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Green surface 8/27/2015

On this past Sunday, the grounds crew began North course aerification at 3:00 p.m. All major processes were competed by Tuesday evening with minor touch up items to be completed throughout the remainder of the week. Greens were aerified by pulling a 1/2 inch core at a 2×2 inch spacing. We then removed the cores, covered the greens in sand and filled the holes. On Tuesday, the greens were DryJected with a machine that blast sand into the green at a 3×3 inch spacing. The surfaces were then brushed and rolled in the evening when temperatures cooled down.

Dryject machine injecting sand into the green.

DryJect machine injecting sand into the green.

We used a different approach on tess this year, using a 5/8 inch solid tine instead of hollow tine at a 2×2 inch spacing. This process was then followed by our Graden machine which cuts a channel through the thatch about one inch down and replaces the thatch with sand. Tees were then blown off and rolled smooth.

Graden machine operating on a tee

Graden machine operating on a tee

Fairways were aerified as usual for the North course by pulling a 7/8 inch core. These cores were then drug with a tine harrow to separate the thatch from the soil. The thatch was then blown off the fairway and collected with a large vacuum.

Due to dry conditions, we will be running water throughout the day to keep surfaces moist and encourage healing. Thank you for you patience as the golf course recovers from aerification. This process is a vital part of our agronomic program to provide the best growing conditions throughout the year.