Disease pressure

The recent beautiful golfing weather has created ideal conditions for turfgrass diseases.  The New Year's Eve forecast is 83 degrees and 90% humidity!  The foggy mornings and short days act as an incubator for diseases such as pythium and bipolaris leaf spot. 

 

 

Below is a photograph of the early stages of a bipolaris leaf spot outbreak on our putting green.  Practices such as reducing watering and treatment with fungicide will keep the disease from spreading during these conditions.

 

 

Below is a close up of the damage to leaf tissue caused by the leaf spot.  Typically the disease will first show up around the edges of the greens.



Parts Inventory room udate

Part of our "Working Lean" manager training program included the recent 5S training exercise.  The 5S's are Sort, Shine, Set in Order, Standardize, and Sustain.  The perfect application for this exercise was our parts inventory room at our Golf Maintenance facility.  As you can see in the photos below, the newly organized room has eliminated clutter and will reduce the down-time on our equipment as our technicians will spend less time looking and more time fixing.  Our inventory management program will help insure that we have spare parts on the shelf instead of ordering and waiting (proactive vs. reactive).

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AFTER:

Logo facelift

The Forest signature gumbo limbo tree logo, located in the cart staging area, got a facelift last week with a fresh coat of paint.  

Check out this unique "double headed" queen palm.  We have never seen a specimen like it!  Have a look for yourself next time you play #6 Bobcat, to the right of the cartpath.

Lake interconnect inspections

In preparation for the upcoming Bobcat project, we have identified a number of corrugated metal pipe (CMP) lake interconnects that have begun to fail.  The galvanized metal is 30+ years old in most cases, and has outlived its effective lifespan.  The most cost effective way to replace these pipes is to dig them up and lay new high density polyethylene (HDPE) pipe in their place.  However, some areas don't lend themselves to excavation and construction work, so the company Extreme Divers has a patented system for installing sleeves inside existing CMP pipe, eliminating the need to dig them up.  Extreme Divers has been on site at The Forest for the past few weeks inspecting the candidates for sleeves with their remote operated vehicle equipped with a video camera mounted.  Very interesting stuff!

#10 Bobcat irrigation work

Our main irrigation line developed a leak this week on the 10th fairway of the Bobcat course.  In this area, the main line is at its deepest point on the entire property, over 5 feet below the surface!  It is a challenge working this deep, especially on our property where we are so close to the water table. 

Walk mowing tees

We have recently begun to experiment with walk mowing our tees.  This is a more time consuming process than with the riding "triplex" mowers that have been used here at The Forest historically and requires one additional equipment operator each time we mow the tees.  Mowing square tee boxes with triplex mowers is very difficult and causes unnecessary wear along the front and back of the tees and causes the tee box to lose definition.  Many high end clubs use this practice and we are hoping that this upgrade will improve the quality of turf on the tee tops and surrounding areas.

Bobcat #12 cartpath

When the Bobcat course reopens on Tuesday September 16, 2014 from our final closure, you will notice a change in the routing of #12 cart path.  We excavated a new screening cart path that cuts between the 1 and 2 tee boxes and continues down the left side of the tee complex.  This was done in conjunction with architect Gordon Lewis's planning for a project in summer 2015, in an effort to move golfers and carts further away from #11 green.  Next summer during the project we hope to remove the path on the right side of the tees and move all tee boxes further to the left side of the hole, closer to the new path.

Beautification at Tennis Center

We have recently completed work to update the look at the entrance to the Tennis Center.  A clusia hedge was planted along the canal to shield it from view.  Clusia is a drought tolerant and fast growing variety that we will maintain at a height of 6 feet.

DO NOT ADJUST YOUR SCREEN

Today on the Bear course we applied humate to a handful of tees and approaches.  Humate is a plant health product that is intended to amend sandy soils and create an environment that will hold more water and nutrient in the root zone.  Humate is created by the degradation of dead organic matter and is harvested from ancient peat bogs.  Humate has been proven in University Studies to reduce the need for fertilizer because it helps fertilizer work more efficiently.  The black granular will work its way into the aerification holes over the coming days and disappear by the time we reopen the Bear on Saturday August 16, 2014

Putting green and staging area improvements

We recently completed work to enhance the aesthetics and functionality of the cart staging and putting green area.  This work included: Installation of several hundred feet of curb to replace the rotten 6" X 6" timbers, re-sodding the walk up to the putting green with more shade tolerant Celebration Bermudagrass, expansion of flower beds, re-planting of perennials and annuals, and addition of sub-surface drainage to eliminate standing water.  See some photos below:

Curbing work

Check out this short video to see our Little Bubba curbing machine in action.  For a materials cost of about $.80 per foot we are able to install these curbs in house.  They will help us with the flow of traffic and water.  We have done a lot of curbing around the back of the Clubhouse and will continue this work throughout the Bear course this year.

 

Melalueca removal

Last week we completed the removal of 15 invasive melaleuca trees on #13 Bobcat.  These trees were particularly undesirable because they hid 7 beautiful royal palm trees as well as provided a great deal of shade to the 1 tee on #13.  The palms are now exposed and the tee will be much healthier now with adequate sunlight.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

Melaleucas are considered an invasive species, native to Australia.  The roots absorb a great deal of water and they were introduced to the area in the early-mid 1900's in hopes of draining the land.  However, they had a negative impact on the environment because they reproduce rapidly and grow very close together.  Trees that grow so densely (less than a foot between trunks in some cases) cause great harm to large birds such as herons, eagles, hawks, and osprey that cannot maneuver between the tight spaces.

Wedding area/fitness garden work

Next time you visit the Club, you will notice a big change in the wedding area/fitness garden area.  Construction in the past 10 days has helped to solve the major problems in this is otherwise beautiful spot:  installation of drainage to keep water from pooling in low spots, replacement of cracked and uneven concrete, root pruning of large mahogany trees, installation of curbing to replace old 6'X6' lumber, and addition of fresh, new, colorful landscaping.  The photos below are from work in progress.  The project should be complete by July 17, 2014.

Demolition of existing concrete/asphalt/roots

 

Contractors tie drainage into large basin by Pro Shop

Re-pouring reinforced concrete

Bear course update

You may not have seen some of the improvements we have been working on recently on the Bear course.  Below is the newly expanded tee on #1 (3/Players tee).  You can see the original size where the grass is, and the newly added surface to the right side which will increase the teeing surface by 150%.  We will use Celebration bermudagrass, a more shade tolerant variety, to sod the entire area. 

 

Below are two newly planted beds on #1 and #8 Bear.  We used colorful varieties of crotons, thryallis, and arboricola.

Completed drainage project

Last week we put the finishing touches on our large drainage project between #10/#16 fairways.  You will recall the large ditch reachable from both holes on a tee shot, that connected two large 30" culverts.  We installed pipe and filled the ditch, then sodded the area.  Notice the before/after photos below. 

Bobcat update

As we prepare the Bobcat golf course for re-opening on Tuesday June 3, 2014, we have begun to wrap up our planned summer projects scheduled for this closure.  We have installed 5 new drain systems on #6 and #9 fairways that has included the following process:  strip old sod, amend existing hardpan soil by tilling 50 tons (total for all 5 drains) of coarse sand in with native soil, installation of 700 linear feet of 4" subsurface drainage, and re-sod on top of newly drained area.  In fact, during the installation of the final drain system on #6 fairway, we discovered and removed several boulders (below) that were just a couple inches below the surface.  No wonder the turf struggled growing on boulders!!!

New Aerification Equipment

We have been telling golfers for some time now that the new equipment purchases this year are going to have a huge impact on course conditions next season.  Now we are able to explain just how we are going to accomplish this by using our new state of the art aerification equipment:

Each summer during our course closures we extensively aerify both courses from tee-to-green.  Aerification is intended to provide a multitude of benefits through mitigating the compaction our courses see each season: increased turf density due to the availability of oxygen to the roots, removal excess thatch that can contribute to disease, better water infiltration, and grain removal (in conjunction with vertical mowing).  The equipment we have been using for the past several years is extremely antiquated and outdated.  New technology will be able to revolutionize the quality of turf on our fairways by being more accurate and effective.  In the photo below you can see our 2014 equipment (right) beside the older roller-style aerifier that has been around since the 1940's.

 
The effectiveness of an aerifier is dependent on the width, depth, quality, and amount of holes punched.  As you can see from the photos below, all these factors are improved with the new equipment. 



Old machine; holes 9"+ apart

New machine; holes less than 3" apart

Notice more holes, tighter spacing, deeper holes, and better quality holes with the newer machine on the right

Bear course drainage ditch work

We are getting an early start on our summer projects and have begun work to eliminate the drainage ditch between the 10th and 16th fairways on the Bear course.  This ditch holds water year round and spans a 110' section between two 30" culvert pipes.  Our plan is to take advantage of the dry conditions and low water table levels and dredge the ditch, install new pipe to connect the two culverts, and fill in the ditch.  The ditch will not be missed as it is both unsightly and within the landing area for errant shots on both holes.  We should complete the project in the first week of May, and will allow the area to settle for a couple weeks before sodding.  Stay tuned for before/after photos.

Birds at The Forest

As we can all attest to, wildlife is part of what makes The Forest such a special place.  This was demonstrated in late March when an adult osprey was released in the open area adjacent to #15 Bear tees.  The female osprey was rescued from this same area by Forest member Mr. Ben-Susan and rehabilitated for a month at the Center for Rehabilitation of Wildlife (C.R.O.W.) on Sanibel Island.  The bird was successfully reunited with her mate.  Below is a video of the release of this beautiful animal. 

Below are some more bird photos taken on the courses (credit Bear Course Superintendent Jake Caleca):

Two Great Horned Owlets nesting behind #2 Bobcat green 

Wood storks (endangered species)



Female osprey (check out the talons!)

Bald eagle keeping a watchful eye on #4 Bobcat

Healthy Greens Start With Healthy Roots

They key to growing a healthy plant is having healthy roots.  Plants absorb water and a high percentage of nutrients from their roots, so the deeper and healthier the roots, the more water/nutrients are accessible.  As far as turfgrass is concerned, we look for long white roots to indicate plant health.  Roots that appear brown, black, or stubby may be suffering from maladies such as nematodes, insect damage, or disease.  The white roots seen below (Bobcat #12) indicate a healthy green and frankly, we have not seen healthy roots this season on the Bobcat greens.  This is certainly an encouraging sight!
 

DryJect demo

In our constant pursuit to improve playing conditions throughout both golf courses, we have recently tested a process called DryJect.  We chose #16 Bobcat to demo the machine as it we feel the high retained moisture content in #16 makes it the ideal candidate.  The purpose of this procedure is to improve the green's ability to drain water by creating deep sand channels for the water to percolate through.  The process works like this:
1.  The DryJect machine blasts a jet of high pressure water (3000PSI) up to 12" deep into the green.

2.  Kiln-dried bagged sand is injected into the hole created by the high pressure water.  The sand channel is approximately 1/4" wide at the surface but expands to over 1" at the final depth.  In the photo below you will notice the green sand that was injected into the profile.

3.  The holes are noticeably visible and will disappear within another week with regular topdressing.  We will closely monitor the recovery of the 16th green and we are hopeful that this process can help reduce the amount of water our aging greens on the Bobcat course hold.

Aerosol sunscreen/bug spray damage

Below is a photograph of some damage caused by aerosol sunscreen or bug spray.  The propellant in these product burns the turf and leaves two perfect foot prints of healthy green turf.  The grass will recover in a couple days, but to avoid this unsightly occurrence, please apply these products over the cart path. 

New additions on your golf courses

During you next rounds, you may notice some new additions to the courses.  On the Bear course, we have replaced the Pro Tee markers with custom bear markers.  These new markers are made of cast bronze and will last many years.  We have also added divot mix stations at each restroom to allow golfers to refill during their round.  These pots contain the same green sand as the divot boxes on our cart fleet and pull carts.  This is a good opportunity to remind golfers that it is THEIR responsibility to repair any divots they make.  The golf course maintenance staff supplements this by checking and filling divots on all tees twice each week.

Green drainage 101

When considering the health of a green, the most important factor is a superintendent’s ability to manage the moisture in the soil.  Due to this fact, most new greens are built to USGA specifications which include subsurface drainage topped by 16” of sand before the green is seeded or sprigged.  The sand allows water to move quickly through the soil profile and aids in creating a firm surface that is free from the severe disease pressure caused by wet greens.  Over time, a green will accumulate an organic layer of bio degraded roots, shoots, and leaves that acts as a sponge soaking up and retaining water.  Aerification and verticutting are the most common ways of managing and removing this water holding organic matter.  As the organic matter increases, a green will stay wetter, longer.  Once organic matter reaches dangerous levels (4%-6%) the green becomes a good candidate for restoration.  

In the photographs below, notice how the new Bear greens have just a little organic matter (darker in color) while the Bobcat greens are VERY organic.  This is one reason why we have so much disease pressure on the Bobcat greens VS. the new, better draining, less organic Bear greens. 

 

                   BOBCAT GREEN PROFILE                                         BEAR GREEN PROFILE

 

  

          

 

                                                
                                                                                                                       

Is this a sign that the greens are slow?

Another great example of the wildlife here at The Forest Country Club, this Florida softshell turtle will be happy to let you play through on #15 Bobcat!