Yelverton Golf Club

Greens Department - Summer 2010 Newsletter

It’s been a strange year this year weather wise. All or nothing! After a cold, dry start to the year, we suddenly found ourselves in a very hot, droughty period. This has meant that the grass plants have experienced many stresses of which we have had to react to. During the hot, dry spell, we prioritised any watering to the greens. Tees and fairways experienced severe heat stress in places, but have recovered really well after the recent rains (with the help of some wetting agent)! The capacity and supply of our irrigation system, limits how much we can water during periods of severe heat and drought. During this period, we were hand-watering greens every 2-3 days, allowing the borehole to top-up the storage tank between applications. When possible, some of the worst tees were irrigated to promote recovery.

In July, we have had plenty of rain 140mm, which is as much as we have had for April, May and June combined! This has boosted growth and germination rates to aid any recovery from wear and stresses. It has also meant that the greens have a very dense covering and along with being soft from the rains, the greens are a little slower than that of late. We are currently increasing verti-cutting and topdressing procedures to thin-out and firm the surfaces to improve speed slightly. Green speed is governed by friction between the ball and the surface. Grass species can determine this through size of leaf blade, fine-leaved grasses will produce less friction with the ball. Surface density will also effect ball speed. One of the major factors is surface firmness. If the surface is firm, there is less contact between the ball and surface and therefore less friction. Reducing the upper thatch layer and top-dressing the surface regularly will improve surface drainage and firmness.

Maintenance weeks have been included in this years diary to communicate when surfaces will be experiencing disturbance due to crucial cultural practices. These cultural practices must be carried out to ensure firm, free draining surfaces year round. This year, Autumn maintenance will be carried out during a 2-week period commencing Monday 16th August. Bringing these maintenance procedures into August ensure speedy recovery and germination from any over-seeding. The timing will also ensure recovery before Autumn Opens and Winter Events.

We try to organise “divotting parties” on a monthly basis, but unfortunately the last event had to be cancelled due to lack of interest. Fairway divotting can be very time consuming, as anyone who has attended a divotting party will know. The fairways are in severe need of divotting at present and any help with speeding this process up and freeing up man-hours for more important tasks, will be greatly appreciated. There will be refreshments for all helpers in the clubhouse after. The next divot party will be on Monday 9th August at 5.30pm, meet at the 1st tee. Please enter your name on the list provided on the main notice board in the clubhouse, if you will be attending.

Overall, I am very pleased with the condition of the course and would like to thank everyone for their positive feedback.