The Year of Seedheads

I ran across a very relevant blog post discussing Annual bluegrass and its prolific seedheads.  I believe I used the author's exact words -- "I have never witnessed such a seed head explosion" -- or something like it, more than once last week.  They are finally starting to become less noticeable.

See below for more:

The World of Turf: Holy poa batman: The annual bluegrass turf plant is really showing off this year. Our fairways are white with flowers! Annual bluegrass, also known as poa,...

Cleaning up after the flood

Pictures from April 18, 2013

 

Looking toward 7 green from 3 tee

The "creek" on #2

Water almost up to #8 green

The flood yesterday crested at about the same level as one we had July 24th, 2010.  The pictures are almost identical!

Pictures from April 19th, 2013

Still flooded, but much better.  We are starting the clean-up.

The 4th fairway still underwater

Flood debris!  There are several areas like this on 4 and 5

As usual after torrential rains, the bunkers will need lots of work

The creek is much lower today

The crew is busy cleaning up debris so that the course will be ready for play as soon as possible.  The clean-up has been different than usual for this flood.  It is 37 degrees and snowing here.  In April!  We are happy that the turf isn't cooking in the sun like it does for July floods.  That is the silver lining down at the maintenance shop.

Spring: Coming Soon

Many of us who love golf are getting impatient right now. Last year's historic heat wave in March spoiled us with an early start to the season. At first I thought posting a series of pictures from March 20, 2012 would be a little saddening with our high today around 24 degrees, but then I decided to see the glass half full: These pictures from a year ago today are what we have to look forward to soon! It may take another few weeks, but the vernal equinox has happened, days are getting longer, and warmer temperatures are just around the corner.

March 20, 2012

March 20, 2012

 

March 20, 2012

March 20, 2012

 

Emerald Ash Borer Tree Removals

This winter, we began removing Ash trees infected with the Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) that were visibly declining or dead in 2012 and deemed hazardous to people or property. So far, 44 of 286 Fraxinus (Ash) species trees have been removed leaving 242.  All of the remaining are infected and in various states of decline.

The EAB is a non-native, phloem-feeding insect that aggressively kills both healthy and stressed Ash trees of all ages. The EAB adult, a metallic green beetle, lays eggs in the bark of Ash trees. These eggs hatch into larvae which bore through the bark and into the cambium where they feed, overwinter, and pupate. It is the larval stage which kills the tree once the cambium is girdled by feeding. See the USDA’s “Emerald Ash Borer Program Manual” for more information.



Emerald Ash Borer S-shaped galleries

Emerald Ash Borer larvae

The EAB was first identified in Villa Park in the summer of 2011 but we did not have conclusive proof on the golf course until February 2012 last year.  During the winter from 2011 to 2012, woodpeckers were seen attacking Ash trees and leaving light-colored marks where the bark had been peeled away.  These marks are the easiest way to identify EAB infection over the winter.  While the woodpeckers may be feeding on native borers that attack stressed trees, if the tree was previously healthy, EAB is strongly indicated.  By the time you see woodpecker damage, the borer has already done significant damage during the year.  It is best to call a professional arborist as soon as possible to determine a course of action.

Many people ask me whether they should treat their Ash trees with pesticides or remove them.  There is no easy answer to that questions.  Ash trees can be saved even after infection with the right treatments -- this is true.  The important thing to remember is that treatment is forever or, more accurately, for the life of the tree.  If you miss treatments or happen to be in the small percentage where the treatment is ineffective, the tree will again be at risk of infection.  The other important thing to remember is this: no matter what you do, you still have an Ash tree.  Ash trees are not long-lived or structurally strong.  They tend to suffer severe storm damage later in life and can be hazardous. 

The factors that need to be considered include:

• Cost
• Location, location, location
• Size of the tree
• Age of the tree
• Condition of the tree
• Potential hazards
• Environmental impact of pesticide use
• Willingness to commit to treatment for decades, or the life of the tree

As you might have guessed from the above, it is my opinion, verified by a lot of calculations, that it is almost always more desirable and cost-effective to remove an Ash tree and replace it with a more disease-resistant, longer-lived, and safer tree.  I know many arborists selling treatment will argue with me, but the math is not on the side of treatment in the vast majority of cases.  If you have an Ash tree that you consider invaluable to your property and it is in good condition and it isn't too old and it is not likely to become a hazard, then I would consider treatment.  If not, cut your losses and plant something else!

The graphs below were created using the Purdue EAB Cost Calculator.  As you can see, with Sugar Creek's large Ash population it is not cost effective to try and save all of our Ash trees.  These costs are Purdue's estimate and may be higher than we could do the work for, but the relative costs are what counts.  With a removal program combined with replacement of the landscape trees over time, the cost of the strategy disappears in 10 years or so.  With treatment, it never disappears and the trees will still die some day with age and storm damage.

 

Below is a picture of Ash storm damage. After almost every wind event, some older Ash trees need to be pruned or removed. This is true for both golf course trees and street trees. Most of the Ash trees at Sugar Creek are older and were in decline before the borer arrived. They were becoming hazardous to the clubhouse and driving range net, so their removal will give us a chance to plant trees more suited to the location.

Typical Ash tree storm damage

Most of the Ash trees at Sugar Creek are located along the fencelines around the driving range and on the 6th hole. Over the next few years, these trees will be removed and replaced with a variety of disease-resistant trees and shrubs.  We are beginning replacements for the 44 trees removed this winter this spring behind the 6th green.

 



Map of Ash trees at Sugar Creek Golf Course

 

A Sampling of Winter Projects

During the winter, golf course equipment needs to be maintained and serviced for the year.  We have finished our long list of preventative maintenance tasks and have moved on to the projects that can add new life to old machines or extend the life of a newer machine.

Rusty mowing decks get scraped and repainted. This adds many years to the life of these decks.  If allowed to rust, the structural integrity of the deck is compromised.

 

This year we tried a product called "Rust Reformer" as a primer after wire brushing off the loose material. It claims to "convert" rust to a paintable surface. Not sure what what that means, but it sounds good. Time will be the judge.  As auto body workers have told me, inspired by Neil Young of course: rust never sleeps.

 

We also tiled the bathroom and put up waterproof panelling this winter:

 

Here is a bench waiting to go out on the 4th hole Red Tee.  It was donated by the Carey family who lived across the street from the golf course for many years:

 

Our 1996 sprayer now sports new plumbing and a "Cleanload" eductor on the side. This is the black container on the side. It will be used primarily for disolving granular fertilizer and mixing it into the tank.  Many people aren't aware of this, but we actually use our sprayer most often for fertilization.

 

These are just a few projects that the Superintendent and Equipment Tech completed over the past few months. We are ready to turn our attention more to the outdoors! Spring is coming soon.

Memorial Tree for Bill O'Keefe

Yesterday, we planted a memorial tree for William (Bill) O'Keefe.  Bill was a regular golfer and a member of the Sugar Creek Administrative Board for 16 years. 

The plaque and tree were donated by Elmhurst Park District in recognition of his many years of service.  The plaque reads:

William R. (Bill) O'Keefe

Sugar Creek Golf Course Board Member

16 Years

Elmhurst Park District
 

Having known Bill personally for many years, it was a pleasure to plant this tree for him just where he wanted it.

September News 2012

We have had a lot of great days for golf this September and I hope we have a lot more coming up!



8th Hole on a beautiful day



7th Green



The Grounds Crew has been busy with a couple projects.  Tees are being aerified, topdressed, and seeded one-by-one.  On a few tees you may see the strips between the blue and white tees have been mowed down like this:  

These dividing strips were grown out at different times between 2004 and 2006.  Some of them work, but others -- like this one on the 4th hole -- have caused problems.  First of all, this strip eliminates at least 6 prime tee placement locations.  With the amount of rounds that are played at Sugar Creek, we need all the tee space we can get!  Secondly, this strip gave a little too much space to the blue tees and not enough to the whites.  We will continue to place the tees in the same locations but adding this real estate to the tee will allow us to spread out wear more evenly.

Grubs and the associated skunk damage have been bad this year.  Every day, we flip over a lot of sod in areas like this:  



Skunks looking for grubs caused this damage



At Sugar Creek, we treat the fairways and tees preventatively for grubs but not the rough.  The damage is usually minor enough that there is no permanent damage.  Some areas this year will require a grub treatement and some restoration work.

We are finding more and more trees with Emerald Ash Borer symptoms.  The count is up to 64 at the moment.  For more on our tree population, see this post.

Tree with Emerald Ash Borer symptoms

 Come out and enjoy the great weather at Sugar Creek: 

Boy Scouts Help With Buckthorn Removal

On August 15, a group of Boy Scouts lead by Kyle Stevens completed a service project at Sugar Creek.  In order to attain the rank of Eagle, scouts must complete a service project in the community.  Many projects involve clean-up of natural areas or buckthorn removal.  Kyle and crew worked on the buckthorn around the driving range.

Scouts cut and stacked buckthorn around the driving range

They also collected 100's of golf balls!

We now have lots of piles like this of dead buckthorn

Good work, Kyle.

Good Luck, Keith!

For most of the last two years, our course set-up man has been Keith.  If you have played Sugar Creek recently, you have him to thank (or blame) for the pin placements.

Keith changing cups - June 23rd

Keith graduated from Elmhurst College and is moving to North Carolina to continue his studies.  We will miss his level plugs and relentless fixing of ball marks.  Good luck, Keith!

Turf Notes: Poa trivialis

Above is a look at roughstalk bluegrass (Poa trivialis) which makes up a large portion of our fairways and tees at Sugar Creek.  It is considered a weed and was not planted intentionally.  The "trivialis" in the plant's Latin name indicates that it is very common, not trivial.  This member of the bluegrass genus is an invasive species from Europe that can be found growing wild in most areas of North America.  It spreads aggressively by seed and stolons (stems that run along the ground) during the spring and fall.  It does not, however, like our summers.

In many previous posts, I have discussed the difficulties of dealing with Poa annua, or annual bluegrass, on golf course turf.  I occasionally mentioned Poa trivialis (or roughstalk bluegrass) along with its annual, bunch-type cousin.  Because Poa annua affects putting greens it often gets more press than P. trivialis.  You may hear superintendents just say "Poa" as shorthand for both weeds, but there are major differences in the their life cycle and growth habit.  After working with both for quite some time, I am finding that P. trivialis is a far greater problem for our fairways and tees than annual bluegrass.

The problem with Poa

 Poa trivialis is commonly called roughstalk bluegrass -- but not due to any roughness of its shoot tissues.  The rough "stalks" are the stolons that creep along the ground sending tender shoots upward and tiny roots downward.  Roughstalk bluegrass actually has soft, fine blades that are tightly spaced when mowed regularly.  It can easily be mistaken for creeping bentgrass without close inspection.  Below is the 4th tee looking good in June.  It is mostly Poa trivialis.

4th tee - Mostly Poa trivialis

Poa trivialis looks good and plays well most of the year.  It would make a decent turfgrass -- except for one BIG problem.  It completely shuts down during hot weather.  The grounds crew successfully kept it going through very dry conditions by handwatering and syringing through the day, but the heat wave in early July with 3 consecutive 100 degree days caused large areas of Poa trivialis to decline from heat stress.

July 5th and 6th -- the 2nd and 3rd 100 degree days -- were brutal on cool-season turfgrass.  Simply put, grass species in our area are not adapted for optimal growth during the summer.  They are adapted for the cooler seasons of spring and fall.  Kentucky bluegrass, creeping bentgrass, and ryegrass can often take one extremely hot day under the right conditions, but several in a row is a different story.  Turf managers attempt to coax an often unwilling plant through the rough patch of summer when stress and play are at their highest.  It doesn't always work. 

In the photo below taken the morning of July 6th you can see patches of turf in the process of going dormant due to heat stress.  You can also see some cart tire tracks turning purplish-brown.  That afternoon was the breaking point for a lot of Poa trivialis and Poa annua:

7th fairway morning of July 6th - Patches going dormant

Why is it here? 

Poa trivialis is everywhere.  Small amounts can come with regular Kentucky bluegrass and ryegrass seed -- especially in the past.  It is possible that it was in the original seed used on the course, but it is just as likely that seed and stolons were already here before the golf course.  These areas have been seeded and sodded many times over the years just to be over-taken by Poa species.

We have the perfect conditions for Poa.  Poa trivialis thrives during spring and fall in compacted and poorly drained soils.  Many of our fairways are made up of clay mixed with rock, asphalt, brick, and concrete from the old rock dump on the site.  Here is a soil profile from a random spot on this fairway:

Clay mixed with bits of asphalt, brick, and gravel

This picture was taken 12 hours after a heavy rain.  The soil problems are compounded by poor drainage.  Unfortunately, the design of the course routes a large amount of water through the middle of the fairway.  Some drains have been added over the years in these wet spots but they are not adequate to move lots of water quickly.  The result is that puddles stay in the fairway for days after a thunderstorm.  The 7th fairway is especially bad.

7 fairway after heavy rain

The puddles perfectly line up with the areas of dormant Poa trivialis because the poor drainage encouraged this grass in the first place and discouraged desirable species of bentgrass or bluegrass.  Under the right conditions these puddles also heat up and scald the turf.

The turf in these areas is not technically dead.  It is just dormant.  When it dries out, you can peal up the turf and see new shoots forming on the stolons and some seedling germinating.

These seedlings may be Poa annua or trivialis, but they are seedlings and not connected to stolons:

So far, we have used slicing tines on the fairways and tees to encourage some gas exchange.  We will also be slit seeding and aerifying during August to speed recovery and try to establish hardier species of grass.

Can you get rid of it? 

Poa trivialis is almost diabolically difficult to control because it can lay dormant for long periods.  In 2010 and 2011, we slit seeded these areas with bentgrass.  The seed germinated in August and began establishing only to be overwhelmed by Poa annua and Poa trivialis in September and October.  Without removing the existing turf and starting fresh, it is difficult to impossible to permanently establish a desirable turfgrass. 

There are two ways to get rid of it: Multiple applications of non-selective herbicide (Round Up) or physical removal (total renovation).  There is research on a selective herbicide (Velocity) that can weaken it in a mixed stand but would not be effective in this situation.  The underlying cause of Poa also needs to be dealt with: poor drainage and poor soil.  

Because it is not possible to eradicate without a total renovation, we try to keep as much alive as possible during the summer months.  In years like 2009, it was possible to keep it all alive.  The past two summers it has not been possible due to extremes in heat and moisture. 

How can we speed up recovery?

We do several things to speed up recovery and limit further damage:

• Maintain adequate moisture when it does not rain
• Limit cart traffic to affected areas
• Use lighter mowers or walk mowers on affected areas
• Aerify multiple times
• Topdress affected areas
• Slit seed
• Sod worst areas if necessary
• Maintain proper fertility

In 2011, August was fairly mild with only 3 days over 90.  An August like that would be ideal for recovery.  Here is some slit seeding from 2011:

Slit seeding on #1 fairway in 2011

Most of these seedlings were overwhelmed by Poa the following spring, but the slit seeding did significantly speed up recovery last fall.  We are going to keep experimenting with techniques to establish more desirable turfgrasses in the middle of Poa trivialis this year.  Stay tuned . . .