Nature vs. Nurture

The golf industry in Southeastern Michigan has had a very interesting spring.  You’ve probably heard the horror stories about damaged greens and massive turf loss.  Many courses opened up with a few temporary greens, some opened with all temporary greens.  The UMGC was fortunate enough to open with all 18 greens rolling.  We did have some minor damage to 3 greens but we feel lucky and proud of the course conditions at the end of the spring.  

This begs the question though:  Can we, for certain, attribute the present conditions of the UMGC to something other than luck or good fortune?  It is incredibly presumptuous to think that we are exempt from Mother Nature’s awesome power to humble.  After all, during the golf season, superintendents and greenskeepers alike waltz with her with the hopes of controlling water, heat and turf diseases.  At the UMGC, we like to think of this relationship not so much as a dog fight vying for control but rather a concert of humility and power.  Make no mistake; nature is the predominant player—no matter what this chemical rep says or that hubris filled superintendent claims.  With respect to nature, we do carry out maintenance practices that are well thought out and minimally invasive.  We do prioritize the health of the turf in the fall before it goes into dormancy.  We do put our course to bed as clean and orderly as we possibly can.  These are things that we can control.  These are things we own to promote a healthy golf course. 

Fairways, tees and rough all came out of winter in great shape!  Especially the rough!  We had planned to keep a more consistent height of cut in the rough during the week by mowing twice a week at 2.25”.  We found that this wasn’t enough.  The rough was healthy and aesthetically pleasing, but played too aggressively for our golfing community.  The answer was lowering the height to 1.75” and cutting 3 times a week.  Sometimes, healthy turf, especially in the rough, is a curse as much as a blessing.  This frequency of mowing is demanding on machines, people and sometimes isn’t in the cards dealt by the aforementioned. 

However, the amount of acreage designated as rough is decreased this year due to newly added "natural areas." These areas are carefully shaped to give the course texture and add an interesting visual element. They are also a cornerstone of our sustainability efforts. Less mowing equates to a smaller carbon footprint. Natural areas also provide a venue for native Michigan grasses and wildlife to flourish.

"One must maintain a little bittle of summer, even in the middle of winter." - Henry David Thoreau (1817 - 1862)

Polar vortex, mini ice age, climate change… call it what you want.  This winter in Michigan, has been legitimized by colder than usual temperatures, greater than normal snowfall and the absence of warm days that melt accumulation.  Spring is supposedly around the corner but when I got to work this morning it was a whopping -4°F. 

At the UMGC, we are obviously concerned with what goes on underneath this white blanket.  Historically, in this area of the country, we get “thaws” several times during the winter months.   This season we have not had one since December 15^th, 2013. 

18th Green at the UMGC

We have been monitoring the health of our greens underneath the ice by taking plugs and planting them in paper cups.  Greenskeeper  Dean Noworyta fabricated a sharpened steel shaft with a solid plunger to remove iced plugs on greens with minimal damage done.  He has been removing samples every Wednesday since the 3^rd of February.  Thus far, every plug has been healthy and coming out dormancy with vigor. 

Research compiled the USGA tells us that bentgrass and bluegrass have a great ability to tolerate ice for up to 120 days.  On the other hand, Poa annua is notorious for having very little tolerance to icy conditions of 45-90 days.   The samples taken at the UMGC (with poa annua present) show no signs of ice damage. 

  February 19th sample after one week of growth

The crew at the golf course will continue to monitor the greens weekly for the remainder of this harsh Michigan winter.  For more information please refer to the MSU Turf Blog. 

Thanks,

Scott Rockov

Superintendent, University of Michigan Golf Course    

Good Things Come In Small Packages

Every season, at the UMGC, we have a couple of temporary staff members that show an elevated amount of interest and passion about the golf course.  Some have aspirations of working in the industry and some just got bit by the UMGC bug.  These people are a joy to work with because of their dedication and positive attitudes.  All of their efforts and excellent work warrants commendation. 

These few also thrive on challenges.  Greg Wnuk, recent graduate of University of Michigan, had the opportunity to design and execute his “UMGC senior thesis.”  The project, dubbed “Mini Six”, is a 1/120^th scale model of the green complex of #6 at the course. 

The model is a living, growing and maintained piece of bentgrass turf that was reclaimed from the #6 green expansion project, which is the signature hole at the UMGC.  It features a “soil profile window” that has an irrigation head (fully operational), drain tile and distinct layers of aggregate soils.  The topography of the green was surveyed in the fall and converted to the scale model.  It will be displayed and maintained for viewing.

Plywood box lined with plastic and reinforced with tension rods to hold the total weight of 175lbs

Live drainage trenched into the clay base to ensure the proper movement of water in the model

Bunkers are molded to spec with modeling clay to be later filled with sand

The original sod, harvested 3 months prior, was kept dormant until planted on top of final grade

View of green from a ½” tall golfer

Upcoming potential projects for inspired young groundskeepers include pollinator gardens in natural areas, butterfly gardens, bat houses and, tree cataloguing/gps/tagging.  We look forward to this upcoming season with new and returning employees that could carry out these inspired projects!  

Here are some extra photos of the project.