Third Annual Birdhouse Tour

The 3rd Annual Villages Birdhouse Tour was held Monday, May 13th. Tour leaders, Mary and Dave Fullerton did another great job of explaning all about the different types of birds that we have on the golf course. The following is Mary's report of the tour: 

"It was a very nice group.  They nearly all came the whole way around to the 18^th hole finish with us, asked good questions, even helped spot the birds.  We had great cooperation from our birds as well.  There were bluebirds actively feeding their young at the 10^th tee and at the 4^th tee.  Even though when golfing we Fullertons have seen Bluebirds using the mid-short 9 house, we didn’t see them there today when looking from the 4^th tee.  Perhaps those birds have already fledged.

The Tree Swallow parents were actively feeding their young at the 5th/bocce court  and at the 13th/practice area. When we approached the house, one of the parents was sitting at the hole looking out and everyone got to see it, then the other parent came in with food, called out and they swapped places.  It was quite neatly done and people were excited to see it!  I told people about the five hatchlings in the bird cam house and gave out the bird cam URL to those interested.  Adrien says the link will be on the new web site at some point.
I did mention that Titmice had used the house at the 6^th green and we have seen Bluebirds at the 17^th tee house and encouraged the walkers and golfers to go on their own to the three houses we skipped."
Thank You Mary and Dave.


 

Villages bird enthusiasts gather around the birdhouse near the Vineyard Center

Time To Buy The Cigars

The eggs have hatched inside the birdhouse adjacent to the Vineyard Center. To see the baby Swallows live, click on the link below.

 

Live streaming from the NestCam

Why Aerify The Greens Again?

Golfers are asking me why we are aerifying the greens again next Monday, May 13th. After all, we just aerified them last month. The answer is that the greens were too soft last year. Aerification and sand topdressing is one of my best tools for firming up the greens for the upcoming season. Firmer greens lead to greens that are smoother, healthier and more consistant than softer greens.
For more information on the advantages of greens aerification and topdressing, please click on the following link to the USGA web site: USGA VIDEO

Topdressing a Green With Sand

Click on Photo to Enlarge

Third Annual Birdhouse Tour

Come join the fun at the third annual Villages Birdhouse Tour. We'll meet at the Bistro at 9:00 AM on Monday, May 13th. We're very lucky once more to have Villages bird experts Mary and Dave Fullerton lead the tour.  They will talk about the various bird species that are nesting in some of the 12 birdhouses scattered around the gold course. Additionally, they will discuss any birds spotted along the way and answer any questions you may have. You're welcome to walk or ride in your golf cart. We will be handing out maps of the golf course, showing the location of all 12 birdhouses, as well as a recently updated inventory of all birds ever seen at The Villages. See you there!

Here are some photos from last year's Birdhouse Tour:


Click on Photos to Enlarge

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Greens Aerification. One Week Later!

     It's been one week since we aerified the greens with 5/8" holes. Today we're mowing the greens for the first time. We're getting some sand in the baskets, but we will  mow daily, and should have all the excess sand picked up by Friday. Because we gave the greens extra fertilizer the past two weeks they are growing nicely and the holes are filling in quickly. Last week we actually verticut the greens twice. Once on Wednesday afternoon and again on Friday afternoon. This process pulled up some sand, but when the greens were dragged following the verticutting, the sand filled the holes up to the top.
 

Click Photo to Enlarge.

1st Tee Project: Day 7- Sodding Complete

 

Let There Be Light.

We finally have both fountains on the 16th and 17th holes working.