June 2024 Update

It has been a busy June for Golf Course Maintenance, with many cultural practices and small projects underway. 

We have received over 12 inches of rain thus far this month, with 9 inches coming in a weeklong span in mid-June. While this seems excessive, many local golf courses received over 20 inches during this same time frame. Although the weather negatively impacted our productivity, it was much needed, and our lakes are now completely full. 

Over 9 inches of rain fell during the week of June 10th.

Our annual Curfew Soil Fumigant application was completed during our June three-day closure, and positive results have already been observed. Injected 5-7" below the surface, Curfew is an extremely effective product in controlling plant-parasitic nematodes. The rain we received following the application enhanced the product's efficacy and helped expedite turfgrass recovery from the injection lines. 

The annual Curfew application took place during the three-day closure in early June.

This photo was taken the day after the Curfew application. Injection lines typically take 2-3 weeks to fully recover.

This photo was taken 2.5 weeks after the application. Injection lines are nearly fully healed.

Our bunker sand replacement project is underway, and we will likely be able to address more bunkers this summer than originally planned. Over time, bunker sand loses its angular form and no longer performs to a high standard. New bunker sand reduces washouts from rain events, decreases the probability of plugged lies in the faces, and enhances overall aesthetics and playability.

The front right greenside bunker on hole #3 after replacing the sand. Nearly 200 tons of sand will be used this summer. We are hopeful to address 25-30% of the bunkers each year.

We are now developing plans for our major July closure, beginning on July 8th. This closure allows us to conduct our major cultural practices on the golf course and is critical to our success throughout the year. 

As putting greens age, more attention is required to address thatch, compaction and development of organic material. Our goal at Copperleaf is to impact 15-20 percent of the surface area yearly.

This 21-day closure will allow us to aerify all playing surfaces several times. We will also verticut and topdress as needed through the process. While many courses close several times through the summer to aerify, we have found it beneficial to address our major cultural practices in just one closure. Doing so only requires one major "surgical recovery" instead of several. This not only benefits the golfer but allows us to plan for rain days and focus more on the process than the recovery. I plan to provide updates with plenty of photos during the closure.

Hole #7 green following our cleanup efforts after the flooding in mid-June.

As always, feel free to email any questions, comments or concerns to parkerf@copperleafgc.com.