Hello all
We're two weeks into July and now, we're experiencing the effects of consistent temperatures of 28-35 degrees. Sure, it's summer - we've had them before (1976 was worse than this according to my mother - the year I was born was scorchio apparently!!) and we will have them again. That said, it's not usually an annual occurrence for an island nation to experience this heat without the odd shower of rain - but here we are and the forecast is much of the same until the end of the month....
Not a lot of rain coming. In which case, more of this (much much more) :
I'm starting to get flashbacks to 2018. These are not fond memories. It's the same situation 8 years on. At least this time, the irrigation system is more resilient. Upgrades have been done. It's not ideal - but what is? In reality, we're looking at our tees in the same way as in 2018; if they get through, great but let's look at the cold hard facts
- Temperatures in high 20s or low to mid 30s
- Wind present
- Sandy soil
- No automatic irrigation (+ none at all at weekends)
Let's not dwell on the last fact. Even if we had tees irrigation, they would still be struggling. There'd be little to no divot recovery. Seedlings just die off in this sort of weather. Plus, the tees would still need additional hand watering (as per the photo above). The thing is, we just cannot get around them all in a day. Not a chance
Currently, our USGA greens are getting supplemental hand watering every morning. No amount of sprinklers running at night will keep them damp. That simply will not happen. Wetting agents are being used constantly right now and we're absolutely soaking them but these temperatures will override the applied water. Look at it like this - golf greens with 97% sand as a soil. Below that, gravel layer and then drainage. How is that a recipe for holding water?
It's a bit like going home at the moment to a warm house and flicking the central heating on. Don't try this at home BTW
So our days are consumed by pulling hoses and watering all day. It's got the feeling of this
Come winter, we'll be lamenting a lack of sun so perhaps we shouldn't wish the summer away just yet?
Just a couple of polite requests. Firstly, golfers who use a trolley..
As inocuous as it appears, trolleys running over a tee can leave a (undesirable) legacy that can last for days, if not weeks. I saw the trolley marks in the top photo on the day it happened. I was watering the 11th tee that morning. The wheels had just depressed the turf earlier that morning from the offender golfer. My exact words to myself when I saw it?
"That is toast"
It's amazing how quickly the hot sun can burn off some wheel marks. Something like this is easily resolved - USE THE PATH, Please!
Honestly, it really will help us
Second one, this....
Divots taken out of the green?
I sense the offending golfer needs a chill pill. It's a round of golf for goodness sake
In places, we will see the downside of tree roots too. These wonderful things have many positives for the world. But for turf, they can be a menace. Some consume hundreds of litres per day. To the oracle we defer (I know, they're not always accurate but you'll get the idea)
Anyway, we're a few months in from Kieran starting and he's doing well. Billy has been in this week for a few days of work experience, assisting with bunker raking, hole changing, divoting, yardage disc trimming and looking at the effects of wetting agents too. Well done Billy
Many thanks for the volunteers for strimming, mowing, hedge cutting, etc. You should know who they are by now....
Enjoy the football, enjoy the Open, enjoy the summer!
Ben
