This is the 13th green on the Priors last week.  Trouble finding the irrigation box, followed by dry weather and compounded by electrical failure on just this 1 green, caused considerable plant stress.

13th Priors

One week later having found the box and flooded the green for 3 days, surface is returning back to normal.

13th Priors

Solid tining the 5th T this morning.  All tees now finished followed by an application of seaweed and wetting agent, which will improve the surface and help root penetration in this dry weather.

5th T Abbotts

Course is now drying out to the point of needing irrigation.  With only 30mm falling in the last 6 weeks, although rain is falling as I write this and next week is looking more unsettled. 

Some pictures taken in the last 7 days:

 New brush being tested,  last week Abbotts received a solid tine down to 3 inches, with a dressing of 3/4 ton of sand per green, followed by brushing, cutting and a final roll.

As the grass dries we begin to see some beautiful wildlife throughout the course this picture is an orchid on the Priors.

The bunding is moving quickly on the Priors now with both the 12th and 13th tees now moved into a diferent spot.

The picture below is taken with the help of an app on my phone.  You can clearly see the poa seed heads within the sward causing an uneven roll and slowing the green down.  Also if you look at the tips of the grass blade you will see that nothing is cut particularly cleanly, and how important a well set up mower with sharp blades is for plant health.

Greens are slowly taking shape.  A light dressing yesterday and greens to be given a feed at the end of the week.   The turf iron is being used more frequently with the aim to produce better, quicker  surfaces without the stress of lowering the height of cut.  Our short term goal is to create fun fast greens ready for the professional trophy.

Our new brush arrived yesterday which will help work topdressing into the sward and into tine holes more effectively.

Last week as part of  my continual professional  development,  I went down a mine in North Yorkshire to watch the production and  manufacture of Potash, a product we use a lot in sportsturf.  A very enjoyable experience helped along by a few beers and great company.

A tough week at work!

Not quite Christmas but some new machinery to play with.

A new aerator capably of tining up to 10" deep this new machine is very smooth and will not damage and tear the surface in the same way as the older version.

A Turf Iron which will be invaluable creating a smooth surface after Solid and Hollow tining.

A new gator to replace our very tired and much used current model.

Still to come a brush for working in topdressing into the green and more importantly the holes.

The brush, aerator and turf iron are shared pieces of machinery along with South Essex and have been purchased primarily to move the greens on both courses forward to create firmer, drier surfaces.

On Friday we took delivery of our new aerator.   This is wider,  smoother and leaves a much cleaner finish than our current machines.

Slowly the course moves forward.  Greens have now had the height dropped to 4mm and will be verti-cut and topdressed next week

7th Abbotts

 The season really should have kicked off by now but the weather continues to struggle to reach anything like decent temperatures.  Heavy dressing and tining nearly a month ago went well but no recovery has meant poor bumpy greens.  Compounded by a fresh bought of disease they are performing as badly as we've seen them for years in early spring.

 Over the weekend they have been fed, sprayed for disease, given a tonic of Iron and other macro nutrients and they will have light dressings for the next few weeks.  The weather is now turning the corner and in a few weeks we will lower the height of cut, re-grind the mower units and try to create at least half decent surfaces toward the end of the month.

 Other parts of the course are moving on, albeit slowly with fairways and tees now all been feed.  We have divotted the 7,8,9 and 10th fairways on the Abbotts and just need to paint the new marker posts on the middle practice area to improve short game practicing.