What is Wrong With the Redwood Trees on the Golf Course?

 

 

Why do so many redwood trees on the golf course appear to be unhealthy?  

Back in 1999 the City of San Jose contacted us about using recycled water on the golf course. At that time, the federal government was mandating a reduction in the amount of waste-water flowing out of the water treatment plant and into San Francisco Bay.  The City was in the process of building a piping system to distribute some of the water leaving the water treatment plant to several golf courses in our area, including Silver Creek CC, The Ranch GC and the Villages G and CC. 

We knew at the time that irrigating the golf course with recycled water would present both positive and negative results.   While we knew we would be guaranteed all the water we would need during drought years, we also knew that recycled water is also much higher in sodium and chloride, better known as table salt, than the potable water we had been using. Our main concern was that the high salt levels would adversely affect the annual bluegrass (poa annua), the primary grass type growing on the golf course.  Annual bluegrass is also one of the most salt-sensitive grass species. We decided that we would use recycled water to irrigate the entire golf course, except for the greens, because we didn’t think the greens would survive being irrigated with recycled water. As part of the project to irrigate the course with recycled water, a new pump station was constructed on the course by San Jose Municipal Water Company to pump the recycled water into the existing irrigation piping system. A new piping system was then installed so that we could continue watering the greens with potable water.  We did have some areas of annual bluegrass in the fairways that died after being irrigated with recycled water. Fortunately the problem was limited and we were able to adapt to the problem by planting bermudagrass in those areas where the annual bluegrass was doing poorly.

The first few years we used recycled water, the water department allowed us to water for a couple of months each summer with potable water. This helped lower the salt levels in the soil. After a couple of years the water department said they wanted us to use recycled water only.

Eventually it became apparent to us that the recycled water was causing big problems for the redwood trees. Redwood trees all over Santa Clara County were having similar problems when watered with recycled water. Santa Clara Valley Water District and the City of San Jose just recently finished construction of a reverse osmosis plant adjacent to the water treatment plant. Now, as the recycled water comes out of the water treatment plant, about 30% of the water is diverted to the reverse osmosis plant.  The reverse osmosis process removes almost all of the salt from the water. When this “clean” water is blended back into the recycled water, the salt levels drop by 30%.

Will the redwood trees be able to recover now that they are being irrigated with water that has 30% less salt? I recently hired two leading experts in the field of irrigating with recycled water to look at what can be done to save the redwoods.  They have not completed their analysis yet, but they are not hopeful that the redwoods can be economically saved.  Another huge factor in determining the health of the redwood trees is how much rain we will get. If we have another drought year, as we have had the past three years, it will affect the redwood trees in two ways. First, good winter rains are needed to wash the salt deep down into the soil beneath the roots of the trees, and second, the abundance of rain also helps dilute the salt levels in the rootzone of the trees. We saw a big spike in the number of distressed redwoods last year and an even bigger spike in distressed redwoods this year due to the drought.

You may have noticed that the redwoods have started greening up. Unfortunately this has nothing to do with the drop in the salt level of the recycled water. Redwoods normally put out new growth at this time of year. Over the past ten years we have seen what looks like dead redwoods suddenly turn green in the spring. We probably won’t have a clear picture of the long-term health of the redwoods for at least another year.

For this year we are thankful that we will have all the water we need since there are no restrictions on our use of recycled water to irrigate the golf course.


 

This Quote Could Have Been Written For Golf Course Superintendents

"For every complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple and wrong."
H.L. Mencken

Fourth Annual Birdhouse Tour

Come join the fun at the fourth annual Villages Birdhouse Tour. We'll meet at the Bistro at 9:00 AM on Monday, May 19th. 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

But the Greens Were Just Getting Good

Yes, It's that time of year again. We have so much fun aerifying and topdressing the greens that we decided to aerify them twice this spring. Both times with 5/8"tines. We call these "medium" size tines, as opposed to small, 3/8" tines or large 3/4" tines. We will be aerifying the putting green and greens 1-18 on Monday, April 7th. We will be aerifying and topdressing the Par-3 Course greens on Wednesday, the 9th. We do the same process again, starting on Monday, April 21st. It may sound  crazy to aerify only two weeks apart but the idea behind aerifying is to open up holes so we can get sand down into the greens. By getting all that sand (150 tons) into the greens in April, we won't need to do it again for the rest of the year. Time to make plans for that month long trip to Europe!

 

 

Aerifyer on the right and picking up the plugs on the left

The Following United States Golf Association Article first appeared in the USGA Green Section Record. This is the second in a 4 part series.

 

Keeping A Golf Course Looking Pristine Commences With Proper Etiquette

Ball MarksFew aspects of etiquette generate more discussion than the fixing of ball marks (at least now that most courses no longer allow spiked shoes) and even superintendents disagree on the best method of ball mark repair.
The inability to agree on a single best method stems from the fact that ball marks are not all the same. On soft greens, a shot that descends from a very steep angle produces a deep, almost circular ball mark. On the same green, a shot that comes in low and hard will produce an elongated tearing of the green, and it often removes a plug of grass and soil. Ball marks on soft greens take time to repair properly.

Compacted soil needs to be lifted gently and the raised sides of the ball mark need to be gently pushed back toward the center. The elongated mark needs to be kneaded back together by pushing in from the sides, stretching the turf rather than tearing it. Replacing removed turf seldom accomplishes much so it is best to leave it out.

In contrast, very firm greens can resist ball marks so well that they can be hard to find at all. On such greens the marks will be slight indentations that require a minimum of effort to repair. These marks can be repaired with a very slight lifting to restore smoothness.

Do - Restore surface smoothness by gently pushing from the sides and, in some cases, gently lifting the compressed area.

Don't - Aggressively twist (like that so often used by pros on national television), which does more harm than good.

Employee Group Picture

Click photo to Enlarge



Increased Golfer Etiquette Reduces Maintenance Costs

The Following United States Golf Association Article first appeared in the USGA Green Section Record. This is the first in a 4 part series.

Keeping A Golf Course Looking Pristine Commences With Proper Etiquette
November 18, 2008

By James Francis Moore

For the purpose of this article, consider the following definitions of good players and good golfers. Good players have low handicaps, usually hit the ball a mile, and occasionally post very low scores. Good golfers fill divots, repair ball marks and practice good etiquette each and every time they are on the course. Anyone who has ever worked in golf course maintenance will verify that, unfortunately, the two terms are not mutually inclusive. In fact, good players often are the least likely to be considerate of the games of lesser mortals.
This is not to say that all good players are bad golfers. In fact, practicing good etiquette on the course seems to be slipping across the board regardless of handicap. And the timing could not be worse. All but the wealthiest courses are finding it harder to make a profit these days, with large increases in fuel, fertilizer and labor. Since labor almost always represents the largest budget item, it typically is the first to be targeted when budget reductions are necessary. When forced to choose, most courses with reduced available labor place a higher priority on agronomic necessities than the niceties of completing tasks that good golfers normally do for themselves. Unless we can somehow encourage players to become better golfers, the overall quality of many courses will decline rapidly during tough economic times.

For those who wish to become better golfers, here are the ways you can help your course the most.

Filling Divots

Golfers often ask if they should replace their divot, fill it with whatever has been provided in the divot buckets, or just leave it for the crew.

Applying too much sand or mixture to a divot can cause damage to mowing equipment. (James F. Moore/USGA)

Replacing a divot is the best option, assuming the divot is deep enough to include a significant amount of soil. Without the soil, the divot quickly dries out and is pulled back out of the ground during the next mowing.
The second-best option is to fill the divot with the material provided by the maintenance staff.

Typically, this is straight sand, although occasionally a sand/seed mixture is used by courses using cool-season turfgrasses.


Do - Replace or fill divot holes with the material provided by the maintenance staff.

Don't - Overfill the hole, which results in a sand mound that can dull or damage the mowing units.