Course Update 12/27/18

It was a short week due to the Christmas break, but we were able to continue spraying fairways with the snow mold fungicides.  Lakes and Grove courses are complete, along with most of Orchard.  We were hoping to finish up today, but ran out of daylight.  We'll try again tomorrow, but it all depends on the weather and how much rain we get overnight.

Speaking of rain, the National Weather Service office in Pittsburgh has reported that our region may break the yearly rainfall record if 0.67" of rain is received before year end.  Here at Treesdale we've received 61.58" of rain so far this year, which is 22.5" above our yearly average of 39.08".

Course Update 12/20/18

The courses were a little wet after last weekend's rain, but it was a very productive week for the maintenance team and a few outside contractors.  All greens and tees, along with most of the fairways on Lakes were sprayed with a winter fungicide application to protect the turf from snow mold.  The chemicals used specifically target the disease and are formulated to last up to four months given moderate weather variations.  The ideal application period is when the turf has stopped producing new leaf tissue and the ground is not frozen.  Frozen ground limits the plant's ability to absorb the fungicide which results in reduced disease control.  We had planned to apply the products at the beginning of the month, but the rain, snow, and ice events prevented us from doing so.  In total, we will spray 53 acres of turf with a chemical cost of $17,000 and plan to finish spraying the fairways after the Christmas break.

There are two types of snow mold that negatively affect turfgrass, pink and gray.  Gray snow mold is associated with long periods of snow cover and pink snow mold can occur with or without snow.  Gray snow mold is much more destructive and can kill large areas of turf, while pink snow mold typically attacks leaf tissue and does not harm the growing point (crown) of the plant.  In southwestern PA we use a fungicide that targets both pink and gray snow mold since we don't know what the weather will be like during the winter.

This is the typical appearance of Pink Snow Mold on fairway turf.  Notice the pinkish hue around
the outside of the infected patches.

In addition to the chemical sprays, a considerable amount of time was spent blowing leaves and cleaning up debris.  There were also a couple frosty mornings that allowed the staff to continue removing brush and unwanted vegetation near cart paths.  A few contractors were also on property grinding stumps, deep-tining fairways, and backfilling gravel in the fairway drain lines installed during the summer.

Like I said, it was a busy week!

Removing brush around the drainage swale left of Lakes 3 fairway.

Tree roots, broken branches and a buildup of leaves are limiting the amount of water going into the drain pipe. 

The contractor used three machines to deep-tine the fairways in two days with an equipment value of $250,000.

This was supposed to be core aerification back in September, but the rainy weather kept delaying the process and we decided to deep-tine versus doing nothing at all.  Regular core aerification is already scheduled for the spring.

The aerification process uses 3/4" solid tines that penetrate up to 8" deep depending on soil conditions and the amount of rock present.  Deep-tining fractures compacted soil for improved water penetration, gas exchange, and root growth.

Course Update 12/13/18

Tree work continued this week since the courses remained frozen and snow covered.  The staff spent most of the week removing brush and smaller trees in the wooded area between Lakes 7 green and 8 tee.  They are getting rid of the unwanted vegetation in preparation for removing the bigger trees after Christmas.  We'll be renting an excavator again this year to make removing and cleaning up the larger trees faster and more efficient, and having the brush removed saves a lot of time.  There are several large Oak, Maple and Hickory trees in good condition that we plan to keep, while most of the smaller trees (Cherry, Locust, Poplar) are damaged or in decline, and need to be removed.  Similar to past years, we're removing trees and brush to provide more sunlight and airflow to areas of the golf course that have weak, thin turf.

Looking back towards 7 fwy from 8 white tee.  7 was not visible prior to us removing the smaller vegetation.

Looking towards 8 from 7 fwy.  Still a lot of work to do, but it's a good start.

8 near the silver tee

Woodline to the right of 7.  A significant amount of brush and smaller trees have been removed, but there's numerous trees that still need to come out to improve the turf above the fairway bunkers.

This area between the rain shelter and 8 silver tee was so overgrown you couldn't walk around the rain shelter.

Here's a view of the blue and gold tees on 8.  Notice the shade cast by the trees even when they don't have leaves.

Weak, thin turf around the tees on 8 created by a lack of sunlight and airflow.

I regularly use an app called Sun Seeker to identify where the sun is located at a given time on any day of the year.  For our purposes I chose the first day of spring and summer to identify which trees need to be removed to maximize morning light.  This is a view of 8 gold tee looking back towards 7 tees.

Course Update 12/6/18

With the golf courses still too wet to access early in the week, we continued underbrushing and removing trees around the entrance to the tunnel behind Grove 7 green.  We kept the pine and spruce trees bordering the area to buffer the road noise and the view for the homeowners, but had to remove all other trees and the underbrush that was choking out the evergreen trees.  Cleaning this area up not only improves the aesthetics, but also allows for more sunlight and airflow to penetrate which will keep the cart path drier and reduce the accumulation of moss during the summer and ice during the winter.  The final step for this area is to grind the stumps and clean up the spoils.  The contractor will be on site in the next few weeks to grind other stumps throughout the property, and we will direct him to these as the weather allows.

Course Update 11/29/18

It seems like winter may have arrived early with the cold, snowy weather the first part of this week.  Since we couldn't perform any turf-related maintenance activities, we continued cleaning up broken branches and removing damaged trees.  Most of our time was spent behind Grove 7 green pruning broken branches on some Oaks and Maples, along with removing 5 white pine trees that were severely damaged by the recent ice storm.

Please be aware that we had to close and winterize the restrooms on each nine due to the extended period of sub-freezing temperatures.  The walls and ceilings are not insulated and the buildings were not designed to stay open all year.  The restrooms will open in the spring once the temperature warms up so there's no chance of frozen pipes.

Course Update 11/21/18

The winter storm that hit us last Thursday and Friday left a considerable amount of damage that we're still cleaning up from.  The worst part of the storm was the freezing rain and subsequent ice accumulation on the trees that brought down a lot of limbs.  Damage was widespread due to many trees that still had leaves, along with the typical white pines that have soft, weak wood.  After getting around all three courses, most of the damaged trees will survive and only require selective pruning to remove the broken branches up in the canopy.  A few trees have been removed because the damage was too severe, and in several cases trees were removed for safety concerns due to their proximity to cart paths and other high traffic areas.

One of the trees that was severely damaged was the American Elm adjacent to the gold tee on Grove 1.  It's one of only a few American Elm trees remaining in this area and we have invested significant resources over the years trying to keep it healthy.  The main trunks are supported by heavy duty cables that connect opposite trunks to offset their weight, and still allow them to move naturally.  Unfortunately, one of the smaller trunks that wasn't cabled couldn't hold up to the extra weight of the ice and broke away from the tree.  A small amount of decomposed heartwood was observed in the crotch where the trunk attached, so we had a certified arborist look at the tree on Monday.  They said the decomposition was common for a tree of this size and age, and it should remain healthy with a little TLC this spring.

Pear trees are routinely damaged from ice storms and there was nothing left of this one.

American Elm on Grove 1 damaged by ice and snow.

Here's a close up of the damaged trunk.  Notice the darker decomposed wood higher up that doesn't offer any structural integrity.  Only the lighter colored, healthy wood towards the bottom kept the limb attached.  Once the limb is removed we will clean up the damaged area to prevent disease and insect infestation.

The staff started cutting up and sorting the branches to make it easier once the chipper arrived.

Course Update 11/15/18

Deep tine aerification of fairways was scheduled for this week but had to be postponed again due to wet conditions.  The fairways are too soft for carts or equipment, and we would cause more damage by trying to aerify.  The contractor is based out of western Ohio, so he can mobilize in a day or two if we feel conditions could allow the equipment on the turf.  I am optimistic that we will have warmer, and possibly drier weather after Thanksgiving to complete the process.

Course Update 11/8/18

With the courses still very wet from another week of rainy weather, most of our time was split between blowing leaves and winterizing the irrigation systems.  Every fall all the water has to be removed from the irrigation systems to prevent ice from forming and damaging critical irrigation components.  As water freezes it expands and ice is much stronger than plastic pipe.  I've even seen ice cause steel pipe to split open.  The first step in the process is to shut down the three pump stations, open all drain valves, and let gravity remove most of the water.  Once the water has drained out a large air compressor is connected to the irrigation systems and air is forced through the lines at a high volume, but low pressure.  Too much air pressure can damage pipe and irrigation heads the same way high water pressure does.  The staff will then split up into several teams and go to every satellite control box to systematically turn on approximately 1,300 irrigation heads to blow out any remaining water.  After all the heads are blown out we will go back to the areas that tend to hold water and run through those heads for a second time.  It usually takes 4 full days to winterize both irrigation systems.

In addition to the two irrigation systems on the golf courses, the maintenance staff is responsible for winterizing the restroom facility on each nine, along with miscellaneous landscape irrigation and a water line in the driving range building.

We rent a 900 cfm air compressor that connects to the irrigation systems through a 2" hose with special fittings.  We have to install a pressure regulator on the compressor's discharge line to lower the operating pressure from 150 psi down to 50 psi to prevent damaging the pvc pipe.

The mist coming out of the irrigation head is water vapor being pushed by the compressed air.

Course Update 11/1/18

It was another rainy week and brings our total rainfall in October to 4.33".  That's 1.66" above the monthly average and puts us just over 20" above normal year to date.  Even though it was wet, we were able to finish topdressing and aerifying Lakes tees, along with topdressing the remaining tees on Orchard.   We still need to finish topdressing the tees on Grove 6 and 7, and will complete that as soon as conditions allow.  In addition to tee aerification, we mowed Grove greens this week for the first time since being aerified, and continued mowing outer rough and blowing leaves.  It's been challenging to complete our list of regular maintenance activities this year, but we're making the best of it while not damaging the turf and creating more work later on.

On a recent frosty morning we started removing some of the River Birch trees along the sidewalk at bag drop.  We're removing the trees along the hillside covered by river rock because the trees have grown too large for that area.  They have girdling roots which slowly encircle the base of the tree, ultimately killing it, and the roots that have spread outward are cracking and buckling the cart path and sidewalk.  Once the trees are removed we will pick up and re-use the river rock in other parts of the landscape.  We will then transplant perennial grasses and a few other plants to fill in the space and spread mulch in the spring to finish the area.  Stay tuned for more pictures showing our progress.

Course Update 10/25/18

Lakes and Orchard greens were mowed for the first time this week since being aerified approximately two weeks ago.  The healing process is progressing as expected for this time of year and most of the holes are almost grown over.  The recent frosts and cool temperatures have slowed down turf growth so there may be some aerification holes that remain open into winter.  That's not a bad thing since it allows water to drain faster off the surface and more oxygen is able to find its way to the roots.  As we normally do this time of year, we've raised the cutting height on greens to help the turf prepare for winter dormancy.  Most golfers won't notice the change given all the sand that's still on the surface, but the increase in length provides more leaf tissue that allows the plant to increase its carbohydrate production.  Carbohydrates are the main source of food for plant cells and will be stored to help the plant survive the winter.

Tee aerification began last week, and Orchard and Grove are finished.  We plan to start aerifying Lakes tees tomorrow and will most likely need another day to finish.  We've also been topdressing the tees with sand this fall, which hasn't been done for a while.  The combination of core aerifying and topdressing is the best practice to having firm tees.  The tees currently have too much thatch (organic matter), which is why the tees are soft and spongy.  Going forward, our plan is to core aerify and topdress the tees in the spring and fall to reduce the amount of thatch.  Several tees on Orchard and Grove still need to be topdressed, and were initially skipped because the tees were too wet and soft to drive the topdresser on.

Fairway aerification has been rescheduled to November 14-16.  Those were the first dates the contractor had available and hopefully the weather cooperates.  We had originally planned to core aerify the fairways again as was done in the spring, but the days are too short for adequate drying time and the soil is usually too wet that late in the year.  Instead, the contractor will be deep-tining to a depth of 8-10 inches using a 3/4 inch diameter solid tine.  The deep-tine is a good alternative to core aerifying in that it also relieves compaction, and opens the soil to exchange harmful carbon dioxide for beneficial oxygen.  Another benefit to aerifying that late in the year is the holes will remain open through most of the winter and will allow water to drain from the surface.  That water will most likely go through several freeze/thaw cycles and the expanding ice will fracture the soil creating more channels for root growth and water drainage.

The same machine is used to aerify both tees and greens, but we use a larger tine on tees on a 2x2 inch spacing.

Scooping plugs is a great way to stay warm on a cool fall day.

This year we experimented with topdressing before or after aerifying to see which gave the best results.  Topdressing before is the preferred method because it makes cleanup easier and works more sand down into the turf.

This tee was topdressed prior to being aerified.  Very little sand was removed from the surface and the remaining sand will be washed into the holes during the next rain storm.

Frost Delays

Now that cooler weather has returned, I thought it would be a good idea to revisit a post about frost delays. There have been two frost delays so far this fall along with some damage from people walking on frozen turf. When out for your morning walks, please stay on the cart paths and sidewalks. This also applies to your pets, as dogs can damage frozen turf the same way humans do.

The picture below of Orchard 1 is a good example of what happens when you walk on frozen turf.  You can clearly see the black footprints in the rough and fairway which indicate dying grass.

Frost is common this time of year and can even occur when the air temperature is above freezing.  Frost will usually be evident at sunrise, as the air at ground level is warmed it becomes lighter and rises.  Colder, denser air will take the place of the warm air and can be 5-10 degrees cooler, thus creating frozen turf.  Frost usually "burns off" quickly in direct sunlight, but certain areas of the course are heavily shaded and take longer to thaw.  The maintenance staff monitors specific areas throughout the course on cool mornings to determine whether frost is present, and the decision to allow play is based on when those areas will be frost-free.  An easy way to tell if frost is present is by running your hand across the grass.  If the dew wipes away it's safe to walk on the turf.

Click here to watch a short video about frost.

Greens Aerification

The weather was perfect for aerifying Lakes and Orchard greens on Tuesday and Wednesday.  Unfortunately, rain showers moved in last night and this morning, delaying the process on Grove.  The weather tomorrow will be much cooler than what we had earlier in the week, but that won't affect us as long as it doesn't rain.  A little moisture is a good thing while aerifying because it provides lubrication for the coring tine to enter the root zone and reduces tearing of the plant.  Moisture is not a good thing when topdressing because the sand needs to be completely dry in order to fill all the aerification holes.  A few greens will need to be brushed again to even out the sand, but overall we're happy with the process and the holes should heal in a couple of weeks as long as the temps don't go too low.

The first step in this process is deep tining.  A contractor uses a machine with 1/2" diameter solid tines to relieve compaction in the root zone to a depth of 10"

The deep tine unit is setup for 2.5" lateral by 3" forward spacing.

Right after the green is deep tined we use our aerifier to remove 3/8" diameter cores up to 4" deep.  The collection box attached to the aerifier dumps the plugs at the edge of the green when the coring head is raised.  The crew then shovels the plugs into a utility vehicle and disposes of them.

This is what the green looks like after it's blown off and rolled.  The tines on our aerifier are setup for 1.5"x1.5" spacing which creates 72 holes per square foot.

Once the greens are cleaned and rolled, we apply enough topdressing sand to evenly cover the entire putting surface and collar.  We use a specially blended sand that conforms to USGA specifications and closely matches the sand that our greens were constructed with to prevent contamination and other long-term issues.  The topdressing sand costs $55 per ton and we will use around 75 tons this fall between all three nines.

This was taken after one brushing.  Most of the holes are filled, but we found brushing again in a different direction will fill all the holes and disperse the sand better.  The greens will be frequently rolled over the next couple of weeks until most of the sand has disappeared.  It doesn't make sense to mow too soon and risk picking up mostly sand.

Course Update 10/4/18

Our average rainfall for September is 3.28", yet we received 11.14" this year.  That's more than three times the average, and things haven't been much better the first four days of October.  If this pattern continues, there are areas that may not dry out until 2019.  Hopefully the long range forecasts are correct and the jet stream shifts course, giving us drier weather.  We obviously have some challenges out there, and we've been doing a lot of walk mowing on greens, tees, and approaches to reduce the chances of damaging the turf when conditions are this wet.  The staff and I truly appreciate your patience and understanding given our current situation, and we're just as frustrated as you are.

Remember that greens aerification is scheduled for Tuesday (9th), Wednesday (10th), Thursday (11th) next week.  We'll aerify, cleanup, and topdress nine holes per day, doing Lakes, Orchard, Grove, respectively.  Core aerification is an important practice in maintaining healthy turf and must be done every year.  The long-term benefits achieved from the process far outweigh the short-term issues that arise because of it.

Click here to watch a short video about why we aerate

Course Update 9/27/18

Another 2" of rain fell since the last post one week ago, bringing our total rainfall to 11.02" for the month.  It seems like we can't catch a break, with more storms moving up from the south that will likely add to our total this evening.  Maybe we'll get lucky and the storms will miss us!

Either way, the golf courses are the wettest I've seen them in my 3 years here, and frankly I don't think they could get much worse.  Just walking off the cart path results in muddy shoes and splashing water.  You also need to be cautious while walking on uneven ground.  We've received a couple slip and fall reports due to the wet conditions, but thankfully no serious injuries.  Should you decide to take the cart off the path there's a very good chance you'll get stuck, and probably end up damaging the turf and leaving ruts that will be evident the rest of this year.  Managing a golf course given our present conditions is very challenging, and managing expectations is by far the most difficult job.  Greens are soft and nowhere close to the condition they should be in, and the same can be said for fairways, tees, and rough.  Greens were mowed Monday, and again today, although a couple had to be walk-mowed because we didn't want to damage the turf by using the normal riding mowers.  Our smaller, more maneuverable rough mowers have been out trying to find areas they can mow without causing long-term damage.  Fairways and tees also haven't been mowed since Monday, and we may not be able to mow them this week with additional rainfall.  Deciding whether to mow or not are made with the best interest of the membership in mind, and what will have the least impact on the courses long-term.

Since the greens are softer than normal, ball marks are much more evident.  It's been a while since we discussed it, so click the link below to watch a short video on how to properly repair a ball mark.  The group playing behind you and the maintenance staff thanks you!

How To Repair a Ball Mark


In last week's post I spoke about Gray Leaf Spot and its effects on the rough.  The recent cooler weather has stopped the spread of the disease, and we will begin overseeding once the rough dries out and won't be damaged by the overseeder.  Unfortunately, another disease has emerged due to the cloudy, damp conditions, and is affecting a few greens.  The disease is called Anthracnose, and is an opportunistic pathogen that specifically targets Annual Bluegrass (Poa annua).  I refer to the disease as opportunistic because it is always present in a golf course environment, but will only infect turf during stress-related periods such as weather events like we've experienced over the past 3 weeks.  Our weekly spray applications to the greens uses low rates of fungicides designed to stop the Anthracnose infection, but the recent environmental conditions necessitate higher rates that will stop the spread of the disease.  Our next fungicide application is scheduled for tomorrow, and hopefully the weather will allow us to get the sprayers out.  Once applied, we will see reduced disease activity the next day and the turf will start producing new leaves shortly after.

The gold colored leaves are Poa plants infected with Anthracnose

Course Update 9/20/18

Another 1.19" of rain fell Monday into Tuesday from the remnants of hurricane Florence, bringing our total rainfall so far this month to 8.99".  That's almost triple our average rainfall for the entire month and we still have 10 days to go.  The excessive rainfall, combined with warm temps and high humidity, has created ideal conditions for a fungal pathogen named Gray Leaf Spot.  It's a devastating disease that we don't see very often in this area, and it's preferred host is Perennial Ryegrass and some older varieties of Tall Fescue.  Chemical control of the disease after seeing the infection is marginal at best, but we've sprayed most of the rough where infections have occurred.  Ideally, our roughs would consist of Kentucky Bluegrass and Turf-type Tall Fescue, since both are naturally resistant to the disease.  A few areas around greens will need to be sodded this fall, and the rest of the damaged areas will be overseeded with Turf-type Tall Fescue.  We've also stopped mowing the first-cut of rough around the fairways and greens to let the turf recover faster.

Click here to learn more about Gray Leaf Spot and its effects on golf courses.

Perennial Ryegrass rough infected with Gray Leaf Spot

Turf-type Tall Fescue sod on Orchard 6 installed this spring that is unaffected by Gray Leaf Spot

Another view of Orchard 6 illustrating the specific host requirements of the disease.  The Bentgrass fairway and darker green Turf-type Tall Fescue sod are unaffected while the adjacent rough is showing signs of infection

Course Update 9/13/18

The courses have dried out over the past two days, but there are still fairway and rough areas that remain too wet for mower and cart traffic.  The overcast and humid conditions, combined with very little wind haven't allowed the excess moisture to evaporate as quickly as we'd hoped.  However, as course conditions continue to improve I anticipate several holes being ready for cart traffic this weekend, as long as the isolated storms miss us.

I tip my hat to the staff once again and thank them for their efforts getting the courses, and especially the bunkers, put back together.  There's still a little more cleanup along the edges of some holes, but overall the place looks good.  I originally estimated a week to repair the bunkers, but this dedicated team had them done by Wednesday afternoon!  That allowed us to get the mowers out today and we made pretty good progress.  Fairways, approaches, tees and rough haven't been cut since Friday and there was a significant amount of growth.  Don't be surprised to see clippings when you play the next few days.  We have blowers out, but it's going to take several mowing cycles to get the turf back down to its regular height.  We also plan to have the mowers out both days this weekend, ideally ahead of play.

Please remember that fairway aerification is scheduled for Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday of next week.  Similar to this spring, a contractor will core aerify and cleanup the plugs on one nine each day, leaving 18 holes open for play.  We're waiting to see if/when the remnants of hurricane Florence will impact us, and will decide if the process needs to be rescheduled.

Course Update 9/11/18

As of this morning we've received 7.80" of rain since the first thunderstorm hit Thursday afternoon.  Most of the rainfall came on Sunday, all 5.50" of it.  The courses handled it well and there wasn't any major damage.  Mostly washed out bunkers and debris that floated out of the woods, along with creeks and ponds that were well over their banks.  It could have been a lot worse and the situation was helped by how dry the soil was last week leading up to the storm.

Unfortunately, the property still has a lot of water that needs to drain off and our regular maintenance activities can not resume until that happens.  This morning we were able to mow greens, change cups, and start repairing bunkers.  It will most likely take all week to get the bunkers back in playable condition due to the amount of sand that washed, and some bunkers still have standing water in them that needs to be pumped out.  All other mowing is on hold until later in the week when there is less chance to damage the turf from saturated conditions.  The good news is that the courses will be open for regular play tomorrow, and the maintenance staff is doing everything we can to resume normal operations.

Thank you for your patience!

Looking down on Orchard 2 from Treesdale Drive on Sunday afternoon.  The cart path is somewhere under all that water

Grove 6 green on Monday morning.  All the greens had varying amounts of standing water that drained quickly once the rain stopped

Runoff from the woods across Orchard 1 fairway

New drain line on Orchard 8 upper fairway was overwhelmed by the amount of water coming down.  We were able to straighten the pipe and lay it back in the trench after cleaning up the sand and gravel that washed out

Several drain lines lost pea gravel due to the excessive volume of water flowing down them.  The good news is that we have the drain lines in the right spots to catch runoff that used to keep the fairways so wet

Typical condition of the bunkers after a storm of this size

Pretty easy to see where the water came into the bunker

Good example of a finished bunker after repairing the washouts and giving it a final rake

We opened the auxiliary drain on Orchard 2 pond to further lower the water level so surrounding areas could drain quicker