For many of us as we head into the Fourth of July, a feeling of good fortune should abound. Temperatures have saved us from almost complete disaster after all the precipitation we have received. Many people will have noticed in the news that June was the wettest June on record in Illinois since records began in 1895. If you didn’t get washed away or notice that carts were not in use as much then you were not at the golf course! Fortunately, temperatures for many of us were not in the extreme heat situation and so while soils are somewhat saturated – potential for large scale root and patch diseases has been limited.
Masked chafers have arrived and presumably the adults are in the process of producing offspring as we speak. The offspring of course will become those lovely grubs that the skunks and raccoons love to dine on while turning the golf course into a plowed field. The drying conditions that are predicted over the holiday weekend may prove to be vital as we have high temperatures in the forecast for early next week. An opportunity exists next week to also see some of the great senior golfers as the Encompass Championship rolls into town - the start of the tournament season here in the area. Venting should have occurred this week as many of us drew breath after all the rainfall and the arrival of drier weather conditions. Etiolation has certainly arrived and managers now have to judge best practices as far as how hard they can push surfaces. The drying conditions and cooler temperatures over the holiday weekend will only serve to put us in a better situation going into some forecasted heat next week. Enjoy the holiday weekend and get ready for a busy month!

Click here to view the July 3, 2015 Scouting Report

As always if you have a question or query please do not hesitate to ask and you can call or email.

Ed Nangle PhD
Director of Turfgrass Programs
Chicago District Golf Association
www.cdgaturf.org
Follow us on Twitter @TurfResearch
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