As I write this post we are experiencing some very wet and windy weather not very seasonal!

We are taking this opportunity when we are limited with the jobs we can complete out the courses to get some much need work completed inside the maintenance facility. Tee balls are beginning painted along with all hazard markers, this will be an ongoing process through the winter period.

We are also continuing getting the new workshop ready by painting the walls.

The area used to be a storage area at the rear of our staff facility, as it is larger and more easily accessed we are making this into our new workshop area. We can then move the grinding units and workshop machinery into this new area.The old workshop will give us an area to store large pieces of machinery such as tractors and aeration equipment.

Over the last two weeks we have been able to strip out a number of areas of rank grass around bunker contouring which made ball retrieval difficult and detratced from the heathland look of wispy fescue grasses. We have also at the same time planted heather into some of the faces giving and even greater natural look, the fecue turf we have used to replace the rank coarse grass has come from our own turf nursery.

The picture above shows the start of the process with all the rank grass removed and the fescue and heather being put into the face and surround.

The picture below shows the job completed, this type of work will continue over the coming weeks. 

The alterations to the 15th Lodge Green surround have also progressed well with the Left hand side of the greens now being shaped and turfed, the front left bunker has been constructed and turf as the picture below shows. Our aim is to finish this project early in the new year.

General maintenance has continued including further slit aeration to the greens,collars and aprons being completed along with pedestrian cutting of greens and raking of bunkers.

I have mentioned on many occasions the importance of tree thinning around playing surfaces to improve air and light penetration onto the plaing surfaces which in turn help create a better environment for the finer grasses to flourish. One other point which is sometimes overlooked is with tree clearing you increase the ability of early morning sun thaw surfaces during frosty conditions, below is a picture of the 4th Green on highgare, a green which we have completed some tree thinning work but from the picture it is clear we need to do more! You can clearly make out the areas of frost behind the tree cover.

Finally I would like to wish you all a very Happy Christmas and a prosperous New year. Thank you for your continuing support.

Over the last three weeks we have experienced some fantastic weather for the time of year, this has enabled us to progress nicely through both our construction/renovation work and our maintenance work. Aeration is avery important part of our management of all the playing surfaces it enables the rootzone dry out and any moisture to peculate through the soil profile easily and most importantly it enables the soil to breath and therefore the turf remains healthy through the winter period. The turf can also send down deeper roots when conditions allow. Over the past month and a half we have managed to slit aerate the greens and collars five times and we will aim to complete this process another two times before the new year.

As i have mentioned in previous post at this time if year it is very important to keep playing surfaces tidy and pedestrian mowing helps in this regard along with gently rolling the surface and producing a better quality of cut. The greens are pedestrian cut as and when needed but we aim for twice during the week at 5.5mm. The tees are cut once every two weeks at 10mm.  

We are now on top of leaf clearing which has taken many hours but thankfully we have seen the back of that process. other jobs completed on the courses have been topping up bunkers with sand and making sure levels are where they should be.

One area we are focusing over this winter is to strip out unwanted coarse grass from around bunker banks and surrounding contouring. We are replacing this coarse grass with finer fescur turf which we grow on our own turf nursery. The finer fescue grass which dominates the heathland site naturally is far easier to retrieve golf balls from and give the authentic natural look to our bunkers. the picture below is the work completed around the 11th Highgate fairway bunker.

Finally another great view this month across the 2nd on the Lodge Course.

Work on the 15th Lodge has progressed well over the last two weeks, the right hand side existing approach bunker has been renovated. The new fairway bunker on the left hand side is almost complete.

Existing right hand approach bunker half way through its make over.



Existing right hand approach bunker finished ready for sand.

This year we are using heather plugs from a specialist nursery to supplement our heather for use around bunkers and in contouring work. Picture above shows some very healthy looking Calluna Vulgaris plugs ready for planting in the 15th Lodge bunkers.

We have made the most of the weather this week and begun our annual heather cutting and harvesting seed. the picture above shows the machine used for this process. The heather is cut on a two year rotational basis and the seed is collected and used for heather regeneration around the courses. We also supply heather seed to a number of local course who are trying to establish heather, some seed also goes to Natural England sites and Wildlife trust sites to help with heather regeneration.

Amongst other jobs we try to complete on a regular basis is hand mowing tees, we feel this helps to provide good presentation throughout the season and especially during the winter months. We aim to pedestrian cut greens two-three times per week with rolling taking place once per week and tees get cut once per week.

I will leave you with this picture, there are some great views early in the morning.

The last few weeks has seen work on the golf courses slowly change from focusing on regular conditioning through to more focused improvement work as we are now approaching the winter months. All Greens were verti drained using 12mm solid tines at the end of October, this will be our last deep aeration of the year as we will now be focusing on slit tines every two weeks. This will be completed on both Greens and tees.

Verti draining greens

All greens are currently being cut at 5mm our preferred winter height with pedestrian mowers. We aim to cut greens three times per week at the moment as growth has really reduced, we also roll once per week to maintain surface smoothness. As part of our winter management of the greens, collars and aprons they receive monthly applications of Chelated iron and seaweed to keep the grass plant healthy through the winter period without encouraging growth.

Spraying Greens.

Pedestrian mowing is also the preferred option on tees throughout the winter period as we feel the presentation is far greater and the action on the turf is far less severe.

The planned programme of renovation and improvement is also underway with the alterations to the 15th Lodge being the first project. The approach bunker is the first to be constructed and then we will be improving all the greenside bunkers. All of the existing bunkers will be taken out and replaced with two new greenside bunkers improving both the playability of the hole and the aesthetics.

This was the first cut in the ground.

The new approach bunker almost ready for turf.

We have also competed planned drainage work to the fairway feature on the 8th Highgate along with stripping out rank turf and replacing with fine fescue turf.

Presentation of both courses always remains a high priority even during the winter months and the picture belows shows how good the course can look in the winter.

Course Managers Report for October

Course Management Course Manager’s report for October 2013 Fine Turf Management The greens are currently being cut at 4.5mm with rolling taking place twice each week; as we move into November, the height will increase to 5mm. We have recently taken delivery of a new greens roller which will enable us to roll on both courses simultaneously if required now that we have two rollers. Throughout the year we have the valuable option to roll instead of mowing, whilst still maintaining the greens speed; over the long term, this will reduce stress on the turf and improve the quality of the sward. We aim to pedestrian mow as many times as possible during every week, as this gives us a much improved finish and increases pace dramatically; throughout the winter period, greens are only cut with pedestrian mowers. Over-seeding success – As you have probably seen on the greens, the percentage of seed which has germinated and is now growing within the sward is excellent. The drill lines are very clear to see. The success of over-seeding is important in the future development of the sward and builds on the work already completed. Further, as a direct consequence, the ultimate goal of bent and fescue dominated greens is brought very much closer. We have recently completed some heavy verti drain work on the new 11th green on Highgate. This work was discussed with Alistair Beggs (Agronomist) during his visit on the 7th October 2013. We have used 24mm tines to a depth of 300mm minimum to alleviate the compaction deep in the soil profile. These holes were then filled with top dressing. The initial signs are very good, but given the nature of the work, the greens will remain out of action for a significant period of time. All of the greens will be verti drained with 12mm tines towards the end of this month. This will enable us to start the winter maintenance programme of monthly slit tining until the end of January 2014, after which we will move to using solid round 10mm tines through into the spring and on the same rotation. Throughout the winter period, all greens and collars will receive a monthly application of chelated iron and seaweed in order to harden the turf and sustain and maintain a healthy turf throughout the winter period. The chelated iron also has a mild suppressant action on any fungal activity. Tees All tees are currently being cut with pedestrian mowers at 8mm twice a week. This significantly improves the presentation and quality of the surface. This height of cut will increase over the coming weeks to 10mm, which is our consistent, usual winter height. The tees are divoted twice a week alongside the regular general maintenance of emptying all litter bins and cleaning around the marker stones. Aeration throughout the winter period forms a similar programme to that of the greens and will be undertaken and completed on a 3-4 week cycle basis. Worm activity is a particular problem on some tees and in the past we have used chemical to combat the problem. However, this year we have tried a new product which is completely organic, and the first signs are promising. I will be monitoring the progress of this product over the winter period. Over the coming weeks we will move tee balls onto the winter tee areas in order to give the main tee areas time to recover ready for next season. We will be completing some re-turfing and targeted renovation work on some of the more damaged tees. Fairways Over the last two seasons I have been especially pleased with the condition of the fairways, particularly in terms of the percentages of the finer grasses and the way in which they have held up through some extremes of weather. The work that has gone into these fairways over the last seven years can not and should not be underestimated, especially in terms of over-seeding, aeration and wetting agent application. We are currently cutting fairways at 14mm as and when needed; at this time of year, one of our biggest problems and challenges is to get a clean cut as there is still growth that warrants and requires cutting. For example, inevitably, there are leaves and other debris on the surface which have to be cleared, whilst additionally the surface remains very wet; therefore the quality of cut is closely monitored in order that the clean cut is achieved. Areas of weaker growth have been over-seeded and top dressed to improve sward composition. Rough We have recently been scarifying and cutting areas of the ecology rough which have become too dense and populated with the wrong type of grasses. By completing this work on a regular basis it encourages a more open sward that is dominated by the finer grasses and therefore makes ball retrieval easier. It also results in the maintenance of our ecology rough, which creates excellent definition to the courses. The annual heather cutting and seed harvesting will begin during November; areas of heather are cut on a two year rotation. The harvested seed is used for heathland establishment and we also supply other golf courses with seed, as well as Natural England sites, which are undertaking heathland regeneration. Over the last month we have been busy cutting down bramble areas within the woodland; over the last two years brambles have been really very aggressive in their growth habit so we have taken the opportunity to get on top of some of these areas by including their regular maintenance into the ongoing programme. In some of the more prominent areas we will be spraying the brambles with herbicide in the spring to reduce any new growth. General Kelvin Cowley is our new apprentice. He started with us in September and has settled in well. The search for a second apprentice has been a little slower to gain momentum, but we are conducting initial interviews next week (w/c 21st October 2013) with candidates sourced via the National Apprenticeships website; the Apprenticeship has also has been advertised in conjunction with Rodbaston College. I am anticipating that the second apprentice should be identified and appointed via these interviews and will therefore be in post during December. I have also researched the viability of using a mechanic from a local machinery supplier. The role would be based on the mechanic working on-site on a weekly basis, to help with the all-important general machinery maintenance (this was discussed at a meeting held on 20th September). The need to maintain our existing fleet in prime condition is paramount to the standards we set on the courses. Machines and particularly cutting machines, have to be set-up correctly and available for the task every time that they required. Our mechanic currently works a three day week, but we are finding there is an increasing need for the greenkeeping team to get involved with machinery maintenance when our mechanic isn’t on-site, which has the knock-on effect of taking them away from there required duties. I have approached two of our suppliers and they have provided costings, based on the provision of a mechanic on an hourly basis and on a routine and frequency specified by me. The rate is £30 per hour, plus traveling expenses, so £240 per day, plus expenses. Initially I would like to recommend that we use this resource at a rate of four days per month, based on a 4-week month, so approximately 1 day per week. For the longer term I will look into other options for staffing that will continue to improve the provision of excellent maintenance of the machinery. Jonathan Wood Course Manager Enville Golf Club 07977448149 jw@j-wood.co.uk

It has been a number of weeks since my last post and we have experienced a very busy period on both courses with important club competitions and invitations along with our scheduled aeration and over seeding work on both courses. Back at the start of the month we completed the scheduled aeration and over seeding work on the Lodge Course. This included solid tining with 15mm tines to a depth of 120mm followed by over-seeding with bent and fescue.

We drilled into the greens 120kg of bent seed and 80kg of fescue seed. A double pass of bent seed was completed on some of the more sheltered greens and on the rest of the greens one pass of bent seed was completed along with one pass of fescue seed. This will help us really improve our grass composition and build on the success of previous years. During this work the prevailing weather conditions were very dry so we applied small amounts of water to to make sure the seed was moist.

We also completed verti draining to approaches and walk ways around greens. All tees were verti drained and top dressed during the week also.

Once all the greens had been seeded we then top dressed all green, collars and aprons using in the region of 45 tones. The top dressing was then brushed in and the greens rolled to retain surface levels.

The work went really well and surfaces recovered nicely and presentation was quickly restored.

The results were there for all to see within 7 days, the seed had germinated and was clearly visible the aim now will be to make sure the after care is in place to allow the new seedlings to establish and mature into the existing sward.

Its been a couple of weeks since my last post as we have been busy preparing the courses for Captains week and then Club Championship. Most of our time at this period in the year is centred around presentation and making sure all surfaces are in good order for the busy club schedule.

Greens are currently being cut at 4mm and rolled/ironed up to three times per week to maintain good pace whilst not sacrificing the finer grasses by cutting at low heights. Collars and aprons are cut three times per week at 8mm as you have probably noticed we have in some cases taken this collar cut further out from the green to improve the quality of surface and to increase the playability of the immediate surfaces around the greens. The collars and aprons are maintained exactly the same as the greens apart from the height of cut.

Fairways are cut at 14mm three times per week, we have over the last couple of days had contractors in to apply herbicide to a number of fairways which have areas of clover infestation. Divoting is continuing and it was unfortunate we had to cancel the scheduled divot repair evening yesterday due to the bad weather, we hope to have another date soon.

This week we have continued our top dressing and aeration programme with all green being solid tined with 8mm tines followed by a light top dressing of around 11 tonnes. This will be completed on a monthly basis.

I will leave you this week with a number of picture from over the last two weeks.

Pedestrian cutting Captains day Morning.

This week has been really busy for all of the greenkeeping team with the preparation of both courses for Captains week. All the staff have been great putting in extra hours to maintain pedestrian cutting on greens and tees for example.

We have been testing greens on a number of occasions during the week and are producing around 9.5 - 10 feet of pace on the greens. This is expected to rise slightly with a couple of extra rolls before the weekend, however the weather may have a big part to play in that! The greens are being cut daily at 4mm with pedestrian mowers, we are aiming to continue with the pedestrian mowing though next week and into next weekend for the Club Championship. We will maintain pace on the greens through further rolling.

I am always emphasising how important our aeration is in terms of creating healthy growing conditions within the soil and giving the finer grasses the correct environment to flourish in. the picture below shows a hole plug taken out of the 7th Green on lodge with root growth down aeration holes made by the verti drain, some 12" down! This is exactly what we are trying to achieve.

The first divot repair evening went ahead on Thursday 6th June it was a great success and enjoyed by all members who attended, thank you all as this kind of work really does make a difference. I will be organising further evenings in the future, I will keep you posted with dates.

Our main focus on the course has been presentation and making sure all surfaces are managed correctly with major club competitions scheduled over the coming weeks.

With the weather also warming up we have to keep an eye on soil moisture and making sure if we do irrigate we only use this as a tool to keep the turf alive, we use a soil moisture probe and irrigate when the moisture falls below 10%. We complete hand watering to isolated areas if needs be rather than using the irrigation system, this allows us to maintain a healthy sward dominated by the finer grasses, over watering would only encourage the shallow rooted poorer grasses.

Greens are currently being cut at 4mm with pedestrian mowers Monday to Friday and ride on's being used during the weekend. We are also rolling in the region of three times per week to increase speed without dropping height of cut and increase smoothness.

Its been a little while since my last post, over the last two weeks not only has the weather improved but we have experienced some good greenkeeping conditions.
Work on the course has been predominately centred around surface preparations and this week we have again top dressed both sets of greens and for the first time this year we have verti cut all greens.

The picture above shows the verti cut units, these vertically rake the surface to take out any lateral growth or seed heads of the annual meadow grass. It is very important to us not to be too aggressive with verti cutting and set the depth at 1mm above ground level, any lower than this and you risk removing too much grass tissue and weakening any new or seedling grasses which may be in the sward. The finer grasses which we are trying to manage and dominate our greens can also be harshly effected by too aggressive verti cutting. This operation is also useful in helping to integrate the top dressing into the sward.

We have applied in the region of 10 tones on each course, Lodge yesterday and Highgate today. this will be a our last dressing until after the run of major competitions which we have coming up in the diary.

Both courses are beginning to shape up nicely, one job that really does not get the credit it deserves is hole changing. We generally change holes up to four times per week and great care is taken to make a clean new hole we use up to date hole changers which take out a complete plug using a single blade which leaves no imperfections around the edge.

Pedestrian mowing is continuing on both courses as we feel that although it is a little more time consuming than ride on mowing it gives us a far superior finished and look to the tees as shown above on the 1st Lodge.

fairway definition has really improved over the last week with all fairways really thickening out and the fescue doing nicely.