Continuous Rain has Left Fairway Sections Underwater

Water has been standing in the fairways at Kinloch for 3 days straight.  We have accumulated over 4 inches of rain since Sunday, and have seen very little sun.  

Over the last several days, you may have seen the maintenance staff using the deep tines and squeegees in the fairway swales to try and move some of the water into the basins.  Similarly to humans, bentrgass cannot survive without oxygen, so at this point, anything we can do to alleviate this stress can help.  Shown below are photo of the previously described method. 

In addition to the deep tine, the maintenance staff is using fairway mowers to push water towards basins in the fairway.  Shown below are photos of this process. A video of this process can be seen here.

  

Heavy Winds and Rain Hit Kinloch

On the night of Friday, April 19^th, the Richmond area was hit with high winds and rain.  Upon arrival to the course, the maintenance staff discovered several trees had been uprooted and debris covered the course.  Cleanup began immediately on greens and fairways with a portion of the staff allocated to large tree removal.  The team was able to complete the work by the end of the morning.  Pictured below are a few examples of the downed trees and cleanup process.  

What a Difference Three Weeks Makes

The Richmond area has seen beautiful weather in the month of April, and it has shown itself in the golf course. Pictured below are photos of number 7 and number 11.  The first picture of each hole was taken on April 1st while the second picture was taken three weeks later on April 23rd.  You can see a distinct increase in the amount of foliage on the trees as well as a much darker green in the grass.  With continued weather like this, Kinloch will be in ideal shape for the summer to come.

Aerification Day One Recap

Day one of spring aerification was a productive one despite the weather.  The snow covered greens caused a small delay in progress, however the maintenance staff was still able to get through most of the greens today.  The first step in the process was to uncover the greens.  Equipped with snow shovels, we were able to quickly remove all the snow cover from the green surface and surrounding areas.

The next step in the process was to deep tine the greens.  This involved poking a half inch hole every 5 inches to a depth of 7 inches.  This process allows for extended root development throughout the spring growing months.

Directly after the deep tine, core aerifiers were used to remove organic material and thatch from the soil.  3/8ths inch holes were poked to a depth of almost 2 inches.  The cores were then carefully removed from the green surface.

Stay tuned for more updates this week on the aerification progress.