Hawks Landing Greens Department

Blue Birds

2008-05-09T10:26:00.000-07:00

Gary Guard, the Blue Bird consultant that we are using recently stopped by to check in on the Blue Birds houses. His findings; 4 nests with eggs in them and 5 houses that have a nest, but no eggs yet. I am sure that you have seen the Blue Birds flying around.

Short update in the golf course,

The ground temperature is still quite cold and with another frost expected tonight, we really need to see the ground warm up so the greens can start to grow. I am not pushing the greens with nitrogen to "green" them up. When the soil and weather warms then I will apply a little nitrogen in an organic form to help them green up a little. The type of grass that we planted on the greens is different then the tees and fairways. L-93 is the type of bentgrass that is on the greens and the one limitation is the lack of color and growth in the spring and fall. The greens from a health standpoint are fine, there are of a few very weak areas on 2,5,1,8. I do feel that once the weather warms the greens will get some color back.

As you might of noticed there has been a lot of work completed on the course this week. Work will continue in a fast pace for the next few weeks. The only major cultural measures that we will be doing over this time frame will be verticutting the fairways next week. Verticutting slices the stolons of the plants, and stands the plants up for continued upright growth. This practice also helps controls some organic matter. I am not been able to core cultivate the fairways, because of a very high percentage of rocks just under the turf.

We will be applying an organic fertilizer on the fairways and roughs over the next two to three weeks. Some people may find the smell a little harsh, I happen to think the smell is quite good. I have been using the product for the last three years and consider the fertilizer very beneficial to the plant, the soil, and the environment.

Where's the Rope

2008-05-02T12:21:00.000-07:00

Finally the weather is turning away from winter. I would like to give everyone a short update on the golf course conditions and what our crew is working on.

First off if you have braved the cool weather you might have noticed a few things missing on the course. One is the rope; I have put out all the stakes near the greens and tees, but have not put out the rope. I am evaluating the stakes without rope to see if it will work or not. I really like the look without the ropes on the course, I guess it is up to the membership to follow the rules and stay on the path where the stake are. This really helps the cart path edges stay in great shape, I hope that this will work. I have not put out the white OB stakes yet, Brian and I are waiting on a proper ruling from the WPGA before we install the OB stakes. And, I have not put out the red hazard signage in the native areas yet. I have not done this because we are in the process of making herbicide applications to control the undesirable grasses and weeds. We recently completed 10-17 and will continue as the weather permits. We will be spot mowing some areas that are "thick" to help thin out the turf stand.

Yesterday we completed our tree program for 2008. 50 new trees were planted on 1,3,8,11,16,18.

I have also taken advantage of the cool weather by completing many projects on the golf course. I am sure as you play you will see many improvements.

The golf course in general is in great shape as the weather continues to warm we will start to see fast recovery of any winter damage that is left.

Next week will be a big week for some cultural control on the golf course

Monday: We will be spiking all the greens using the small "needle" tine. I will also start to spike the fairways Monday this usually takes about 4 days to complete

Tuesday: We will start to topdress the approaches around the greens, I will be apply a fairly heavy rate of sand to help smooth out the approach.

I would like to core aerate the new tee on 12 next week and apply a heavy topdressing to smooth out the tee. I feel then we will be able to open the tee for the weekend.

Earth Day

2008-04-22T08:35:00.000-07:00

Here is some great education that I have found that represents what our golf course and our lawns if managed properly do every day

Oxygen and Turfgrass

Our air is cleansed by plants through the process of photosynthesis. Green plants take in carbon dioxide and water and use the energy from sunlight in photosynthesis, which produces carbohydrates for the plant to live off of and releases the true breath of life ... pure oxygen.

A turf area 50' x 50' produces enough oxygen to meet the every day needs of a family of four and each acre of grass produces enough oxygen for 64 people a day. We have just about 300 acres or 13,068,000 square feet of turf at Hawks Landing or enough Oxygen for 19,200 people.

The grass and trees along our country's interstate system produce enough oxygen to support 22 million people!

Grass Purifies Water

One of the major causes of our growing water quality problem is runoff of contaminants from hard surfaces, such as roads and parking lots. Unfortunately, with expansion and building development open space is lost to these impervious surfaces.

Runoff can be reduced by establishing new lawns and turfgrass areas. The biology of turfgrass makes lawns a near ideal medium for the biodegradation of all sorts of environmental contamination. Turfgrass purifies the water as it leaches through the root zone and down into our underground aquifers. Soil microbes help break down chemicals into harmless materials. This filtration system is so effective rain water filtered through a good healthy lawn is often as much as 10 times less acidic than water running off a hard surface.

These filtration properties are also the reason that turfgrass is used to help recycle effluent water. Reclaimed water cannot be returned to most municipal water supplies or released into streams, lakes or oceans. But it can be irrigated onto turfgrass where it's cleaned as it passes down through the root zone. Ten percent of U.S. golf courses are already using effluent water for their turfgrass irrigation.

Other studies referenced by Dr. James Beard and Dr. Robert Green (“The Role of Turfgrass in Environmental Protection and Their Benefits to Humans”) have shown a similar ability of a turfgrass cover to reduce runoff, and therefore enhance soil water infiltration and groundwater recharge (Bennett, 1939; Gross et al., 1991; Jean and Juang, 1979; Morton et al., 1988; Watschke and Mumma 1989). Finally, the reduced runoff volume from turfgrass covered areas offers the potential to decrease the storm-water management requirements and costly structures used in urban development (Schuyler, 1987). Turfgrass ecosystems can support abundant populations of earthworms (Lumbricidae) of from 200 to 300 per square meter (Potter et al., 1985, 1990a). Earthworm activity increases the amount of macropore space within the soil that results in higher soil water infiltration rates and water-retention capacity (Lee, 1985).

I have linked the source of the information, "The Lawn Source", for you to browse.

Golf Course Update

2008-04-22T02:45:00.000-07:00

I would like to give the membership a short update on the state of the golf course

The ground temperatures are finally at a point to start seeing some recovery from the winter. I have been out making some foliar fertilizer application to all the greens, tees, and fairways on the golf course. This application is based on my current soil testing. We have several limiting factors within the soil that inhibit proper growth and development. I am concerned with the roots of the plants this time of the year. I am trying to build a strong root zone to help the plant survive the stressful part of the year. I try to maximize the soil test to the best of my abilities.

You might have seen use out seeding some of the areas in the native grasslands. I have been making a herbicide application to control some of the grasses that we do not want. this program seems to be working very well and will be continuing making a few more application as soon as the grasses start to grow.

We are still working with Gray Graud on the blue bird trail. His research with the Blue bird has been to find the best nesting box for the bird. This year he has a new design that he feels should give the Blue Birds and advantage over the sparrows and the black flies. Every year we have seen at least 50 fledged blue birds.

I have also seen an increase in native animal and birds out on the golf course this spring. currently we have: Hawks, Great Horned owl, Coopers Hawks, Coyotes, Turkeys, Deer, Many species of Ducks, Fox, as well as the Blue Birds. This is very encouraging.

I will not be core aerating the greens this spring, but we will be solid tining the greens in 2 weeks, The fairways will be spiked next week. this process will help encourage rooting and movement of water into the soil profile.

Etiquette

2008-04-17T07:20:00.000-07:00

I would like to take some time today to talk about proper golf course etiquette and course management.

I am sure that everyone wants to have an enjoyable round of golf here at Hawks Landing. My staff works very hard to see that the golf course is prepared to the best possible condition daily. We have been working on all the bunkers over the last few days. I feel that the bunkers are in the best condition that they have been over the years. The problem that I am having is the lack of maintenance on the part of the members. I am posting these pictures that were taken this morning showing bunkers that were not raked properly. I really do not understand why anyone would leave a bunker in this condition after hitting a ball out the the bunker, it is just not fair to the golfer behind these players. Etiquette on the golf course and course management is what we were all taught when we learned the game.

Bunkers: Here at Hawks Landing the bunker rakes should be placed inside the bunker. After hitting a shot in a bunker you should rake and smooth all footprints and the area that the shot was hit from. When exiting the bunker please do not climb up and over the steep faces of the bunker and exit from the "low" side. When we prepare the bunkers in the mornings the rakes are all placed along the "low" side and along the inside edge. We do this for a couple of reasons, 1. when you enter the bunker you do not have to jump down over the face to get a rake. 2. for maintenance, it saves considerable time and money when we are mowing. If you exit the bunker from the steep side, as in the bottom picture ,it is very hard to remove your deep footprints.

Ball Marks: Always a problem on the greens. The proper way to repair the ball mark is very easy to do. Any tool can be used if it is done the right way, just insert the tool along the edge of the ball mark and gently lift the low spot up around the mark. Then all that is needed is the bottom of the putter or your foot can smooth the mark to a perfectly repaired ball mark. Twisting the turf is not necessary and just damages the roots.

Divots: I have already seen many huge pelts of turf laying all over the fairways. Most divots can be replaced and should be replaced after hitting a ball. All you need to do is step down the divots after it is replaced the same way that the divot was removed from the turf. This will insure that air will not dry out the edges and the turf will regrow. If the divot that is taken "shreds" all that is needed is add some mix from the bottles that are on all the carts or par 3 holes. Fill the area and then using your foot or club smooth the divot mix so that it is level. This is important because if the mix is not smoothed and level the mower blades will become dull from the sand. The divot mix that is on your carts contains a bentgrass seed mixture. This mix can be used on the fairways and tees not in the ROUGH areas. If everyone would repair all the divots on the course through their round we would not have to spend so much time and money using the greens staff to fill the divots.

Carts: All carts should follow all the carts signs on the golf course. We have ropes, stakes and rocks on the golf course so that the edges of the path always look good and are not worn out from the carts. No carts are to be driven in the naturalized areas on the course.

Etiquette on the course honors the game and members. Please help us in maintaining a great golf course so that everyone can have a enjoyable round of golf.

Welcome

2008-04-09T04:36:00.002-07:00

I would like to welcome everyone back for the 2008 golf season. We still have a few projects that we are working on, but will have everything in great shape very soon. There are some white stakes on 1,2,3,8,11 in the rough and natives areas on the course. These stakes are marking the locations of the new trees. Bruce Co. will be supplying the trees and we will be planting in the next 3 weeks. If you have had a crabgrass problem in your yard in the past and you do not have to reseed any spots, now is the time to apply a crabgrass preemergant. Most of the snow mold areas in your yard will be fine, but the spots should be lightly raked to encourage some new growth. Remember to always follow the label directions on the bag of fertilizer for your yard. More of the product will not be any more beneficial then less. The dose equals the poison too much will most likely cause some damage to something. As homeowners, it is important to remember where all the fertilizers or pesticides are going if not applied correctly. For instance, the timing of the application was before heavy rainfall the product would not have a chance to filter through the turf and in this case would runoff down the street. There are many products that companies sell to address certain issues like weedkiller or insect killers. In most cases, most likely do not need to make an application of these over your entire yard. If you have a question regarding a problem that you cannot diagnose the OJ Noar research lab just down the street near PD will be able, for a small fee, correctly tell you what your problem is then you can buy a product just for your problem. Maintaining a healthy lawn has many benefits to the environment but if not done correctly you can out way the benefit.
draft
4:06:00 AM

Hawks Landing 2008 Greens Staff

2008-04-04T05:10:00.000-07:00

I would like to introduce to you the staff for 2008. We are missing two full time employees and one part time from the picture, but they will be here soon.

Small and mighty is what I like to say. We always seem to do what most clubs accomplish with half the staff. Our staff is very dedicated to the club and work very hard to meet or exceed the expectations that I set forth.

A little background on the staff.

I have a father and two sons, 4 cousins, one employee has been here since 2001 and all have been here for at least 3 seasons.

Jerry, works in the background as the equipment manager. You may never see him but he is very valuable Hawks. He is in charge of all equipment maintenance, budgets related to equipment and proper performance. You would not believe the scope of this position and without him we would never get off the ground.

Scot pictured here alone top left is my First Assistant. Scot has been an employee of Hawks for 3 seasons. His first year he served as a crew member and made a life changing decision to return to college. He attended Michigan State which is one of the top turf school in the country and received a degree in Turf Management. While attending MSU he completed an internship at Baltusral Country Club which hosted the 2005 PGA Championship during his internship. In 2006, Scot returned to Hawks Landing as a First Assistant. His responsibilities as vast and very demanding. I am fortunate to have him back again

Jose picuted in the group shot on the far left has been promoted to the Second Assistant position for 2008. Jose has been an employee at Hawks for 4 years and has a very good eye for detail. He has moved up thought the ranks, is a good leader and respected among the crew.

The 2008 season is just about to start we are all working hard to get the golf course in shape and we all look forward to seeing you soon

Course Opening 2008

2008-03-31T06:45:00.000-07:00

Finally we are seeing a change in the weather and it looks like spring is finally here. At least for now. I have started a crew working on the course we are very busy cleaning up the golf course if you have had a chance to walk around you might have noticed that there is a lot of damage around the bunkers from the mice. These mice burrow into the grass and make tunnels in the grass to survive the winter. We will have to rake up and in some spots even resod some of the damage. We are also cutting and clearing some dead trees on the golf course.
Today, I am actually mowing some fairways using a verticutter to try to clean up some of the snow mold areas. I was able to grow out the sample that I removed from 15 fairway. This is a good sign in that some of the snow mold did not kill the crown of the plants. I still feel that we will have to reseed a few areas in the fairways. The greens and tees for the most part look pretty good. This time of the year I have to take things a little slow and not "push" the turf to much. the ground temp is still very cold and the grass will not really start growing until the ground is around 55 degrees.

We plan on rolling the greens and tees on Wednesday and then mowing all greens and tees on Thursday. The fairways will all be verticutt and then mowed hopefully friday. I would like to mow everything again on Monday then open the golf course Tuesday.

Course Opening 2008

2008-03-18T08:00:00.000-07:00

I would like to take some time to explain a few of the factors that I use to determine the date to open the golf course. There are at this time some limiting factors that we have against us currently. In my previous post, I have reported a pretty serious outbreak of snow mold on the golf course fairways and tees. We have been able to make a chemical application to some of the diseased turf, but there is still considerable snow cover on the course and we have not been able to treat all the areas. I have removed a turf sample out of 15 fairway and currently growing the turf in the shop. I am trying to determine the extent of the damage. At this time, I would suspect that we will have to reseed some of the areas this spring.
The top of the soil and turf surface is thawing, but the soil below is still quite frozen. This imp eds the movement of water through the soil. The golf course at this time is not conducive to traffic. This is the main factor that I use to determine the opening date of the golf course. Soft wet soils are susceptible to compaction and may also lead to bumpy turf for a prolonged period of time. With the frozen subsoil the turf plants may be sheared off and cause lasting negative effects to the plant health.
I will be using a soil probe to check the depth of the frost layer. When the frost is out of the ground then it will be time to start rolling the turf and then mowing. This will help firm and smooth the ground. Once the golf course has been rolled and mowed at least once it will then be safe to open the golf course. A little time at this time of the year will pay off in the long run.
The answer to the million dollar question! I really do not know at this time. The weather reports keep changing and I see continued cool and damp weather ahead. I would suspect that we will open the first week in April. Time will tell and we will do are best to open the course as soon as possible.

2008-03-12T04:22:00.000-07:00

Pink snow mold is a disease that we currently have in the fairways at Hawks Landing. I have inserted a picture taken from 18 fairway yesterday. Pink Snow Mold is a fungal disease that attacks the leaves, roots and crowns of turfgrass. Creeping bentgrass is not the only grass that this disease effects Kentucky bluegrass, perennial ryegrass as well as annual bluegrass(poa annua).

We did spray a chemical preventive application last October to help control this disease the fairways were treated with a different product then the greens. I usually have very good control of this disease but this winter has been very wet and snowy. The conditions for pink snow mold have been very good most of the winter and the chemical that we used on the fairways most likely ran out.

We will be making an early chemical treatment to help control this disease.

As homeowners, you will most likely see this disease in your lawns. Chemical treatments are not recommended but you can rake the matted turf to increase light and air into the turf.

http://www.ces.purdue.edu/extmedia/BP/BP-102-W.pdf

Welcome to the Greens Department

2008-02-25T05:01:00.000-08:00

I would like to welcome you to the Hawks Landing Greens Department. I plan on using this blog as a supplement to the Hawks Landing newsletter. My goal is to update the membership with at least two monthly updates. These updates could include course conditions, problems or general education. As I become more comfortable with this blog, I would like to include pictures and/or videos.
Thank you and I look forward to seeing you soon

Neil

Nadia

2008-02-22T12:56:00.000-08:00

I would like you to meet the newest member of our family. Her name is Nadia