March course report
Published on 19th March 2019 in Guests NewsSpring Valley Golf Club
Course Management Report
March 2019
It’s been another dry month with minimal rain not increasing our water storage from stormwater. We have run the bore into the main dam where we water fairways which have given us an extra 3ML with the salt levels reaching 800ppm. Cooler temperatures particularly overnight minimums as well as shorter days has helped take the pressure of the greens, tees and surrounds with the cool season grasses bouncing back.
See the irrigation pump report here.
14th Green resurfacing project
The 14th green project is coming along well. We are slightly behind schedule after both our tipper trailers experienced hydraulic problems slowing down progress carting away material and bringing sand onto the green. This week we are installing new irrigation and next week we will finalise the contours and seed the green. We replaced some of the couch in front of the green last week after recontouring the area to direct water around the bunker rather that running straight into the front left bunker causing wash away every time it rains.
Greens
An application of fertilizer and fungicide was applied earlier this month which has helped keep disease in check with Anthracnose and Fairy Ring usually a problem at this time of year. Next month we are scheduled to core the greens which will take place on the 8 & 9 April.
Fairways
Summers like this one remind us why Santa Ana was chosen as the grass of choice many years ago. With minimal rainfall or irrigation, the fairways look dry but the playing surfaces are holding up well considering. Cool season grasses would not have stood up to the dry conditions of late, and even common couch would not be a patch on the quality that Santa Ana is providing currently.
We are due to follow up with a second application of pre-emergent herbicide soon but with minimal water to wash in, I will wait and try to time it with rain.
Due to the dry conditions, I have stopped verti-cutting fairways as not to set the fairways back too much late in the season before they slow down and before going into dormancy.
Tees & surrounds
This week we will fertilize all the tees and surrounds with a slow release granular fertiliser to get the couch base as healthy as possible before the cool season grasses start to strike back in autumn. This is important to make sure the couch doesn’t get out-competed for the following summer when the cool season grasses stress out to make sure we maintain a full cover of grass year-round.
Irrigation System
Last week we had irrigation blow out on the 16th fairways which have been repaired and re-turfed.
Water storage
Our water storage is down to 9.5ML with no rain since my last report. Watering fairways has been minimal of late ensuring we have enough water to get the greens tees and surrounds through to the end of the season.
Rainfall Total Average
January 8.9mm 43.2mm
February 15.5mm 46.9mm
March 5.3mm (as at 18th) 44.9mm
David Phillips
Course Superintendent
18th March 2019