Sunday, April 24, 2016

Spring Aerification

Good morning Canyon readers, today we will be discussing our Spring Aerification that will be coming up shortly.  As many have noticed, our greens have been DRASTICALLY different since our 3rd Core Aerification last fall, both with appearance, ball roll, uniformity and most importantly in firmness.  All of these items and improvements seen are a case in point to our agronomic plan here at Canyon Farms.

The biggest change we have seen through our management, but is not seen by you and fellow golfers is within our root-zone.  Early last spring it was noticed that we had very shallow roots from our ISTRC testing, we were well below average with around 1.5 to 2.5" root depth with minimal root mass and excessive thatch.  Roots are a vital piece to any growing plant and take time to grow, during normal Kansas City summers we could have made it though unscathed, unfortunately we did not have a normal late spring and summer of 2015.  Many rain soaked days, limited sunlight that inhibited any root development, as the soil temps started to increase our once poor root-zone became a major issue, leaving us with less than an inch of roots and in some places less and a 1/2 of an inch.  This created a nightmare for our maintenance team and members alike with ball-marks (no root structure to bind the top surface down), soft greens and even though we were receiving adequate rain, only having 1/2 long roots on our mounds required frequent waterings throughout the day to keep them alive.

I am pleased to say after our 3 aerifications of 2015, our agronomic topdressing schedules we currently have an above average root-zone.  Currently averaging 4 to 5" of root depth with vibrant white color and a tremendous increase in root hairs and density.  We have several factors to consider as we head into our summer months and that is with our Spring Aerification.

As seen last spring, things do not always go to plan in the spring time aerification, both in getting holes filled in an adequate time frame and having to push extra fert to close the holes.  These two items are very troubling for golfers and superintendents alike.  This year our Great Life Golf & Fitness will be purchasing a state of the art new Aerifier for this upcoming spring.  This new technology is called the Air2G2, this machine uses compressed air that is shot into the green every 1.5 feet and a whopping 12" down into the root-zone.  This is the "true" form of aerification, not only are you incorporating a HUGE amount of air into the root-zone, but in the process you help break apart any layering created by your normal core and needle tine aerification creating a perched water table and a layer inhibiting further root growth.  Here is a youtube video showcasing the new machine we will be using this spring and summer:



CLICK HERE FOR VIDEO OF AIR2G2

As you can see there is extremely minimal surface disruption, allowing us to maintain our putting surface excellent and true through the summer months.  To minimize any new organic buildup this spring we have limited our fertilizers and will soon be incorporating more aggressive verticuting and continue our topdressing schedule.  Along with this machine which we will be using monthly to incorporate air into our greens, we will also be utilizing our Needle Tine Aerifier to break up any surface sealing.  Our agronomic team in place with Great Life is extremely exited to have this machine that will better our greens health, appearance and for your enjoyment their play-ability.

Hope you all are enjoying our tremendous greens and course here at Canyon Farms, happy golfing!