Wednesday, 25 March 2015

Course Update
All the greens have now been hollow cored, tined, Top dressed and brushed.
This maintenance took 4 days and I must thank all the staff for their efforts and the majority of the members for their patience and understanding.
All the greens have since been "ironed" and are running as true as expected.
We have changed the top dressing from a 80/20 sand soil mix to straight dm35 sand which will improve drainage and the firmness of the greens.
 A micro granule fertiliser will be applied next week to help aid recovery and give us a kick start for the new season.
The cores have been placed in areas where we can use them and are all ground under repair.

 The new irrigation pipe work has been installed on the 10th and 15th tees and has been tested.
This design of irrigation is a project we will continue to install over a number of winters due to the time and cost of the job.

Work on the tees will commence shortly and now that the grass is starting to grow we will be able to present the golf course at a higher standard.
GOOD LUCK TO THE CAPTAINS FOR THEIR COMING YEAR

James and the Greenstaff

Monday, 16 March 2015

Course Update
We have started to Hollow Core the Greens this Morning as Planned we aim to finish this by the end of next week this will be the main focus of our work for the coming weeks we will be using 40 tons of Sand on them we are trialing a new Machine called sweep and fill this should enable us to get the sand in Quicker and more consistently
please bear with us while we are working on the Greens it will benefit you in the long run 
James

Tuesday, 3 March 2015

Course Update
The main focus over the past weeks has been the greens with them continuing to be aerated every week to try and reduce the thatch levels and get rid of the black layer.
 This has also helped us to stay mostly on main greens with increased drainage capability. Greens will only be placed onto temporary greens if there is any potential damage to the green or surrounding areas.
The car park area has been tidied when weather has stopped us from working on the course and area around the practice nets has been cleared.
We will continue to spread washed sand in the wet areas which hopefully will make these problem spots more hard wearing over time.
This week we are spiking and coring the tees and aprons in preparation for the season. This will be followed by a light dressing with a mixture of chemicals already being sprayed.
We have also made a prototype bin which has been put on the 2nd tee and with some slight adjustments in design more will be made when time permits.
Thanks

James

Friday, 9 January 2015

Tuesday, 23 December 2014

The End of the Year
The Greens are being spiked every week at the moment at different depths to avoid Panning.
The Greens are Draining better and the Thatch and the Black Layer are being reduced as airflow increases.
The Greens are rolled afterwards to void surface disturbance.
To allow us to complete the work as effectively as possible we will have the Green being worked on put on to a Temp Green until the work is complete.
We are currently spaying a mixture of chemicals to deal with the Fusarium; hopefully we can stay snow free which would help.
You may have noticed that we are lifting the branches of the trees to allow us to cut underneath and to improve playability and some nuisance trees have and will be removed.
SO FROM ALL THE GREEN STAFF HAVE A GREAT CHRISTMAS AND A FANTASTIC 2015


Friday, 28 November 2014

Update
Sorry it has been a while we have had some problems logging in but Adam seems to have got it sorted we hope!!!!
Anyway lots have happened since last time

 The greens as you are well aware are recovering from the work that was done in October and we were very disappointed not to get them all filled but after the warmest September we had the Wettest October Mother Nature Hey!!
This however keep the greens open during this very wet period we are constantly monitoring the greens for disease as this warm wet weather is perfect conditions for fusarium.
We are very disappointed to see the amount of Pitch Marks and Divots on the greens lately can we sort this out please.
If we ALL look after the course you will reap the benefits next season.
We have have started the paths on several holes which will be completed as soon as conditions allow.
LEAVES we try our hardest to put leaves in areas we have put cages on the course to house the leaves these are Immovable obstructions and should be treated accordingly but this is a war of attrition and we will endeavor to keep on top of this.
7th we have undertaken a program to reduce and help the trees here this on going and should help with a variety of issues.
16TH Hole 
Contractors will grade the mound in between the 6th Tee and the 16th Fairway before finishing with top soil and seed.
the Ridge in the fairway will be topped up with Topsoil to create a more gradual slope this will help with play ability and maintenance this will be finished with Turf.
 We appreciate your help and understanding and I am sure that once finished will add to the hole not detract from it.  
The Spiker that many of you will have seen around has been purchased and will add to the continual improvement of the greens working along side the Greens Iron and Verti Cutters already Purchased early on this year.
We have also brought a Bunker Master which again lots of you have seen and also commented on this with the addition of Sand to some bunkers had a marked effect before the wet weather set in.
Once again Thanks for your Support and your understanding in what are trying conditions for Greenkeepers
Cheers

James(Weasel)

Monday, 25 August 2014

Thank you

Firstly I would like to say a big thank you to all the members who supported the green staff on saturday. Congratulations to Russ Chapman for winning the gentlemens competition and Jill Atkinson who won the ladies. Lorraine Howd won ladies closest the pin in three on 13 and Paul Newell closest the pin in two on 17.

 We have continued to crown lift the trees to make it easier to cut the rough plus making balls easier to find.

Other areas on the course are being tidied as time permits.

The course recovered well after the rain the other Sunday and it gave us the opportunity to trial a machine which helps maintain bunkers by 'fluffing' up the sand. Sand in bunkers is being monitored and added as required.

The greens are still  being verticut weekly and spiked to a depth of 30mm which helps with thatch reduction. Topdressing was also put on the greens last week with another 5 tonnes being used.

We have also topdressed the tees and aprons which in time will improve the playing surface.

With the help of cultural works, topdressing and chemical applications we really hope to improve these areas with the help of golfers. By continuing to keep trolleys and buggies away from the green aprons it will improve the quality of the turf.

 Spraying of various chemicals to improve appearance, health and playability  have been applied in recent weeks and we are monitoring results to try and establish the best program for the course.



Thanks again

James, Mick, Richard, Paul, Alan and Billy