Mid April Update

April is moving quickly as we head towards Opening Day. Our full season crew has returned and are busy putting the golf course back together. We have pulled all our tarps and have been rolling the greens to firm them up and have gotten a mow in. For the most part the turf is in good condition. We have a couple of areas on a few that are a little thin; the poa annua took a bit of a hit in some select spots. We took a couple samples into the shop and have seen the turf grow out well. The biggest thing we are looking for is sun and warmth at this point. With cooler temperatures (specifically overnight) we may put a couple of tarps back down next week and maintain soil temperatures warm enough to continue growth. April has been full of cold and wet weather. An important fertilizer and fungicide application is on the horizon to help spur on growth and protect from any fusarium proliferation. I have been measuring soil temperatures (a large factor in determining turf growth potential) and am seeing ranges of 9-11 degrees Celsius. Poa annua and bentgrass tend to grow at a minimum of 8-10 degrees, so we should be seeing things perk up.

17 Green in good shape

A bit of thin turf on the front of 1 Green

Plenty of healthy turf to fill in the weaker areas.

Samples showing how being in a warm environment showed quick jump in growth

I will post a turf health update as we approach Opening Day.

A good portion of our efforts this spring involve an irrigation upgrade on the Holes 3, 4, and 5. Last year our communication system failed in this section of the course. Our only method of watering was by manually turning individual sprinkler heads on. Instead of overnight cycles we were reduced to getting out to these spots ahead of play to get any water down. This strained our resources and in a summer like we had last year involved an amount of attention that could have otherwise been used elsewhere. This upgrade involves running a new communication wire to each station and any old sprinklers have been replaced with new, compatible heads. The result will be that we will not only be able to run automated overnight programs but have control of each individual sprinkler on our mobile phones. It should also be noted that replacing sprinklers that in some cases are up to 30 years old can be massively beneficial as old nozzles and drive assemblies become worn and compromise flow and uniformity. We plan to have this project wrapped up by the time we open. Evidence of the project will be fairly minimal; the sod that was cut around the sprinklers will be noticeable for a short time. We sourced a wire puller that minimized disturbing the turf to install the communication wire. As spring turns into summer that line will become decreasingly visible. See the video below for the wire pulling process.

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/0aa2ad_7ecdd1b987884653a7f861e38207fafa/720p/mp4/file.mp4

The spring member cleanup has been set for Tuesday, April 28^th. We already have over 30 volunteers signed up. Every winter brings with it some downed trees and debris. Along with that we have some work to take care of trees that have been damaged or that we are looking to remove for turf health purposes. Looking at how the greens fared over the winter, the 4^th green has consistently come out among the healthiest on the property; a direct result of the work we did in Phase 1 of the Master Plan. A big shoutout to Ian MacKenzie, who has volunteered a countless amount of time cleaning up areas throughout the course throughout the winter. Dr. Greg MacDonald as well spent a lot time working with Ian, not only picking up debris, but removing it from the golf course with use of our utility vehicles. Part of what makes Oakfield so great is how much our members care about this wonderful property. Looking forward to seeing everyone on the 28^th!