Minnesota Golfer - Fall 2022 - 20

an otherwise pristine green is not quite
the automatic practice that it once was.
Jeff Johnson, head superintendent at The
Minikahda Club, says he does not routinely
do core aeration at his course.
" I haven't found a need for us to core
aerify, " Johnson says. " That's just us. I'm
not speaking for others. You just don't
want to automatically assume that's what
you're going to do. You want to make decisions
based on conditions, not just because
historically you've done it. If we feel we
need to, we will. Otherwise, we've instigated
other practices. "
Cavanaugh of Rush Creek has taken the
same approach.
" Historically we would almost always
aerify around August 30-31, " he says.
" But with that, we haven't pulled a core in
five years. That doesn't mean we won't
do it. Some years we might have to do it
based on what I'm seeing. We monitor
organic matter; we have USGA sand-based
greens and our organic matter was really
clean. What's the sense of a practice that
isn't needed? Last year we did a DryJect-
shooting sand into the green. It produced a
little bit of a hole. With a small, solid tine,
or a sand inject and top dressing, almost
no one knows that we do it, and I'm right
where I want to be. "
Keeping Surfaces Clean
Whereas the process of aerification can
be accomplished in a few days, the task of
managing falling leaves can take weeks.
" Leaf removal chews up a bunch of
labor, " says Keller of Minneapolis Golf
Club. " When they drop in early October,
a lot of resources are consumed by leafblowing.
We try to keep the critical surfaces-greens,
tees and fairways-clean every
day. We clean up the rough as needed. "
" It starts in the middle of September, "
Cavanaugh says. " We have six to eight people
start in the morning and spend all day
blowing leaves. We get rid of everything;
we blow tees, greens and rough to the
edges, then pile it up or mulch it. We have
six to seven weeks of getting rid of leaves.
Maple trees are gorgeous, but if we don't
20
The Minikahda Club
Rush Creek Golf Club
Minneapolis Golf Club
Hazeltine National Golf Club
IT'S THE WEATHER THAT MAKES
FALL GOLFING SO ENJOYABLE.
-PAUL DIEGNAU, HEAD SUPERINTENDENT, KELLER GOLF CLUB
remove those leaves, a ball could be just
off the fairway and be lost. On windy days,
we're blowing off greens in the middle of
the day. I've been to Hazeltine; they'll leave
an electric blower next to some greens.
They're easy to operate and not going to
hurt anybody. This might be our year to
try it. "
" Leaf management-making sure you're
blowing them off greens, tees and fairways-can
be daunting, but it's only for
a couple weeks, " says Johnson, who also
has to deal with acorns from Minikahda's
stately oaks. " Thankfully we don't have the
oaks throughout the property. It's a bit of
a management headache to get acorns off
the fairway before you mow. "
The best thing superintendents
have going for them in the fall
is the
cooler temperatures.
" What helps in the fall is the colder
evenings slow down growing, " says Keller.
" We're able to mow every other day, alternate
with the roller and still achieve the
same speeds. Another thing that contributes
is that the plant is using less moisture,
so we irrigate less, which contributes to
firmer, faster surfaces. "
The biggest drawback is fewer workers.
" Shoulder seasons are very challenging, "
Keller says. " We lose 50 percent of our staff.
There's always things we could do if we had
additional labor. "
Losing seasonal workers can affect shutdown
practices, as well. In some cases, it
hastens closing dates by a few days to get
all the work done.
" We do not cover greens, " Diegnau says.
" First of all, you have to have the labor, and
that's a big job at the end of the season. A
lot of the private clubs have enough labor.
Courses like mine don't have the labor to
do that. "
As if you needed any more incentive,
get out and enjoy your course before peak
conditions come to an end. There'll be
plenty of football to watch in November
and December.
MINNESOTAGOLFER Fall 2022
mngolf.org
PHOTOS: W. P. RYAN, JEFF LAWLER
http://www.mngolf.org
Minnesota Golfer - Fall 2022

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