Spring Awakening: Our Superintendent’s Guide to Bermuda Grass
As Spring approaches, the Golf Course Maintenance team prepares to manage its 55 acres of Bermuda grass, requiring careful nurturing and maintenance to ensure its lushness and resilience.
In case you haven't noticed, we have about 55 acres of Cynodon dactylon, commonly known as Bermuda grass, lying on the ground within our beautiful San Vicente golf course. It is on the verge of returning from its Winter slumber as the soil temperatures increase and the days get a little longer, providing more hours of sunshine. This is all a fancy way of saying we are growing a very tough turfgrass, known for its durability and drought tolerance, leading some, like me, to refer to it as a “weed” as it can be invasive and grow in areas outside the course. Additionally, other grasses and weeds emerge and need to be controlled.
As the dormant Bermuda grass “wakes up,” it’s my job and the job of our golfers to nurture it, minimize vehicle traffic on it (90-degree rule) and replace divots.
My work this month is to juice it up with some liquid and granular love:
Weed Control: A post-emergent herbicide was applied to control broad-leaf weeds and unwanted grasses around the course.
Fertilization: A balanced fertilizer and amendment package was applied in both foliar (instant effect) and granular applications (6 to 8-week feeding), and we spot-sprayed around the greens and tee complexes for unwanted grasses and weeds.
Course Care: Edging work began around the sprinkler heads and valve boxes, and we will be adding sand to some bunkers and leveling tee boxes to finish up. Crucial mowing is needed in native areas that have sprung up from all the rain.
Please continue to repair your ball marks on the greens and at least one other. Don’t be shy. We top-dressed the greens this week with a new variety of sand called Vical, which is 36% calcium, mined about two hours north of here. It is very fine, fills in the ball marks, reduces thatch and provides a calcium jolt to the greens to combat the salty irrigation water.
The course will close from Monday – Wednesday, April 15 – 17, for greens aerification. This process helps alleviate soil compaction, promote healthy root growth, and improve overall turf health.
We look forward to Spring and greener greens!
Quote for the month:
“I have a tip that can take 5 strokes off anyone’s game. It’s called an eraser.”
- Arnold Palmer
