We have been very active on the course in recent weeks as growth rates increase,the greens were verticut in two opposite directions,then mini solid tined or as now refered to as "venting the greens" and then topdressed and brushed.This is routine work as far as greens maintenance goes as part of our set programme.

Terry brushing in topdressing 8th Hawk

New flags.pins and cups have been put out on all 3 courses which will give a better presentation to eveyone playing on the greens

Sean Eady placing a new hole 8th Hawk with a new flag and pin

 

Watering the greens is always best done by rain  but when the weather is kind to golfers we rely on our irrigation system which is never as efficent to irrigate the greens.This often shows up issues like dry patch on the greens.These are areas which have become hydrophobic,and repel water,this in turn causes the grass to become stressed ,seen as brown areas,To help over come this we solid tine  them and treat these areas with wetting agents which helps to re-wet the droughted areas and aid the recovery of the grass,
 



3rd Green Hawk

To enable us to carry out the many tasks required on the course having the right machinery is very important to us ,as old machine become less reliable and more costly to maintain replacing them become necessary,and we now have  a new Gator  

One of the tasks carried out recently and not covered by my greenkeeping college course was to repair the entrance drive way with its numerous pot holes  the result of  last years record rainfall and winter snow and ice.Using disc grinders and wacker plates we have  now repaired them,they say Jack of all trades............... we are now available tor roads,driveways !

Sean and Luke work on the pot holes

 

On the course we have sprayed the mown rough areas to contol weed invasion especially white clover and to improve the visual apperance and uniformity of it

if not carried out the weed plants will become more invasive

spraying on the 3rd Hawk

Finally as the longest day of the year approches the grass plant is reaching its peak ,as its natural state is to flower and set seed and this is much in evidence especially in the environmental roughs were the grass is allowed to mature,this gives definition to many of our golf holes as well as being good for the flora and fauna habitats,after setting seed the leaf will start to die



Blue skies contrasts nicely with the green hues of the golf course,and if warm as well not only will it give density to the sward but encourage golfers to come and play and enjoy the surroundings .

6th Vixen

Warmer temperatures increase the grass growth which has to be maintained,team work is essential to achieve this,and many hands make like work especially when using strimmers which can be a back straining task when used to cut ditches.This is to allow golfers and mower operators to see the ditch edge,without totally destroying the natural flora and fauna which will use the areas as vital wildlife corridors.



strimming ditch 9th hawk

We are trialing a product called Rescue on selected areas .This product removes certain grass species from the sward  like rye grass and yorkshire fog,leaving behind the finer grass species like fescue and bents.The idea is to create a finer sward in the roughs,so ball finding and playing will be easier and the visual appearence improved,early days as yet to make judgement

9th Hawk
This is the first year that we have made up our own hanging baskets for outsde the clubhouse as its a lot cheaper and more satisfying  to do,we have also been growing our own plants for the clubhouse beds either from seed,cuttings or bought plant plugs.

Below Sam Cooke is potting up lavendar cuttings taken from our plants outside the clubhouse last autumn,this will be planted out in our beds when they are bigger plants.

We have completed the weed and feed spraying on the fairways and the clover is now starting to die off to give a cleaner sward, the feed will encourage the grass to fill as the clover dies off.we will continue to weed spray into the cut rough when we have the right spraying window to do so,very often there is to much breeze to allow spraying to take place.Below clover on the 5th hawk dying out.

Golf and the Environment are intrinsically linked and South Essex is dedicated to providing an ecological rich,healthy and stunning golf landscape;maximising the unique natural and cultural assets of the site,and minimizing resources consumption to ensure a net - positive environmental impact.
South Essex Golf Centre is extremely proud to have earned the status of GEO Certified.This prestigious international award signfies that we have met comprehensive and advanced sustainability requirements and are committed to continually improving our environmental performance across the areas of landscape&ecosystems;water;energy and resources;products and supply chains;environmental quality and people & communities.
GEO Certified follows holistic approach and its independently verifed every three years and its transparency makes it the most credible international environmental certification in golf today
Details of our GEO Certified report can be viewed at .
http://golfenvironment.org/oncourse/directory

Only 9 other golf clubs in the United kingdom are certified with the GEO though there are others in Europe and Australia

See South Essex Golf Centre profile and read the Verifers report

 

The Golf Environment Oraganisation is the only international non profit exclusively dedicated to helping golf' embrace sustainability......driving the Green in golf.

GEO serves the golf industry by administering golf's international ecolabel,GEO Certified and providing simple,practical guidance and tools to help clubs and developments achieve the distinction.

GEO Certified is endorsed by a growing number of golf,goverment and environmental bodies worldwide

The green keeping day now starts early so we often see the dawn,this enables us to get ahead of the first golfers with the days main tasks.

9th green vixen

The greens have been brushed to remove any debris and lift up the sward to get an even cut, the cutting height has been lowered to 4.5mm which will give a faster ball roll and we have also sarel rolled the greens this helps to vent the surface area and allow water to move through  the profile without any disturbance to the putting surface

Craig Raymond Brushing the putting green

The bunkers have been strimmed and we still have some sand left to topup selected bunkers once we have fitted a new throttle cable on to the tractor.
 



Luke Herron *th Hawk

After some issues on the irrigation system over the may bank holiday which left the greens drier than we would have liked we have now rectified the issues and tested the greens ready for the next period of dry weather
 

We have been adding plants to the flower beds around the car park to give visual interest and provide nectar and pollen for bees and insects,these will soon start to provide colour to the area. Over the autumn we took seeds and cuttings to increase our stock and its cheaper as well, Sam Cooke has been potting on our Lavender cuttings

 

The last few days have bathed the course in much needed sunshine which is good for the grass.this will boost the photosynthesis process  within the plant giving it the energy to convert the starch to sugars which is the food the plant requires to develop.A healthy plant will provide a stronger plant that will enabling it to stand up to the wear and tear that we place on it with our work  and your play.

We have sprayed the greens with a cocktail of ingredients to help the plant and improve the soil this included seaweed,potassium,calcium,and phospites.This is applied at regular intervals through the season

 











As part of Crown Golf's organisation we are regularly monitored and assessed to ensure that we are maintaining the correct standards and carrying out the proper agronomic practices to provide the best playing conditions for our customers.Our Regional Course Manager Paul Copsey regularly visits the site to carry out audits  and marks each area taking into account the recent weather conditions,staff levels and budget constraints at the time.

Paul Copsey checking the greens

 Now is a great time to view the Bluebells in the wood,there looking great......

Now that soil temperatures are rising, the grass is beginning to grow and our frequency of mowing the course has started to increase .This will start to define the course areas and bring it out of winter.This increased activity coincides with our spring renovation on greens and bunkers as well as our normal routinue maintenance work which will keep the the green keeping team very busy.

The fairways have been brushed and scarified to remove any moss and dead grass and stimulate an upright growth habit.This will be followed soon by applying a soluble feed mixed with  a selective weed contol  to remove those plants which detract from the playing surface.(A weed is a plant growing were we don't want it to) In another place it would be left and be part of the natural flora of the course

Daisy
A part of our work not seen by the golfer but is still an essential element in the operation of the course is our Irrigation system.Our Mechanic Justin Plumbridge has finished servicing our main puup, fitting new seals and bearings as well as altering the pipe system in the pump room.We have also had a new Variable speed Drive linked in to the main pump which will not only improve and control flow rates and pressure in the system but be more energy effient and save some pound notes in energy bills

The gorse is now well into flowering and looking attractive  at various locations around the course and being enjoyed by both honey and bumble bees

 

 

We have recently hollow cored the greens with mini tines to remove any thatch build up and relieve the compaction in the soil.This also encourages root development and gaseous exchange allowing air and water to move through the soil profile.

We then verticut the greens in 2 different directions to remove dead matter  from the sward and help promote upright growth. The greens were topdressed with sand and then brushed to help provide a true and smooth putting surface.These operations are carried out on a regular bases throughout  the growing season.

 

The hollow cores from the greens are being used to extend the 3rd tee on the heron which will be developed in the autumn

 

We  have sprayed the perimeters on the inside of the bunkers to control weeds using a total weed control ,we add a blue dye so that we can see were we have sprayed and avoid overlapping or missing any areas,this is also  carried out on pathways and other selected areas