January Green Keeper Update
January has been a mixed bag of weather with some wet spells then a very cold snap and recently storms and milder weather. Fortunately the course has had very few closed days even with the terrible weather that we have had. In December the greens were vertidrained which has relieved compaction and has allowed the heavy down pours to dissipate quickly, this really helps with green recovery. A few of the fairways have been very wet and can cause discomfort and frustration when pushing trolleys, but recent drag matting while the weather was right has helped to level them and relieve the muddier areas.
The path ways on 14 and 16 have had areas re graded and had the surface topped up. The pathway from the 1st to the 2nd tee was getting very muddy where the trolleys were pushed of the 1st (one of the wetter fairways) and the surface was degrading. We have topped over the surface with wood chippings until early spring when hopefully the fairways start to dry then the chippings will be removed and the surface topped up with Mot type 1.
During the cold spell the yard area by the 7th tee was cleared with the debris chipped and a new bund around the edge made with the soil that had been tipped on the area. There is still works and levelling to be done but all will be complete by spring.
Upcoming works for February and March
The steps on the 10th tee will be replaced in the same fashion with anti-slip treads, there may be some re-routing for access for a couple of days.
The greenside bunkers on the 7th green will have all the sand removed and a stone suppressing fabric installed and topped up with new bunker sand.
The wet areas on the 3rd and 5th greens will each have a new drainage trench dug at the front and filled with drainage material to relieve the amount of flooding at peak rainfall.
All works as always are dependent on the weather and February can sometimes see some grass growth so we as always need to be prepared to change our plans to fit the weather and course conditions.