Greenkeeper Diary: Last blog post....

This will be the last post for Greenkeeper diary. I hope you have enjoyed it and it has given you a good insight into the work that we do and the work that goes into keeping the courses in a great condition.

The glorious warm weather faded towards the end of last week which was unfortunate, but it actually was good for the course as it was badly needing a good dose of water.

Here is what I have been up to in the last two weeks.

I have continued to sand the tee signs on both courses. So, if you have seen a young guy being attacked by midges sanding tee signs, that’s me. Once I had finished sanding all the signs I then started to paint them with a dark gloss. This ensures they are looking their best but it also helps to protect the wood against the elements.

Before After

This sunny, dry weather is obviously great for the course in general and makes it very pleasant to work and play golf in, but it can cause the course to dry out very quickly. You may have noticed that we have been watering the greens and some tees in an effort to prevent the grass from drying out and burning in the heat. The lines on some of the fairways and greens lie above where the drains are. The drains are obviously very important in winter and long period of rain to ensure the course stays playable, but in summer it causes water and nutrients to drain freely and water is therefore not retained resulting in the burning of the grass. This will repair over time as we will surely get some rain soon.

Another job that I started last week with Bobby was to edge the bunkers. This is a job that gets done throughout the summer. All that is needed is the edging shears, a bucket and a rake. You edge the whole way round, then picking up the grass clippings, ensuring that any stones and other weeds and grasses are taken out. Then the bunker is raked. It makes such a big difference visually once the bunkers have been edged. (see pictures below)

Before After