Bobcat Closure Day Two Part I

Thatch management continued today on the tees.  As seen in yesterdays post we verticut the tees just like the greens.  

After the tees were cleaned up they were circle cut.  This practice is used to smooth the surface and mow it from as many different directions as possible to cut off any remaining shoots.  Any clippings are then blown off.

Here is a completed tee.

As I rode around checking out all the processes I noticed how green 17 tee was even after all the processes were complete.  You, as golfers, actually do thatch management on the par 3's when you take a divot.  Notice how much less thatch there is in this picture compared to a par 5 tee that takes no divots at all.

 

Bobcat Closure Day One

We had our first day of cultural practices on Monday.  We started with thatch management of greens and tees.  We remove thatch in our playing surfaces for many reasons, but the ones you benefit from the most is firmer and faster playing conditions.  Thatch builds up naturally over time and must be removed in order for the greens not to be soft and spongy.  

This is 5 green after the first verticutting.  This practice is done twice but must first be cleaned up in order to get good results from the second go around.

After verticutting the greens are then blown off with the turbo blower seen above.

After blowing off the majority of the material, the green is then brushed to loosen and move any remaining material to the collar of the green.

This is the result after the first day.  This same practice will be done again the next day.

After performing the second verticutting and cleaning the green is then mowed and the result on 18 green is above.

The tees were given the same type treatment with another larger verticutter mounted to a tractor.  Stay tuned for more coming soon!!

 

Lightning Damage

When you leave 12 Bear green, look backwards once you pass the first oak tree on the right.  You will see these two big gashes.  At first glance it looks as if someone ran into the tree but it was actually lightning damage.  If you look closely at the crotch of the tree you will see another area where the bark was peeled away.  

All trees are susceptible to lightning, but studies have found that Oak trees tend to be hit more often than other species in Florida. Oaks tend to be taller than other surrounding trees and hold more moisture naturally, making them particularly vulnerable.  

It will be interesting to see if the tree survives.  It has about a 50% chance of survival.  The strike has caused this oak to be more susceptible to insects and disease.

 

Our Resident Ospreys

 These are a few pictures sent to me from Mr. Gord Martin.  They are our resident ospreys on the platform on 15 Bear.  The nest has yielded one young one this year.  It looks very healthy!!  Thank you Mr. Martin for sharing!

This is the female, "mom", feeding the baby.  You can tell the difference between the male and the female by the necklace the female wears around her neck.  She has a line of darker feathers in the chest area that the male does not have.  The females are also about 20% larger than the males. 

Another feeding moment.  In this picture you can see one of the differences between the young and adult birds.  The newborns have orange eyes, as evident here, and the adults have yellow.

Junior is building muscle in anticipation of finally fledging the nest!

What Is A Localized Dry Spot

  

Recently, we have had a couple questions regarding brown areas on the golf courses.  The quick and easy answer is we really need some rain.  The average rainfall for Fort Myers year-to-date is 7.5".  We have received 2.4" so far this year at The Forest putting us at a 5.1" deficit.  The U.S Drought Monitor listed us on April 6th as being "Abnormally Dry".  Just a few miles south in Collier county, the same index lists an area as "Moderate Drought".

As turf mangers we try our best to be stewards of the environment and conservationists.  We use our resources as wisely as we can.  Being that we are in a drought we monitor our water situation on a daily basis to ensure that we have adequate water supply to last us through the season.  Wetting agents have been applied to fairways and tees on both courses recently to help reduce water requirements by minimizing water repellency in the soil.  

What does all this mean?  After thinking about how to explain this, I searched and found a USGA article that sums it up much quicker than I could.  Here it is:

Ever wonder why some patches of grass turn brown during summer while the surrounding grass stays green? Grass can turn brown for many reasons, but one common cause is called localized dry spot. Localized dry spots develop when the soil becomes water repellent. When water cannot wet the soil, grass wilts and eventually turns brown. Although brown grass can be alarming, playing conditions can still be great. 

What causes localized dry spots? Under certain conditions – e.g., typically hot, dry weather – a waxy coating can form around soil particles. When this happens, water reacts with the soil much like it does with wax paper – it beads up and does not penetrate. Once this waxy coating is present, it is very difficult to get water to penetrate the water-repelling soil.

Why does this happen to certain areas and not others? In addition to the weather, a few other factors influence the development of localized dry spot:

 • Soil type – Sandy soils are most likely to develop localized dry spot. Putting greens and tees are often constructed out of sand which increases their susceptibility to localized dry spot. Also, sandy soils are common throughout many coastal golf courses. 

•Irrigation quantity – Superintendents work hard to provide firm playing conditions. This often means that grass needs to be relatively dry, increasing the likelihood of localized dry spot.

 • Thatch – Grass with excess thatch – i.e. organic matter – is more likely to develop localized dry spot.

 What can Superintendents do to correct localized dry spot? First, it is important to recognize that localized dry spot most frequently forms on golf courses that are maintained to provide dry, firm playing conditions. That said, localized dry spot is not always bad. Heavy watering can prevent localized dry spot, but it is not recommended because it produces soft and wet conditions, consumes excess water and puts the grass at higher risk for disease. 

Superintendents core aerate and sand topdress throughout the season to control thatch and reduce the likelihood of localized dry spot. To alleviate water-repellant conditions, wetting agents that closely mimic the chemistry of soaps and detergents can be applied so water can penetrate the soil.

 Although brown spots that develop because of localized dry spot can be unsightly, rest assured these areas are nothing more than dry grass. Dry grass will typically play firmer than wet grass, so be on the lookout during your next round.

April 2021 Wildlife Tour

 On the morning of  Friday, April 2nd, The Forest Country Club members were treated to another Wildlife Tour with Brian "The Birdman" Beckner.  It was a cold and blustery morning, but nature didn't seem to mind.  Everyone was treated to seeing an eagle with its breakfast, as well as a fox squirrel.  

Nesting boxes were checked to find some very exciting news!  We now have two Eastern Screech Owl boxes that have yielded young ones this year.  One box had an owlet that has already fledged while the other has one egg and one hatchling.  That is awesome news!!!  We are always exciting to find  the young ones.  Our osprey platform has also yielded a baby this year.  Be sure to keep your eyes on the nest on the left side of 15 Bear to watch it grow up.

There are nice Red-bellied woodpecker boxes on the Bear course.  Five of those boxes currently have woodpeckers roosting in them.  Two of them are being inspected for prospective roosting and the other two are being used by other species.  The two purple martin condos on the Bobcat Course are filling up quickly.  The one at the restroom at 6 has three nests and the new one at 10 tee has one nest.  There are no eggs yet, but it is still early and we are hopeful.

 

Our new young osprey on 15 Bear

This is our resident Eastern Screech owl on 11 Bear.  You can see that one has hatched already.  There were a few anoles to snack on later.  Mom is tired and cold here!!

The regal bald eagle with breakfast

For the Birds!!

Brian Beckner, who we affectionately refer to as "Bird Man", did his year end Birdhouse Survey on Friday.  You can see his findings below.  There's not much activity right now as it is summer time and most birds have flown north.  But I have seen a few shorebirds lately on the Bobcat course so my wife and I went over and inspected the lake on the right side of 6.  We managed to count 15 different species of birds which included 2 whistling ducks with 10 ducklings, and two coots with 3 newborns.  And as always, its nice to see a roseate spoonbill in the mix.