Sand!

We are now starting to see a lot more sand around the course trying to capture the linksy feel of the environment and whilst getting pictures for the  blog i was reminded that sand and cameras really don't go well together with the zoom on my camera now disappeared and the camera is not looking like it's going to last much longer!Lesson learnt! Sand 1 Camera 0.

A lot of the winter programme has come to an end and many thanks go to all of the team for all of their hard work in all weather. We only have the 13th Sandy waste area to the left of the fairway around the sharp rush to finish, the removal of the top soil and enriched sand within the area leaving only bare sand to colonise naturally, this bare sand will benefit plant and invertebrate species which specialise in open sand habitats within the dune system as well as making this area much more playable as previously it was very thick grassland and finding your ball was almost impossible but now a much more open area is a benefit to all.

Here is a picture of the area to the right of the 2nd green which has been completed using rough turf and heather, a vast improvement from the trees and bramble which dominated the right hand side of the green previously.

The left hand side of the 2nd has also been completed following the removal of the bramble that had covered the bank, this bank as you can see has now been transplanted with marram and looks far better and more like the environment we are striving for.

2nd bank from the 3rd tee side with some rustic sleeper detailing to complete the job.

The 15 the tee has also been completed with marram added in between the heather to blend into the beautiful natural landscape.

This area is now much improved and will now withstand the wear and tear of golfers far better.

From this.

To this!

 The 16 th tee has also been completed with the  5 foot high bramble bush that surrounded the tee having been stripped and reduced to bare sand and now having been finished by being planted with marram this tee now looks fantastic sitting there perched upon the dune.What a fabulous teeing natural teeing ground!

The greenkeeping team over the years have stockpiled a huge quantity of old turves and topsoil which has been left to decompose naturally with all the beneficial bacteria, fungi and earth worms doing their bit in the big compost bund around the turf nursery and we have been screening this composted materials this week for use on the golf course for divotting etc. This process of recycling old materials makes the site very sustainable with our own turf nursery and our own natural soil supply and it is beautiful soil whilst saving us a fortune and not having to import any materials for turfing etc.

 The soil screener,its big!

 The result,lovely soil.

The team have also been very busy this week aerating the greens with a 8mm solid tine.

Aeration is critical to the turf health, it relives soil compaction and reduces the accumulation of thatch as well as providing oxygen to the roots of the plant as well as spaces for the deep rooting fine grasses to explore. 

The greens have been rolled to restore surface smoothness following aeration and they are quick!

The course in general is drying out nicely and with the water table getting gradually lower day by day we are hoping all the bunkers will be back in play soon.

The forecast with just the odd shower over the weekend in general is very good and preety settled with some nice sunny periods.

There is a few more maintenance practices planned on the golf course in the next week or so, we are looking to get an application of Lawn Sand on the greens and a light top dressing will follow.

The tees will have a light feed and a light sand dressing also.

The fairways have also already had an application of wetting agent which should in the long term greatly improve the condition and uniformity of the finer grasses population on the fairways.
Wetting agent will work in the soil to stabilize moisture levels  as well as balancing air to water ratios and provide better access to nutrients in the rootzone resulting in stronger turf throughout the season that will perform in all conditions as well as increase turf resilience and stress tolerance.

As always a huge thanks to all the team for their hard work,dedication, passion and enthusiasm to the club and golf course,truly fantastic to see.

Happy golfing,

Rhys Butler, Links Manager, Royal St David's Golf Club.