PC Conversion Update - 7/14/12

     We have now reached the halfway point of the conversion. Here is a video with Conrad Broussard and Grayson Grainger with a brief recap of our progress.
      The greens are covering as planned and we are getting excited to start grooming them for play. Here are some pics of the surfaces from Friday.

     We have come a long way from three weeks ago at planting. Here is a photo of a green after planting only three weeks ago.

      This past week we were able to shift our attention to a few projects away from the greens. Here is a recap of last week and a look ahead to next.

Last Week 7/8-7/14

• Monday - We mowed the greens for the second time on Monday. The height of cut remained at (.200"). We applied Calcium Nitrate (15-0-0) to the greens and we sprayed the greens with a different variety of plant stimulants.
• Tuesday - Sprayed greens with Potassium Nitrate. The potassium is a necessary supplement to avoid deficiencies. Our increased irrigation associated with grow-in can flush important nutrients like potassium from the soil. This will help correct those deficiencies for the short term until we can apply a granular product.

      On Tuesday we also started and a project associated with sight lines from the tee boxes. The surrounds of #2 and #8 tee complexes have become overgrown to the point of disrupting play. We cleared these areas back to increase the sight line from the tee. Here is an example of that job in progress.

Sight line from #2 tee

• Wednesday - We mowed the greens for the third time today. The height of cut remained at (.200"). We will remain at this height for at least one more week.

      Wednesday was also our wall to wall insecticide spray. We sprayed a combination product that targets mole crickets, grub worms and ants. This took approximately six hours to complete.
      We resumed work on the ladies tee on #6 today. Here is a series of pictures detailing the work.

      
      The final picture shows the contractor installing the turf. The new turf is designed to support a golf tee. The need for additional support is unnecessary with this type of artificial surface. Pictures of the completed project will be available early next week.

• Thursday - We topdressed the greens with a light to medium layer of sand/peat mix. This application will help to keep the surface smooth. Additionally, the peat will aid in water retention at the surface.
• Friday - The greens were fertilized with Ammonium Sulfate (21-0-0). This fertilizer will promote leaf growth, which in turn helps to produce carbohydrates. These carbs will be used to produce new plants and encourage the surfaces to fill in.

Next Week 7/15-7/21

• Mow the greens three times. An adjustment in height may occur. This will be dependant on the condition of the surface through the week.
• Lightly groom the greens. This will be done with a steel drag mat, brush, or coco mat. Again, this will be dependant on the green's condition.
• Fertilize the greens with nitrogen fertilizer.
• Topdress the greens one or two times.
• Begin work on collars. Here is a brief description of that job.

      With a busy week behind us and a busy week ahead we continue to keep focused on preparing the greens for August 13th. We encourage all of you to keep stopping by and checking our progress. The collars should be finished late next week. At this point, the definition of the surfaces will take shape.
      Remember to adhere to our irrigation schedule if you should stop by. At this time we are watering four times a day, 7am, 11am, 3pm, & 7pm. These cycles run approximately 45 minutes. Anytime outside of these windows would be ideal to visit. And of course continue to follow the blog for updates from the staff at St. James.