We Must Change the Perception

It is no secret that there are multiple issues currently affecting the perception and viability of the game we love. Issues dealing with slow play, dwindling participation, and the increase in cost to maintain and operate facilities are some of the more pressing ones. Another issue, or narrative, that is growing in momentum is the idea that golf courses, more specifically golf course superintendents, are bad for the environment. Movements to chastise and dramatically curtail the tools superintendents have at their disposal are growing in momentum.

On the surface this is a very easy argument to make. By nature, maintaining turfgrass at unnatural heights and under intense pressure from play requires the use of inputs. Be it water, fertilizers, control products, etc…, a superintendent must supplement the needs of the plant. In this vein, I suppose we are adding something to the environment that might not otherwise be there. I can’t argue that fact. Where this narrative jumps off the tracks is when it suggests that these inputs are applied in excess and with no regard to their effects on the environment. This opinion, which is more widespread than we want to believe, is born from a simple lack of knowledge. Can I sit here and say with certainty that EVERY superintendent manages their inputs with 100% efficiency? Or that EVERY superintendent’s top priority is to mitigate their properties impact on the environment? No, I cannot. What I can tell you with certainty is that all GOOD superintendents genuinely take their impact on the environment into account in anything they do. In this regard, there are significantly more GOOD superintendents than there are bad and the bad are being weeded out faster than ever.

By nature, all GOOD superintendents value the environment as much or more than anyone. Our viability and successes hinge on healthy ecosystems and the processes that ensure environmental sustainability. Do you believe an abundant source of clean water is not a valuable resource to a superintendent? How about a soil system that is healthy and teaming with the microorganisms necessary for the conversion of nitrogen? An unhealthy, out of balance ecosystem is a death sentence for a GOOD superintendent.

In addition, I have yet to visit a property that has the resources to apply inputs at excessive levels. All superintendents run a cost center and usually operate within a budget that allows for very little waste. This alone prevents the irresponsible use of inputs.

This topic is approaching the forefront of our industries challenges. Stats and data can be created to defend both sides of the argument. This is a complex issue that warrants open and thoughtful conversation and this article is not the forum for this debate. I simply wanted to plant the seed that starts to dispel the notion that superintendents are wanton offenders of the environment. I, along with many of my industry colleagues, am passionate about our care for the environment and strive daily to not compromise in my stewardship of it.

Reason for the Frost Delay

Its pretty apparent spring is here and this years golf season is going to get off to an early start. Early spring weather brings with it dramatic temperature fluctuations and night time temperatures will most likely remain low through the near future. Morning frost delays are a given this time year and it is not uncommon for "frost season" to linger into May. I get the impression that not alot is understood about frost and its effect on turf so I hope the information below sheds some light on the subject.

Turfgrass relies on it’s elasticity to withstand the wear and tear of mechanical stress, i.e., golfer traffic. When the leaf blade is frozen, the turfgrass becomes rigid and its ability to withstand mechanical stress is dramatically compromised. Freezing temperatures can lead to ice crystals forming within the intercellular spaces of the leaf blade. Intercellular spaces are the spaces that exist between the plants cells.

When mechanical pressure is placed upon the leaf blade, the sharp edges of these crystals pierce the plants cell walls resulting in cell colapse and turf damage. Imagine what happens when you peirce a water ballon with a needle and that is, essentially, what happens when ice crytals protrude the a cell wall. Once the plant loses the rigidity provided by the cells turgor pressure the plant will colapse. This is the primary reason we delay play on the golf course until we are frost free.

It is important to note that temperatures do not have to reach 32°F to experience frost. Also, keep in mind the golf course has a number of different micro-climates, the warmest of which is the one surrounding the clubhouse. It is quite common to be frost-free on the range and #1 Gray Hawk yet have frost on the holes in our low lying creek lines. For example there is a pretty consistnet 5-7 degree temperature difference bewteen the teebox and the green on #1 of Black Bird.

Here are a couple examples of frost damage:

Cart damage on frosty turf

Damage from foot traffic on frosty turf

No one likes frost delays. It puts pressure on the pro shop staff, prevents the grounds crew from prepping the course, and it throws off the golfer’s schedule. Unfortunately, it is a reality so please be patient and understand it is out of our control. We will have you on the course as soon as Mother Nature allows.

We appreciate your patience.

The Importance of a Mentor

Through my years in the industry I have had the opportunity to work with and alongside some of the best in business. What I have learned form these men/women is priceless and not found in any book or classroom.

The GCSAA understands the importance of a mentor too and put this video together in hopes of touching on that. I was fortunate to have the opportunity to add some input and hopefully make my mentor's proud. Hope you enjoy it and take the time to thank those who took the time to teach and inspire you.

http://www.gcsaa.tv/view.php?id=2530

Before and After

Todd Quitno of Lohmann Golf Design sent me some before and after photos from our renovation that he used for a recent presentation. It's going on five years since the project started and I had forgotten what the old layout was like andjust how much the design improved the course. I am sure you have seen some of these before but there were a few new ones I wanted to share:

#1 Black Bird Before

#1 Black Bird After 

 #2 Black Bird Before

#2 Black Bird After

#7 Black Bird Before

#7 Black Bird After

#8 Black Bird Before

#8 Black Bird After

#2 Red Feather Before

#2 Red Feather After

#7 Red Feather Before



#7 Red Feather After

On an unrelated note: 



I am always looking to bridge the communication gap that exists between the golfer, the golf professional and the superintendent. Fortunately, in doing that, I have had the privilege of contributing to the NGA's "Nebraska Golfer" publications this year. It was a lot of fun and I really appreciated the opportunity. With any luck I will be able to continue this next season. The link below will take you to the third and final installment of the year.

http://www.nebgolf.org/nebraska_golfer/winter2014/winter2014/index.html.

If you love the game and want to further it's advancement, please think about joining and/or supporting the NGA. At the very least get busy on your game and support the NGA by participating in their 2015 Nebraska State Amateur Event at Indian Creek. The event is slated for the end of July and, as always, will showcase the best players from the area.

Join the NGA: http://www.nebgolf.org/membership.html

Winter Sign Repair

Outside of some extremely cold days here and there, winter hasn't treated us too badly thus far. A lot of work still goes on around the shop and with the cold settling in for the next couple of days, work has shifted back indoors, specifically to the golf course signage.

 

All of the course signage is made in-house and from scratch. No one on the crew can claim to be a carpenter, so we try and keep the design and construction fairly simple.

 

Between hole signs and traffic signs, we have quite a lot to go through. You don't realize the number of signs out there until they are piled up in the shop. This is a great job to work on when the weather isn't cooperating.

 

 

 

 

Every sign is repaired, sanded, stained, painted, and protected before it's ready to go back out in the spring. Those signs that are beyond repair are replaced with a new sign constructed, laid out and routed in-house.

 

Painting might be the most tedious of the jobs. It takes a steady hand and a lot of patience.

 

 

We feel the end product is a good one with the signs adding a unique touch to our facility.

Your Questions Answered Here

The Indian Creek Turf Talk blog has been up and running for a few years now. It has been fun to manage and is hopefully insightful for those of you that take the time to read its content. I have always tried to write about topics that I think would interest the golfer, Indian Creek customer, backyard farmer, and/or turf professional. I hope I have done a good job of that.

We all know the off-season can be long and by late winter golf can be a distant memory. I would like to keep you all engaged in the game and Indian Creek this winter but I need your help. I would like to use your input to drive some of the topics and conversation for future articles. Please feel free to offer up and send any questions, observations, or conversation topics to jimnedrow@gmail.com.

 I have grown up around the golf industry my entire life so, although my specialty is agronomics, I would love to discuss any topic related to the game. This site is supposed to serve the readers so help me tailor my topics to best do that.

Here are few photos from the past season to help keep you inspired all winter long. Also, don't forget about the indoor practice facility/hitting bay's this winter. They provide a great opportunity to get some real swing feedback all year long.

Ever Improving Drainage

This past fall, a lot of time was spent making minor improvements to increase the efficiency of our fairway drainage systems. Major improvements were previously made during the course renovation, but the heavy rains this past fall pointed out a number of areas that need continued improvement. Unfortunately a handful of those areas will take resources and shaping skills that we cannot provide in house and, for those, a master plan will be developed. Each area will be prioritized and fixed when time and resources allow. As for the smaller, more manageable areas, we are able to address those ourselves and we already made good strides this past fall.

The areas we focused on the last few months were areas that didn't surface drain as fast as we needed. This was due to a number of issues. Some areas didn't have adequate fall and the velocity of the draining water wasn't high enough to remove it from the playing surface fast enough. In other areas, the water simply had too much ground to cover before reaching a basin.

We went about fixing the insufficient slope issues in one of two ways. We either increased the percent slope along the entire run of the waterway through grading or by lowering the basin itself. These promoted higher water velocities along the run of the drainway and entering the basins.

The areas that simply relied on surface drainage for too long of a stretch were fixed by grading in and installing small inlets throughout the entire run of the waterway.

 Below are photos of some work we did on Gray Hawk #1

 

Below are photos of some work we did on 1 Black Bird