6 green

Number 6 green at Minor Park Golf Course has had some issues in the past and finally after the summer we just had in 2016, it has reared its ugly head again. Since I started here in 2012, we have not replaced more than a few plugs on this green, but our Kansas City area weather proved to be too much this year and we lost approximately 30 percent of 6 green. An August with 8+ inches of rain, temperatures in the upper 80’s to mid-90’s and dew points in excess of 70 degrees, left the ground saturated.  Weather like this was detrimental to the cool-season turf that was already stressed from the stifling heat of July. This is the third time in the past 10 years that a major amount of grass was lost on this green and resulted in the use of existing nursery sod for repairs.  This type of turf decline doesn’t happen on every green, so why is this one prone to it?  If you consider the layout of the course, number 6 green is tucked back in a corner surrounded by trees.  The location prevents adequate air movement to help dry out the turf during soggy conditions which leads to suffocating roots. In order to supplement the air movement, I propose the golf course acquires a large portable turfbreeze fan capable of moving air across the surface of the green as a vital part of stopping this repetitive turf decline. 

We have already begun the process of growing grass back on the surface of 6 green. Last week with the cooler temperatures we were able to dimple tine and apply extra Penncross seed. This will be our first process in restoring this green back to normal playing conditions. We are anticipating some seedlings will come up before we begin our aerfication process on September 15, 2016. At that time, along with our normal aerification procedure, we will add more seed and fertilizer in hopes to incorporate more seedlings into this area. After a few weeks of monitoring the growth, we will determine if there is an adequate coverage of grass returning.  If we do not see this, we will begin the sodding process to get the green back to normal playing conditions.

6 green as of September 7th. Getting some green back

As we work diligently to improve this green you may notice it is a bit taller than the rest of the greens at Minor Park.  This is due to less mowing of the green as we try to get the seed to establish. Think of this as a temporary hurdle as we bring this green back to the standards of the other 17 greens at Minor Park Golf Course.

Germination of seed