Bunkers..

Currently, we have begun working on the bunkers.  We have 65 bunkers on the course and this project will keep us busy for the next few weeks.  First, we are cutting a new edge on all of the bunkers.  As illustrated in the photos below, the edges become ragged over time.  Cutting a new edge provides a much cleaner appearance and allows us a defined edge to trim and maintain.  Next, we will begin checking sand depths and moving sand around the bunker to provide a consistent depth. New sand will be added to the bunkers where needed as well.  This will help improve playability and consistency.  However, many of the bunkers drain very poorly, leading to continuous wet sand that is very firm. To alleviate these conditions the bunkers at some point will need new drainage and sand.

Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program

For those of you who aren’t aware, Shadow Hills Country Club is a certified Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary golf course.   At the time our facility was awarded this achievement in May of 2016, there were only 19 golf courses in the state of Oregon to hold this designation.  To become certified with the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program (ACSP), one must demonstrate and document efforts in the following categories:

1.) Wildlife and habitat management.

2.) Chemical use reduction and safety.

3.) Water conservation.

4.) Water quality management.

5.) Environmental Planning.

6.) Outreach and education.

Our goal in achieving certification with the ACSP was to improve our management of the property in an environmentally friendly manner.  This effort was led by Assistant Superintendent, Jake Witherspoon.

 

#2 Tee

The construction of #2 tee has been completed.  The seed is starting to germinate and it's looking good.  In addition to new irrigation for the tee complex, we installed four sprinklers down the right side of the first half of the fairway.  These sprinklers will water the rough in this area that was previously unirrigated. 

      

Cart Paths

We are in the process of replacing the cart path yardage markers on the new paths.  Rather than using the old plastic, colored markers, we have replaced them with a much nicer looking marker.
Below is a before and after of the paths, demonstrating the much improved path and yardage markers.





           

Wildflower update

Hopefully you have noticed the wildflower areas we incorporated this Spring on holes #4, #9 and #12.  They are beginning to bloom quite nicely and add a little color to the landscape of the golf course.  Here are a couple of recent photos.

            

Bunker Sand

This week we are beginning to check sand depth in the bunkers throughout the course, adding sand where necessary.  Our goal is to have 3-4" of sand on the bunker floor and 2" on the bunker faces.  We are also sifting rocks out of the existing sand, that have surfaced from the bunker floor.  The photos of #3 fairway bunkers below, illustrate the before and after conditions of this process.

 

New Cart Paths!

The cart path project will begin on Monday, May 22nd.  The project will include one, 8 1/2 foot wide path, all the way around the course.  We will begin work on the front 9 holes the first week and then move to the back 9. The entire path will be completed in 2-3 weeks if the weather continues to cooperate.  This week we have been prepping areas with rock for paving and have created some new path areas as well.  Resurfacing of the cart paths will be a great improvement for the course!

Wildflowers

We are incorporating three wildflower areas on the golf course.  The wildflower areas are located on holes 4, 9 and 12.

The first step in this process was to mow down the area of long grass. After the area was mowed, we then sprayed roundup to kill the existing grass, reducing competition with the new wildflower seed as it germinates and establishes.  Next, we tilled the areas to create a good seed bed and remove the dead grass.  Finally, we seeded the areas with a low-grow wildflower seed mix and incorporated it into the soil.

Irrigation Satellite Replacement

The replacement of the irrigation satellite control boxes is underway.  First, all wires must be labeled and disconnected at each satellite location.  Once this tedious task is complete, we remove the old satellite and concrete footing.  Next, the new satellite is installed.  Last, all the wires must be reconnected in the proper location.  There are a total of 20 satellites that will be replaced.

New communication wire is also being pulled underground to all of the satellites.  This will allow the irrigation to operate nightly from a computer software program.

Here are a few photos of the process...

         

         

February Flooding

February has been a very wet month.  For those of you who haven't been on the course recently, here are a few photos showing the amount of water the course has received.  I believe we are all ready for some good golfing weather!

Refurbishing Course Accessories

We are currently working to refurbish our golf course accessories.  Many of the ball washers are in need of repair and the red paint on the body of the ball washers is fading and beginning to flake off.  Following a good pressure wash, the ball washers are sanded, primered and painted.  We are changing the color from bright red, to hunter green.

We are also repainting our medallions that are placed in the fairways, indicating the depth of the hole location on each green.  Benches, hazard stakes, tee balls and course signage are being cleaned and touched up as well.

Playing On Frozen Greens...

With the recent weather conditions and freezing temperatures, I have had a few members ask about playing on the greens when they are frozen.  The decision on if the golf course will be open, changes daily based on weather conditions and temperature.  Our goal is to allow play on the golf course as much as possible, while protecting the turf and health of the greens.

The best comparison I have found to help people better understand, is ice on a pond.  When the water on a pond surface is frozen very deep (4-6 inches), you can walk on the ice with no damage to the ice and nothing happens.  However if you try and walk on ice that is only partially frozen or thawing, it will shatter, splinter and break.

Essentially, the same thing happens to the turf.  During a frost or a thawing period after a freeze, the plant is only partially frozen.  Walking or driving on the turf in these conditions will shatter and kill the cells in the plant,  killing the turf.  However, when the greens are frozen solid to a depth of 3-4 inches or more and there is no frost on the leaf blade, golf can be played and no damage will occur.

In summary,  if the greens are frozen deep into the soil profile, with low daily temperatures where no thawing will occur, playing on the greens will cause no damage.  Restricting play on days with frost or thawing of partially frozen greens, is necessary to prevent damage to the greens. 

 Below is a photo demonstrating damage to the turf when frost is present.(This photo is not from Shadow Hills..)

Let's hope for some warmer weather!

  

January 2017

It has been quite the winter here so far.  We encountered the ice storm in mid-December and now snow blankets the course in early January.  Low temperatures are expected to be in the teens the next couple of nights, resulting in the course being closed for a few days.  We aren't used to golf course maintenance while wearing snow goggles...

December Ice Storm

On Wednesday, December 14, we encountered large amounts of ice throughout the golf course.  Not only was the entire course covered, but many of the trees collected large amounts of ice.  Due to the weight of the accumulated ice, we have incurred a massive amount of tree damage.

Hundreds of branches were broken, as well as entire trees falling over.  Many trees lost large amounts of limbs and central leaders, resulting in the entire tree needing to be removed.  The cleanup process will be lengthy, as we are currently clearing all cart paths.  We will then begin to clear debris adjacent to fairways and focus on the areas that are in play.  Here are a few photos of some of the damage...

Bunker Work

With the arrival of wet, cold weather we are able to complete some projects throughout the golf course.  One of the projects we are beginning to work on is creating a new edge on many of the bunkers.  Over time, the bunker edges deteriorate and become very ragged and inconsistent. Sand also builds up along the edges and needs redistributed. There are numerous bunkers that need improvement, therefore this will require 2-3 weeks to complete.

The photos below demonstrate a before and after of a bunker edge that was recently improved.

Turf Disease Control

This time of year in the Willamette Valley, most days consist of cloudy, wet weather.  These conditions are conducive for our most common turf disease, fusarium patch or microdochium nivale.

The past two weeks we have treated all greens, tees, approaches and fairways with a plant protectant to control this disease.  You may have noticed the blue appearance of the turf in these areas.  The blue color is simply a dye that is added to the water in the spray tank, acting as a spray indicator.  This allows the applicator to make a precise application, avoiding any overlaps or missed areas.

Tree Care

With the nice weather in early November, tree work continued using the high lift.  The lift allows us to raise the tree canopy much higher than we could from the ground.  Dead material throughout the interior of the tree is also removed utilizing the lift.  We concentrated our efforts on holes number 10, 13 and 14.

Due to the weather and wet conditions, this is the last of the pruning with the lift for 2016.  We will continue next year!

Pond Treatments

Pond maintenance can often be a time consuming, costly task.  In particular, ponds that are used for irrigation water require certain treatment at various times of the year.

Many aquatic herbicides cannot be used in irrigation ponds if the water is being used to irrigate turf, as the herbicide may cause damage to the grass.  This is the case for our 3 acre irrigation pond that lies between hole #12 and hole # 17.  Now that we are finished irrigating due to the wet weather, we are treating this pond with an aquatic herbicide to eliminate the aquatic weeds present.  This will help to clear the pond from algae and weed growth accumulated throughout the summer and start the season next year with a much cleaner pond.

This winter the golf course maintenance team will also be working to manually remove grasses growing into the water from the shoreline of many pond edges.  As well as cattail removal in the pond on hole #4.

Fall Aerification

It's that time of year to aerify and sand the golf course again.  The fairways have already been aerified and sanded.  The maintenance team is currently completing the greens, followed by the tees and approaches over the next couple of days.

The fairways are aerified with a 3/4" tine, while the remaining areas receive a 5/8" tine.  Cores are pulled and removed on all areas and then the holes are filled with sand.

Here are a few photos of the aerification and sanding process...

Tree Care

The trees on the golf course have been neglected over the years.  Many of them have large amounts of dead material in the canopy, as well as hang very low to the ground.

Our goal is to visually make the trees and the golf course more appealing, while improving the playability of the course.

The entire month of September we are working on tree care with a rented high lift. We will not finish the entire course in this time, but plan to continue this process annually.