Over the 3-day closure of the course the grounds team took advantage and covered of some planned maintenance work.
Greens
· A 6mm hollow tine was used on the greens to a depth of 40mm which is just below the thatch level. Core were cleanup and green given a double roll.
· Bio stimulants were applied to the greens following the coring. These help to aerate the soil and work on minimising the thatch levels from underneath rather than just coring.
· The greens also received some nutrients for the foliage along with some growth regulator.
Some bunkers on the home paddock have had some sand added and bases have been levelled out. Bunker will be a big focus for the team over the next few weeks working on general presentation and adding sand where need and levelling out of the bases.
With the recent rainfall and increase in temperature, including night time temperatures, we have seen a big spike in the growth of our Kikuyuy fairways. Due to this spike, we have applied our first growth regulator application of the season. This will help to minimise the growth but not hinder the plants health.
During the closure we also had a tree contractor come on site and remove trees and branches that have been deemed a safety risk. The contractor completed 70% of the list and will be back on course over the next couple of Mondays to complete the remaining trees/branches on the course.
Can you spot the 2 climbers working in the Sydney Blue Gum behind the 18th green
Couple of things that are a big focus for the team next week is the 3rd application of Poacure to the greens, some more work in the bunkers fixing bases and sand requirements. We will also be replacing the worn turf between the bunker and pathway at the 17th green and we will also be replacing some worn/bare kikuyu areas on the fairway and rough.
Mark Ward
