Work on the field in the next few weeks:
Week 47: Green surroundings are trimmed and dressed. Improvement of paths with turf
Week 48: The course's greens and green surroundings are patched and dressed. Paths are improved with turf.
November weather is upon us and the greenkeepers have been taking advantage of it for the past few weeks. Lots of sand has been brought out onto the paths and areas around the greens to firm these areas up. The fairways were aerated by our contractor last week and at the same time we worked on the tees ourselves. The foregreens were aerated, reseeded and dressed the week before.
Work on and care for the greens is on hold for the winter. We haven't mowed the greens since mid-October, but have been tumbling instead, and that's on purpose. When we're not allowed to use fungicides, we have to find other methods to get the greens through the winter nicely. We actually start our winterization in August. Here the greens get their last dose of fertilizer. We also aerate no later than mid-September. In October, we stop mowing and switch to caring for the greens with our tumbling machine. The greens are tumbling 2 to 3 times a week if the weather is right and it provides sufficient roll and playing quality. We have used this winter care strategy for a few years. It is different from the usual care on courses in Denmark. It also attracts attention. Most recently, the Danish Golf Union came by to record a short information film financed by the Danish Environmental Protection Agency.
Thank you very much. You are doing a great job helping to repair divot holes. Both bags hanging in the starter's house and pipes set up out on the course are being used diligently. And it shows. We are mostly seeing backfilled impact marks on the course and the grass seed is also establishing itself. It is very encouraging to see how your diligence is carrying "seeds" onto the course.
As long as the weather is mild, we will continue with this repair program. Tubes and bags are still being filled up, ready for use. But when the weather gets too cold for grass seed germination, we switch to another method of caring for our fairways: Mats.
Small mats will be hung up in the starter house for free use. You can choose to keep it or hang it back up after use. Remember that you cannot be disabled if you use a mat, but in return you are helping to take care of the turf during its most vulnerable period.
Enjoy your rounds of golf. As always, be careful on the course. This is best done with a carry bag, pitchfork and divot bag/tube.
/Martin Nilsson