appears the damage has stopped.  I am not sure if that is because we have gotten rid of the offenders or if the food source (grubs) has moved down in the soil to over-winter.  Next year we will be dealing with the problem through preventative insecticide applications to get rid of the grubs. 

Skunks

Some of you may have noticed lately that something has been tearing up rough areas as well as the edges of a fairway.  At this point the damage has been near the fairway bunker on #4, behind the green on #5, behind and to the left of #13 green, some on #17, and the fairway and bunker edge on #18.  As best as I can tell this is being perpetrated by skunks.  They typically pull chunks of turf out and root around to find grubs that are under the turf.  As you might imagine this problem poses a few challenges.

These grubs are Japanese Beetle larvae that were laid back at the beginning of August.  We have seen an increase in the number of mature beetles on the golf course over the last two seasons.  Long-term we will have to look at making preventative insecticide applications if we are going to avoid turf damage from the grubs and from predators.  We have made some insecticide applications to get rid of the grubs but dealing with the skunks is a problem we will have to address delicately.  Stay tuned! 

Greens recovery

The greens are recoverying and we have returned to walk mowing and are starting to lower our height of cut back down now that most of the sand is gone.  We have also fertilized greens which will help the greens to recover completely by the end of the weekend.  The down side of this is that with the rapid recover we will continue to have slower green speeds through the weekend.  We are very close to our normal height of cut but the fertilizer and hot, humid weather this weekend will really push growth especially in the afternoon.  This morning the speed was just bearly 10' after rolling.  We will continue to roll but I do not expect it to get our speeds back into our ideal speed of between 10' and 11' on the stimp until next week. 

What is that stuff?

This is Dollar Spot (turf fungus) that is been growing rapidly in rough areas.  This is the tee bank along the 16th tee box.

 

This is what Dollar Spot looks like on a fairway.  We have seen some severe disease pressure and fungicide efficacy has been shortened.

This is a picture of Brown Patch.  A number of these diseases we have seen very little of in the past few years.  This is primarily because of the quantity of pressure and the severity shortening our spraying windows/schedule.

Why are covering that green with soil?

That is a green that has been topdressed with a layer of sand and is in the process of being cored.  After the green is cored we drag the sand and cores to fill the holes in the greens back up.

These are pictures of #7 and #12 right after we received that 1.5" rainfall.

Enough with the Heat

   We have been able to complete greens aerification in spite of the 1.5" of rain we received Sunday night. We were delayed but finished up the remaining greens Monday. The 4th and 6th green were very saturated and have not cleaned up well.
   We have completed some of the tees but feel it is best if we wait to complete those until after this bad spell of weather ends. We are in the midst of a bad weather week. Temperatures are staying between 85-90 degrees, the humidity if very high and we have continued to receive additional rainfall all week.  So far the golf course is doing alright and we do have preventative fungicide applications down but with disease pressure this high the fungicides efficacy will be reduced. We have been scouting for signs of break through and have made spot applications to help us through this intense pressure.  The good news is there is a break in the weather pattern coming Sunday. 
  Unfortunately golf is played on a playing surface that is constantly changing and the weather plays a key role in that. We are going to do our best to keep it in the most playable condition we can.  That is why we have closed the course for cart use a couple of times this week.  We did not want to stress the turf out more and invite pathogens to infect the turf.  We are hopeful green speeds will return to normal next week as the greens dry out and begin to heal.

New Tee

Wednesday we undertook a small project that the Green Committee requested.  We removed sod from the right half of the Blue tee on #11 and created a second tee above and further back.  We were able to finish up the project this afternoon.

 The first phase was to remove the existing rough height Bluegrass from the sight of the new tee.  This step is not necessary if you are creating an elevated tee but is a good practice for a shallow tee.  It ensures that the underlying turf does not grow through the soil mix into the new Bentgrass sod.

  

 The next step a sand/peat soil mixture is added to create a level surface teeing surface.  This will also give the tee some added drainage.

Following this the sod is laid down making sure to stagger the seams of the sod to aid in moisture retention.

The final step is to add the sand/peat mixture to the seams, trim the edges to create a smooth perimeter, sod the perimeter with Kentucky Bluegrass, fertilize with a starter fertilizer, heavily saturate the tee and rope off.  If all goes well the tee will be opened in three to four weeks.

Native Areas

You may have noticed that we have been cutting down some of the tall areas around ponds, in native areas, and in wildflower areas.  We are doing this because of the movement of Canada Thistle into these areas.

This is a evasive perennial weed that is characterized by it's prickly foliage and violet colored flowers that produces tons of seed. 

The largest area is the area effected is the areas between #8 and #11.  Due to the droughty conditions last spring the thistle got a jump on the native species that were planted.  The plan is to keep the Thistle from going to seed and exacerbate the problem.  Than in late fall we can make a herbicide application that should be taken down to the root and kill the Thistle.

   The aerification of greens and tees was completed as scheduled and the golf course is now back to normal playing conditions.  The process that was used to aerify greens was not our usual technique.  We used solid tines that pierce a hole in the turf but do not remove any material.  This creates channels for the exchange of gases and allows air to get down to the roots.  In addition, it allows for rapid growth of roots into these spaces.  All of this helps the green to better withstand the stresses that the hot summer and traffic bring. 

   Once we had finished aerating we topdressed lightly and rolled the greens.  Normally, we would pull a core of material out a put a heavier topdressing down and brush the sand into the holes.  This helps with drainage and to dilute any buildup of organic material.  We were not able to use this method this spring due to the golf schedule but will return to this next aerification in August following the Club Championship. 

   This last week we have not done any fairway aerification due to the rainy weather.  We have received 3" of rain in the last 12 days with more on the way today.  This has also not allowed us to finish a number of projects including sodding or seeding stump removals.  It's tough working with soil when it's saturated.  Hopefully we will get a break in the weather this week so we can complete those.

  

   This rainfall has also impacted green speed and ball roll.  We typically use the greens roller to help compensate when speeds dip below our ideal range.  This is not prudent when the soils are saturated.  Damage can occur to the turf when the roller loses traction and spins causing damage to the surface.  Damage occurs to the roots when you put excessive pressure on an unstable soil.  The side pressure that happens when you roll can cause a shift in the soil that will shear roots and create a bumpy surface. This same thing happens when you drive a cart in the fairway or rough when it is overly saturated.

We have been busy with a number of projects this week in addition to preparing for the Ladies Dellwood/North Oaks/White Bear Challenge and for the Memorial Weekend Tournament.  Earlier this week we took down a large Cottonwood tree off the right side of #11 tee.  This tree was removed because it was encroaching on the tee shot from the Blue tee and for another small tee (for #11) that will be constructed near the Blue tee for #9. 

These are the before and after photos of the area.

Colleen our Head Gardener and her crew have been busy filling gardens with fresh annuals.

 

We also were able to move some shrubs we had taken out from behind the Pro Shop and use them along the pool parking lot.

Just in case you were wondering why your eyes might be itching, your throat was sore, or you couldn't stop sneezing.  These pictures below tell the story.  The photo on the left is a deposit of pollen that was produced after an irrigation cycle washed it down into a collection area on a cart path.  The photo on the right is not smoke but rather pollen being blown off of some Scotch Pine to the right of #15 tee.  Everyday when I leave work I have to run my wiper blades and some wiper fluid to take the layer of pollen off my windshield.  Now if that wasn't enough we are inundated with the cotton from the Cottonwood trees and the little helicopters (seeds) from the Maple trees are coming down in copious amounts.

There has been a lot going on this last week.  Here is a look at some activities that the maintenance staff is doing and some things we are seeing.

Last Thursday we had a rain day where it was difficult to do anything on the golf course.  We decided it would be a good day to tackle a little project around the clubhouse.  This landscape was getting a little unruley so we removed some plant material so the Proshop could see better and help give the area more depth by opening up some sight lines.  We also had some overdue trimming to do on the four trees.  This should allow the trees to get more air flow and be more health.

A number of trees on the golf course look either dead or very weak.  The two species of trees are the Ash and the Honeylocust.  The Ash's leaves are curling up and turning black and falling.  This is not Emerald Ash Borer it is a fungus known as Anthracnose (not Anthrax) that develops during cool, wet weather.  This is an added stress to the tree but does not kill the tree.  I have seen this a number of times in my 12 years at Dellwood.  The Honeylocust are just slow to leave out which is very typical for these trees.  Here is a link to a great tool for diagnosing problems with plant materials.  http://www.extension.umn.edu/gardeninfo/diagnostics/index.html

I have posted an update from the Department of Agriculture on this main page.

On the left is a picture of some Honeylocust to the right side of #9 fairway. The picture on the right is of some Green Ash to the right of #13 green. The photo above and on the left is of a lone Honeylocust next to the forward tee on #12.

Poa annua

Have you noticed patches of turf in the fairways starting to have a white or tan look to it.  If you have this is Poa annua or Annual Bluegrass that is starting to seed or to grow it's "inflorescence".

In the foreground you can see the change in color.

If you were to look at it from the side it looks like a small tree sticking up.

  This seed growth can take place throughout the summer but generally speaking late May and early June is when you see the large volumes of seed growth.  Typically, this marks the end of spring root growth as the plant is putting it's energy into seed production and top growth. 

Cart Traffic Reminders

As cart use is starting to pick-up I just wanted to send out a reminder to cart users about the need to keep carts away from tees and greens. We have again installed our green and white stakes in the approach to the greens. Please take carts back to the cart path once you approach these stakes.

Another reminder is please keep carts on the path when parking next to tees and greens. I'm not sure if we have it ingrained in our heads that we need to pull off to the side of the road. I use to think it was just golfers until I started to notice that I pull off onto the grass and so do my crew members.  If we follow these simple practices we can help keep the turf around the tees and greens in better shape. 

The second project we have been working on is grinding stumps and cleaning them up.  We contract to have the stumps ground and do the clean work ourselves.  The grinder has a 55hp engine and  makes quick work of your average sized stumps.   However, most of stumps were of the above average size.  It took the contractor over an hour to grind the stump next to the 1st green and another hour for the stump next to the 10th green.  In fact the Willow stump next to 10 was the biggest the contractor had ever worked on.

It will take us another week to finish cleanup and prep these areas for sod.  We try to use composted material that we have generated on-site to fill in these areas.  Generally, if the stump hole is very large we will put some fill material first and cap it with the compost.

Spring Projects

   This last week was filled with some of our early season projects. Because the weather has moderated and turf growth has slowed we have been able to knock out some "to do's". The first project was edging of our bunkers. This can be a time consuming job as the elements over the winter tend to migrate the sand into the bottom of the bunkers.

The first step is to cut an edge around the bunker. We try to remove as little material as possible so the bunkers don't get larger every year. Once that is cleaned up the sand depth is checked throughout the bunker to figure out where the sand needs to be moved.  Then using the bunker rake with a blade attachment is used to push the sand into the areas that are deficient.

As this is taking place a couple of people take landscape rakes and spread the sand out evenly by hand. 

 

The finishing touch to the process is raking the bunker smooth using the bunker rake for the bulk area and hand raking the edges.

Green Speed and Condition

   Now that we are fully into Spring and the grass has started to grow we will be lowering the height of cut on our greens.  This should in turn start to increase our green speeds.  We like to see the greens begin to grow and have the ability to recover before we get too agressive with height.  We will also be treating the greens this week with fertilizer and bio-stimulants to stimulate growth and recovery, a wetting agent to improve water infiltration, and a plant protectant to stop fungus growth.
   Another update that I am sure will make everyone happy is we will not be performing a typical greens aerification this Spring.  Due to the late aerification last year and a large event we have scheduled the week after Memorial Day we will be solid tine aerifying the greens.  That is we will be using small tines that will simply pierce a hole in the surface and not remove any organic matter.  We will follow-up with a normal topdressing and roll the green surface.  There will be minimal impact to play.  This process will allow for the exchange of gases (aeration), stimulate root growth, and leave small channels for water to better penetrate the surface of the green.

Spring is picking up.

  

The busy season has officially started.  Our full-time seasonal staff is back and hard at work.  They have spent the last week or so finishing up some of the winter cleanup.  They are now moving into our regular maintenance activities of mowing, raking bunkers, and setting up the golf course.  We are also starting some of our early season projects.  One of those projects is getting the irrigation system fully operational.  Another is trying to get our bridges back down after the frost push them up during the winter.  We borrowed a backhoe and were able to get them to settle down for the most part.  At least now the approaches are better and carts won't bottom out.

We also have started the process of vertical mowing the damaged areas in the fairways.  This will aid in the recovery of the turf by removing excess organic material.  This warms the soil faster and allows live tissue to recover faster and for the seed bank that is in the soil to germinate.  It is very similar to what you do to your lawn at home in the spring when you power rake.

I have to include this photo I took last week.  I was doing some office work when I heard this loud noise coming from the sky outside.  I went out and saw two pair of F-16s flying at a very low altitude over the golf course.  They did this a few times and then they got into formation and made a couple of passes right over our shop.  On the third pass they came from the opposite direction and headed straight for Minneapolis.  I guess they had an appointment at Target Field they had to be on time for.

Sustainability - Part1

   In the Turf Industry the lastest buzz word not too unlike a lot of industries/economies is "Sustain" or "Sustainability".  This being the idea or philosophy of what can be sustained.  In a previous post I talked about a seminar I attended where there was a panel discussion about Sustainable Golf Course Management.  Some on the panel looked at it from an environmental standpoint, some from the economics of what their budgets will allow, and others from the standpoint of trying to bring American golf back in line with European golf.  This last standpoint is related to how golf courses are conditioned.  To me it boiled down to how do we provide high quality playing conditions, while keeping the cost of golf affordable and doing the right thing for the environment.
   I have included an article (http://www.golfbusinessmagazine.com/pageview.asp?m=3&y=2010&doc=2322)

from Golf Business Magazine that talks about what some turfgrass managers in the golf course industry are doing.  I think it is a good article to read especially after watching golf over the weekend played with conditions that are arguably superfluous.  My next installment on this subject I will discuss what Dellwood Hills management practices have been.

   Monday we started the process of firing up the irrigation system.  Not only is the first time we have charged the system in March but rarely have we done so before the third week of

April.  This will be the second time in the history of the club that we have opened the golf course in March.

With the lack of rainfall so far I feel it is best we get the system charged and make sure we work through the normal broken pipe and head damage that we normally see.  As of yesterday (Wednesday) we have seen a much smaller volume of problems.  It has taken two days to get our mainlines fully charged (another record).  I attribute that to the large blanket of snow last Fall before the frost set in deep. 

   Just a reminder that it is early in the season and the peat fairways still have frost coming out of them.  They are soft through out and we need to keep cart traffic to a minimum, so please keep them in the rough as much as possible.  This will insure we don't have to spend extra time fixing ruts and your fellow golfers have a better surface to play from.  Enjoy this great weather!

Prairie Rejuvenation

     The ability for some of our prairie/native areas to continue to stay in balance and thrive depends on careful management.  The area behind the 7th green is a mix of prairie grasses, wildflowers, and some wetland plants that are planted along the waters edge.  The use of prescribed burns are a useful tool to remove old prairie thatch, to reduce woody plant invasion, and to stimulate the growth of many native grasses and wildflowers.  This year we were scheduled to do such a burn and we took about 45 minutes on thursday and friday to take care of the two areas.

   

     While we were burning on Friday we noticed some visitors in the pond on the 7th hole.

A pair of Trumpeter Swans