It's been a long time

Well it has definitely been a while since the last post (I was shocked to look back and see that it was July 11th). The summer is winding down and the leaves are beginning to turn.
  It was a pretty straight forward summer for the turf as a whole. We settled into our first full season of taking moisture readings and deep watering. It went really well and we will continue to tweak the program as we go forward.
  Project wise things were a bit slower than normal this season. We really had to choose our battles and so that meant doing things that did not break the bank. One such project involved rebuilding a few bunker faces on #6 and #8 greens. We used a method that I learned about from Canadian architect Ian Andrew. It involves using burlap bags filled with topsoil and the base, and then you simply sod over top. The burlap eventually degrades and you are left with a new edge.

                   This is the left greenside bunker on #6. You can see the bags as well as the sod.

The finished product

The next big project will be aeration. I know how much everyone loves this practice, but if you refer back to our post from this time last year explaining the process (the fall has come ?) I think we can all agree that it is necessary indeed.

  

The crew in action last year.

The 2013 aeration will take place on Tuesday, Oct. 15 (front 9) and Wednesday, Oct.16 (back 9). This obviously is weather dependent, but at this point the forecast is promising. 

I would be remiss if I did not pass on best wishes from the Turf Department for our soon to be departing General Manager, Harry Simmonds. Harry has been a wonderful person to work with over the past 5 years and his kind nature will be missed. He is moving on to a well earned retirement, and we wish him nothing but the best.

Thanks for reading

paul