Early Spring Update

Dear Members,
The season is upon us!! February and March weather warmed us and thawed our thick snow layer a little ahead of schedule. Greens were opened despite the extension of winter-like temperatures from mid-March until today.
A thick accumulation of snow cover protected turfgrass from major problems this winter. Greens are in excellent shape as are fairways and tees. There are small snow mold patches present on fairways that will grow out quickly. The rough is matted down in places but will recover nicely with warmer weather. We did lose a few branches from trees and these will be cleaned up within the week. White pines behind the ninth green and along the seventh fairway were damaged significantly and will both be removed. The well we use to fill the irrigation pond was cleaned in early March and is ready to provide the golf course with water.
Improving greenside bunkers that see the most play is a priority for this season. These fifteen to twenty bunkers will have their sand fluffed using a small tiller and sand will be added if needed. If time permits, we will expand the scope of the work to include more bunkers. The landscape bed common to both the Clubhouse and Pro Shop formerly filled with unruly junipers will be improved by planting low growing perennials and annual flowers. A new hand railing for the 10th tee stairs will be installed this spring; thanks to member Bambi Soscia for this generous donation. Also, screening trees will be added this year along the left side of the 16th tee to protect golfers from errant tee shots from 17. Poor areas of the intermediate rough will be seeded during April.
Potowomut hosts the 2011 Rhode Island Amateur during July. My staff is excited to prepare and “show off” our great golf course for the best golfers in Rhode Island this year. More on this as we get closer to July.
Most maintenance plans are unchanged from past years. As always, the health and playability of the golf course remains our number one goal and will not be compromised during 2011. Plans include:
1. Crabgrass will be prevented wall to wall.
2. Grubs will be controlled during August wall to wall.
3. Hyperoides weevil control methods will utilize new technology this spring because of reported cases of beetle resistance in Connecticut and Long Island to insecticides we have used at Potowomut.
4. Disease control plans are unchanged for greens, tees and fairways.
5. Plant growth regulator use will continue to provide excellent playing surfaces.
6. Plant parasitic nematodes will be addressed during 2011 using experimental methods. New products are available in 2011 and they will be utilized.
7. Intermediate rough will be mowed from the middle of May through September.
8. Greens will be topdressed with sand every two to three weeks during 2011, providing smoother greens.
Other programs will be adjusted with virtually no changes evident to golfers. These include:
1. Greens aeration programs will be adjusted. Sand injection and deep tine operations that utilize outside contractors will be dropped in lieu of monthly spiking with deep bayonet tine aerification that will be done using Potowomut employees. These monthly operations are not invasive to the putting surface and will get adequate amounts of air into the soil profile to replace deep tine and sand injection.
2. Fairway fertilizer programs will be adjusted slightly and will still provide excellent playing surfaces.
We will also look to gain efficiencies wherever possible during 2011 to stretch your maintenance dollars.
As always, please help us take care of your golf course by replacing divots in fairways, repair your ballmark plus one other, and use the seed bottles only on divots that cannot be replaced. We are excited about beginning the golf season as like you, we want to forget the winter of 2010-2011 as soon as possible. Hope to see you enjoying your golf course soon.
Sincerely,

Patrick Gertner CGCS