V-Cutting the Greens

V-cutter working sand down into the canopy


After picture, you can see the stolons disrupted



Last Monday, we vertical mowed the greens after the tournament. Vertical mowing is a cultivation procedure involving the use of vertically oriented knives mounted on a rapidly rotating, horizontal shaft. I like to call it grooming the greens. We are attempting to nick the turfgrass canopy and cut the stolons to help reduce the grain that occurs because of the bermuda grass growing habits. The vertical mower blades are set at even and then we proceed to make a pass in one direction across the green, we then turn around and come back down the same pass. We do this because the grain changes directions on the greens, so if you go down and back on the same pass you will have a better chance to disrupt the surface grain.

The process goes like this:

1. Topdress Greens (let the sand dry so it does not stick to the machines)


2. Vertical mow (at even, change directions every week)


3. Mow with reel mowers
4. Roll
5. Brush with mecanical broom
6. Spray and/or gypsum application

This is a process that is essential for our greens and is completed in about 5 hours on Mondays.

Dollar Spot

Tee box with dollar spot


Rough with dollar spot

mycelium on infected turf in morning hours

Pathogen- Rutstroemia Floccosum formerly known as Sclerotinia Homocarpa

Hosts- Bahia, Bermuda, st. Augustine, Zoysia, and several other cool season grasses

The spots you see all over the course are called dollar spot. This disease is characterized by round, bleached-out or straw colored spots, ranging from the size of a quarter to the size of a silver dollar. The spots appear as sunken areas in the turf. The spots are very visible in the morning when the grass is still wet, the grayish white, fluffy mycelium of the fungus can be seen sitting on top of the grass. This disease can be spread by mowers, humans, animals, and other maintenance equipment carrying the mycelium and infected tissue. This disease occurs when the temperature is between 60 degrees and 90 degrees. There are many different vegetative compatibility groups within Rutstroemia Floccosum that caused diseases at various temperature and humidity regimes.

Cultural management of dollar spot involves regulating the nitrogen level in the plant. One school of thought states, the number of infections will be greater with high nitrogen levels, but damage will be less severe than if nitrogen levels are low. This is the situation we are in, our nitrogen levels are keep very low, so the outbreak is widespread. Dollar spot can be managed with the use of many contact and systemic fungicides like myclobutanil, fenarimol, propizonazole, boscalid, and triadimefon applied every two or three weeks, or contact fungicides like chlorothalonil applied every seven to ten days.

This bottom line is this disease is not fun to look at, but it will not kill the bermudagrass. We will apply a little nitrogen to the course and we will be grown out of it before you know it.

CUTTING BACK

example of a whorled growth pattern

this is an azalea we have pruned, it should leaf out in a matter of no time.

Once again the azaleas produced many bright and brilliant colors giving the golf course a great back drop. The flowering has ended and now the pruning has begun. Although it's not a pretty transition, it's a practice that needs to be performed in order to have a thriving bloom the following spring. The azaleas on a few holes have become too tall and dense due to their vigorous growing habit. They are being thinned and pruned to about two feet tall.

The azalea plant has what is called a whorled growth. This means that each year new growth can be determined by a stem with several other newer stems branching off it. Pruning azaleas is simple. To keep bushes compact, tip-pinch frequently, starting after flowering ends and continuing until mid-June. All pruning will be complete on the golf course by June, weather permitting.

Lace bugs can cause a major problem on azaleas. Native to Japan, the female will lay eggs on the underside of leaves along the mid rib. The azalea acts as a host supplying nutrients for the insect, and in return is very injurious to the plant.

To control lace bugs from infecting and feeding on the azaleas, a granular insecticide is spread. On the grounds crew we find Merit, a systemic insecticide, works exceptionally well on all azalea plants we maintain. Systemic is defined as; absorbed and circulated by a plant or other organism so as to be lethal to pests that feed on it. A systemic insecticide will give longer residuals controlling the insects for a longer period of time throughout the year. The azalea will absorb the granular Merit within itself to defend against lace bugs that try to feed on the plant tissue. The active ingredient in Merit is Imidacloprid at 0.5%. As of today, all of the azaleas at Squire Creek have had the annual application of Merit. They are now prepared and ready to defend against an attack from lace bugs.

All the necessary procedures have been taken to insure a healthy bloom. So just sit back and wait to see what the azaleas have in store for next spring.