8:14 PM

More New Equipment On The Course

posted by Steven Biehlin equipment0 comments

A few more of our capital equipment purchases arrived this week.  This round we received our much needed utility carts.  These carts are Cushman Trucksters.  We purchased 3 identical Trucksters like the two in the picture on the left.  These carts will be used regularly for hauling heavy loads.

The new Trucksters replace 2 Trucksters that came to the course in the middle 80's.  1 of the old Trucksters will be traded in, and the other Truckster will be follow one of our old tractors as a [.....]

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5:33 PM

Turf Scouting Report

posted by Steven Biehlin 0 comments

The most recent Turf Scouting Report has been posted.  Link here. [.....]

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A story from Friday's Wall Street Journal: "Golf's Big Problem: No Kids"

Another highlight about the article from Golf, Inc.: "A solution to one of Golf's biggest problems?"

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7:21 PM

Mowing the Shaded Rough

posted by Steven Biehlin roughtrees0 comments

We have certain areas in the rough that we give preferential treatment to with the hopes of prolonging turf cover through the summer months.  These areas are the shaded areas underneath trees.  Not all areas underneath trees are maintained this way, only the areas where the densest shade is present.

Plants require light to effectively complete the process of photosynthesis, which is the process the plants use to continue to grow and survive.  If plants do not receive an adequate amount of light, it will not be [.....]

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3:33 PM

Turf Scouting Report

posted by Steven Biehlin 0 comments

This weeks Turf Scouting Report has been posted. May, 21st Turf Scouting Report. [.....]

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10:53 PM

Out With The Old In With The New

posted by Steven Biehlin equipment0 comments

More of our capital equipment improvement have arrived this week.  Two new tractors this year will replace two older one that have been on the property since the early 1970's.

We have purchased two identical tractors, Kubota L4740.  One tractor will be used for mowing the rough with the gang mower, while the other tractor will be used to operate our fairway topdresser.

This is the tractor that the new one will be replacing.  The other old tractor is similar.  One of the old tractors will [.....]

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9:21 PM

Weather Policy and Lightning Safety

posted by Steven Biehlin weather0 comments

Now that the golfing season is well on its way, I thought I would remind everyone about the club's policies during inclement weather.  The club has a lightning detection system on the property for the protection of the members and the their guests.  There are two sirens for the system, one at the clubhouse and the other near the green on hole 13.

The siren will sound when lightning is close.  One long blast means lightning is close and all golfers MUST leave the golf course, putting [.....]

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6:49 PM

Fescue Rough on 10 and 18

posted by Steven Biehlin rough0 comments

The fescue rough between 10 and 18, and between 18 and 17 was a topic of discussion at the most recent green committee meeting.  There was some concern about the thickness of the grass and the resulting difficulty with locating a lost ball.  The decision was made to cut the grass to a lower height, despite the possibility of loosing the yellow color that occurs during the summer.

The grass that was used in these areas is a blend of fine leaf fescues.  The reason these grasses [.....]

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4:38 PM

'The USGA Green Section Weekly Update'

posted by Steven Biehlin 0 comments

'The USGA Green Section Weekly Update'

Here is a weekly communication from the USGA Green Section that I will be attaching to the blog. [.....]

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9:48 PM

Verticutting

posted by Steven Biehlin 0 comments

Verticutting is a maintenance practice that we perform on a regular basis on the course.  Verticutting or vertical mowing is a practice that utilizes a set of vertically oriented blades that cut into the turf canopy while they are spinning.  Depending on the specific goal of this practice, the blades can be set to cut into the canopy at different depths.

This picture gives an idea of how different depths can be applied.  The blade on the left is set at a shallow depth with the intent [.....]

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8:59 PM

Turf Scouting Report

posted by Steven Biehlin 0 comments

This weeks Turf Scouting Report discusses some of the recent flooding on golf courses in the area. May 14th Turf Scouting Report. [.....]

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6:01 PM

A Wet Day

posted by Steven Biehlin weather0 comments

This was the scene on the course this morning.  The ponds were out of their banks and flowing down the flood way.  This rain event dropped 1.10 inches and has left the course very wet.  Since May 2nd the rain total is just over 4 inches.  It will take a few days for the course to dry out again, and it looks like the weather might cooperate.

We were unable to get accomplished what we normally do on a Thursday, so the majority of the work [.....]

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7:32 AM

More Rain

posted by Steven Biehlin weather0 comments

The topic this week has been the rain.  We have received close to 3 inches of rain since May 2nd, and more is predicted for tonight.  If carts are available in the coming days, the course will still be wet.  Please reference a past post on cart usage on a soft course here.  We are getting some mowing done today in anticipation of more rain tonight.

[.....]

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7:05 AM

Fertilizing the Rough

posted by Steven Biehlin fertilizerrough0 comments

On Monday we made a fertilizer application to all of the roughs on the course.  The picture on the left shows the fertilizer in one of our bins waiting to be spread.  We had to cover it over the weekend to prevent in from being rained on, lucky for us, it did not rain on Monday and we were able to make the application.  Usually our fertilizer arrives in 50lb bags, or in 2000 lb totes if the bulk truck is applying, this time 22 tons arrived by the semi [.....]

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10:41 PM

NCC History

posted by Steven Biehlin history0 comments

A short history of the club was compiled through the winter months.  This will be an ongoing project from now on as new information is gathered.  A link to the project has been added under the "History" section at the bottom of the page.  Or click here. [.....]

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10:01 PM

Turf Scouting Report

posted by Steven Biehlin 0 comments

This weeks Turf Scouting Report from the CDGA Turf Staff is available.  Here is a direct link. [.....]

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9:01 PM

Aerating the Rough

posted by Steven Biehlin aeratingroughsoil0 comments

For the past three days we have been aerating the rough around greens and tees and bunkers.  Our goal was to create  holes for air and water to enter the soil, so we used solid tines and did not pull cores out.  By completing these areas we hoped to target the majoring to the areas that receive the most cart traffic.  Providing holes in these areas will better allow air and water to enter through the notoriously hard surfaces that persist.

This was also done in preparation [.....]

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10:01 PM

17 Pond Is Getting Crowded

posted by Steven Biehlin wildlife0 comments

The pond at 17 green was pretty crowded when I drove by first thing this morning.  Several mothers have decided to keep their new additions around the pond.

This duck and her 6 ducklings have been in the pond for a few days now.

The most obvious of the mothers is this goose tending her nest.  She is sitting directly across the pond from the green.  Just to the east of this mother goose you can notice the nest from a previous hatching.

The previous [.....]

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9:36 PM

New Sidewalk and Seed

posted by Steven Biehlin fairwayspathsseed/sod0 comments

The stone walk from the parking lot was replaced last week with different paving stones.  The previous path had become uneven from the stones settling over time and as a result, more difficult to walk on.  The old stones were removed and some soil was excavated to allow the installation of a gravel and sand bed for the new stones to sit.  The new stones that were put in place were left over from other projects.  The edges of the new walk will receive added attention soon to [.....]

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8:26 PM

New Equipment Now Arriving

posted by Steven Biehlin equipmentseed/sod0 comments

Our new equipment purchases began arriving a little over a week ago.  I will highlight each one as we receive them.  The first piece of equipment is a seeder that is replacing an older seeder in our fleet.  The new seeder is much easier to operate, quicker that the older machine and causes less disturbance to the surface while it is being used.

The machine seeds by cutting grooves into the turf surface while simultaneously dropping seed into the grooves.  After the seed drops into the [.....]

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7:58 PM

Turf Scouting Report

posted by Steven Biehlin 0 comments

The most recent Turf Scouting report is uploaded from April 30th. [.....]

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