Summer is definitely here. The past week or so we have had some crazy weather which can be very tricky for turf.  You may notice some dry spots on certain teebanks, greenbanks and in the roughs.  You may see that we are not watering every night and you may see that we are lugging around a lot more hoses.  All of the things mentioned above are done for a reason.  The common misconception is that when it is hot; you water.  This is not always the case.  When humidity levels are high and ET  (evapotranspiration - the water that evaporates from the turf) levels are low; there is virtually no water loss throughout the day.  Applying water in these times will only encourage disease by providing a continuously moist environment for it to breed.  Other times when ET levels are high and humidity levels are low; a heavy irrigation cycle is required to replace the moisture lost during the day.  Both scenarios have occurred numerous times recently which is why I try to balance the two with what we call "Deep & Infrequent" irrigation schedules.  When a lot of moisture is lost; we water heavy and then we don't water at all through the humidity until we need to water heavy again. 

This balancing act is in an effort to provide you with the best possible playing conditions.  There may be some dry spots out there (mostly out of play) but by allowing these spots we reduce our chances for disease greatly.  The spots will green up again with rain; as they are just dormant. The disease, however; is much harder to come back from.  Along with watering schedules comes a few other cultural practices to get through these tough stretches of weather.  Aggressive mowing schedules and rolling of the greens are kept to a minimum. Growth slows down with humidity reducing the frequency it needs to be cut.  Green speed also slows with humidity.  We try to keep the rolling to a minimum; as it will virtually have no effect other than stressing out the plant.  In short, the turf plant goes into survival mode during this type of weather.  We do everything we can to help it get through; while continuing to provide you an excellent product.  So while you may see more roll in the fairways, we ask for your understanding if the greens seem slightly slower.  The 6" of ball roll lost on the greens in this two week stretch, will help to ensure healthy greens for the entire playing season.

Turf isn't the only thing that has a tough time with high heat and humidity.  Please remember to stay hydrated while on the golf course to ensure that YOU can enjoy the entire playing season as well.  Thank you for your continued support and as always; please feel free to contact me with any questions, comments or concerns that you may have.


Best Regards,
Toby Young