This week we sprayed out our seashore paspalum chipping green, the surrounds and number 1 pro tee with 2 qt/acre Round Up and 24 oz/acre of fusilade II. Over the next few weeks you will notice the slow transition to a dormant brown (death) color. This is in preparation for converting our playing surfaces in this area to Tifeagle on the green and Tifgrand in the surrounds. We will be checking our old mix, gravel layer, sub base and drainage that may have been a contributing factor for poor turf quality in localized areas since construction. This project is a test run for our upcoming greens renovation during the summer of 2014. While we are in the area we are also going to expand the number 1 pro tee to provide additional length to the hole.
Chipping Green prior to herbicide application.
7 days after application.
July 3, 2013
Surface being scrapped off of the green on July 9, 2013
July 12, 2013
Once we got down into the original mix near the gravel/sand interface we noticed the sand being very saturated.
Original greens mix showing its ability to aggregate.
A saturated root zone mix is a sign of fines clogging the internal pore space at the sand/gravel interface. USGA greens must be built with a clean sand that meets specifications for size, shape and other factors. After seeing the saturation of our sand we performed a test on the sand to see if it was possibly a dirty sand (contaminated with clay). Below is a photo of our original greens mix along side our current topdressing mix. Notice that after 10 minutes of being allowed to settle the water in the original mix is a deep orange color but our topdressing mix is virtually clear.
Comparison of original mix vs topdressing sand.
While renovating the chipping green we are also doing our teaching green and nursery green. Fortunately both of these greens were built with different mixes so we have been able to see and compare the performance and impact of the different mixes used during construction.
Photo of clay contamination around the pea gravel surrounding the drain tile under the chipping green
The teaching green was constructed with a sand/profile blend from another facility and the nursery was built with a straight sand mix. You can see how much clearer the water is after 10 minutes of settling compared to our original greens mix in the middle.
July 17, 2013
photo of drainage lines being uncovered and inspected
Approximately 6 ft of original greens and smile drains had been covered with native soil and sodded during construction
Dirty gravel was delivered to the site. Notice the bridging of the material once dry.
Closer view of dirty gravel
If proper quality control measures are not in place low quality materials can easily go unnoticed during construction. This dirty gravel would had contributed to clogging of the drainage pipe infrastructure.
Installation of new perforated drainage lines.
New uniform 4" gravel layer installed over the soil sub base.
Photo of improper grading during original installation of green by contractor.
