April 11' - Drill and Fill Follow Up
Greens Aeration and Drill and Fill Complete……..
I am very pleased to report that the Drill and Fill and aeration process on our greens was successfully carried
out during the week of March 14th. We were fortunate in that the weather cooperated for the most part and
that there were no mechanical breakdowns to slow the process. Given the scope of work that was involved,
we felt that we would need the majority of the week to effectively finish. We exceeded our own expectations by
finishing in three days. I must commend my staff for their tireless work and commitment. In all, approximately
100 tons of sand was applied to our greens, of which about half was shuttled by hand via 5 gallon buckets by
my staff to the drill and fill machines (See short video clip on the Greens Department website). The
remainder of the sand was applied with our brand new topdresser. The efficiency and accuracy of this new
machine was nothing short of incredible.
The finished product (quality of the greens) also exceeded our expectations. There is no doubt in my mind
that the extra time which was afforded me to complete the work had much to do with that. Feedback from
many players over the weekend, only two days after completion, yielded nothing but disbelief with how good
the greens played. Thank you to those who voiced their comments.
Now we wait……for the healing process. We are very hopeful that the healing time will be shorter since the
level of disruption to the surfaces was less than expected. Greens have been fertilized to foster their
recovery. The weather will also be a factor in recovery time…..the warmer the weather, the quicker the
recovery.
One potential drawback, which is always an issue with any form of spring aeration recovery, is the necessary
application of a Poa seedhead control. This application MUST be made at exactly the right time, which
happened to be the day after we finished aeration (See Greens Department website, Techniques and
Terminology tab for a brief description of Growing Degree Days). This is a growth regulator which prevents
the Poa seedheads from emerging and causing extremely bumpy and inconsistent putting surfaces. This
application will impact recovery to some degree; we just hope that it is not terribly significant.
Your patience during this recovery period is very much appreciated. I believe that this was a very important
first step towards improving the internal structure of our greens, which in time will have a cumulative positive
effect on the quality of our putting surfaces during stressful and adverse environmental conditions.
If you have questions or concerns, feel free to contact me at 610-872-4502 or sprnghvn@verizon.net
I am very pleased to report that the Drill and Fill and aeration process on our greens was successfully carried
out during the week of March 14th. We were fortunate in that the weather cooperated for the most part and
that there were no mechanical breakdowns to slow the process. Given the scope of work that was involved,
we felt that we would need the majority of the week to effectively finish. We exceeded our own expectations by
finishing in three days. I must commend my staff for their tireless work and commitment. In all, approximately
100 tons of sand was applied to our greens, of which about half was shuttled by hand via 5 gallon buckets by
my staff to the drill and fill machines (See short video clip on the Greens Department website). The
remainder of the sand was applied with our brand new topdresser. The efficiency and accuracy of this new
machine was nothing short of incredible.
The finished product (quality of the greens) also exceeded our expectations. There is no doubt in my mind
that the extra time which was afforded me to complete the work had much to do with that. Feedback from
many players over the weekend, only two days after completion, yielded nothing but disbelief with how good
the greens played. Thank you to those who voiced their comments.
Now we wait……for the healing process. We are very hopeful that the healing time will be shorter since the
level of disruption to the surfaces was less than expected. Greens have been fertilized to foster their
recovery. The weather will also be a factor in recovery time…..the warmer the weather, the quicker the
recovery.
One potential drawback, which is always an issue with any form of spring aeration recovery, is the necessary
application of a Poa seedhead control. This application MUST be made at exactly the right time, which
happened to be the day after we finished aeration (See Greens Department website, Techniques and
Terminology tab for a brief description of Growing Degree Days). This is a growth regulator which prevents
the Poa seedheads from emerging and causing extremely bumpy and inconsistent putting surfaces. This
application will impact recovery to some degree; we just hope that it is not terribly significant.
Your patience during this recovery period is very much appreciated. I believe that this was a very important
first step towards improving the internal structure of our greens, which in time will have a cumulative positive
effect on the quality of our putting surfaces during stressful and adverse environmental conditions.
If you have questions or concerns, feel free to contact me at 610-872-4502 or sprnghvn@verizon.net
Every month, Charlie Miller makes a informative letter contribution to the clubs newsletter.
