Ten Techniques to TryWhen Greens Nearly DieThese time-tested maintenance practices can help relieve stressto greens during the peak heat stress periods of midsummer.by BOB VAVREK

Fans can be used to increase air circulation across the putting surface.Use a gasoline-powered generator if electricity is not readily available.

SOMEWHERE in the back of yourmind you just knew that the small,heavily shaded green would be a

problem someday. It performed rela-tively well during mild weather, butnow, after a long spell of heat andhigh humidity, the turf is thinning outrapidly. The most important golfingevent of the season is a short fourweeks away. What can you do to pre-vent further loss of turf and encouragea rapid recovery?

This scenario can occur on a greenthat is five months old, five years old,or 50 years old. Identifying the cause

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or causes of turf loss can be a goodfirst step towards improving the grow-ing conditions and accelerating therecovery process. Some stress factorssuch as disease activity or overwater-ing are difficult to identify, but arerelatively simple problems to address.Other types of stress, such as heavyplay, high temperatures, and highhumidity, or a forest of trees adjacent tothe green, present a more challengingdilemma.

Regardless of why turf loss is occur-ring, there are management techniquesthat can be employed to relieve further

stress to the green. You may not havecomplete control over all the decisionsmade regarding putting surface man-agement when the greens are in goodcondition, but they surely will be yourresponsibility when the turf begins todecline. These are ten safe, user-friendlytechniques to consider that just mightsave your green, your sanity, and yourjob.

1. Reduce Mowing StressMow no lower than 116" during the

recovery period. A stressed green willnot be growing vigorously, so why

Hand watering the green will be the best way to maintain consistent moisture levels inthe root zone.

As a last resort, some superintendents core cultivate a weak, thin green and hope forthe best. Cultivation can help improve a black layer condition and encourage rootgrowth.

gas-powered generator for the fan ifelectricity is not available in a remotearea of the course.

5. Control Disease Activity

Use a diagnostic lab to help deter-mine whether or not the turf stress iscaused by disease activity. It's a surebet, however, that some type of diseasepathogen will be cultured from dyingturf. Avoid the temptation to overloadthe greens with fungicides and usingthe shotgun approach to control sus-

perimeter of the green if the hole wasconstructed in a heavily wooded site.Pay particular attention to removingtrees along the east and south sides ofthe green to increase morning sunlight.Cut a 2'-deep trench between thewoods and the affected turf to severtree roots that compete with turf forwater and nutrients.

Clear out as much brush and under-story tree growth as possible to increaseair movement across the putting sur-face. Fans also can be used to increaseair circulation across a green. Use a

mow every day? Mow the cleanup passeven less.

The importance of using a walk-be-hind mowing unit equipped with solidrollers cannot be overemphasized.Keep the reels sharp. Throttle the unitdown to slow ground speed whenmowing the perimeter to further reducestress to the turf.

Some hand mowers are heavier thanothers, so choose the lightest, leastaggressive unit available. You don'tneed a tight cut - you need a light cut.

2. Turn Off the Automatic Irrigationand Hand Water the Green

A lack of moisture in the root zoneis rarely the cause of turf loss duringprolonged periods of high temperaturesand high humidity. Overwatering willaggravate disease-related injury to turfand create anaerobic conditions inthe root zone. A wet, thin green willquickly become smothered with algae.A heavily shaded putting surface maynot need supplemental irrigation fordays during humid weather. Even afive-minute syringe cycle may adddetrimental amounts of moisture tothe low-lying areas of a green. Watercollars and elevated areas of greens byhand and then only to prevent wilt.

3. Cultivate the Putting SurfaceThe roots won't live if they can't

breathe. Spike the green as often asonce a week or use ~ II diameter hollowor solid quadratines to ensure a balanceof air and moisture in the root zone.Cultivation also provides an avenue foroverseeding. Algae can be a seriousproblem on a thin green. Frequent cul-tivation operations and keeping thegreen dry with hand watering will bethe most effective way to control algaegrowth.

Use common sense when employingaggressive cultivation operations togreens under stress. Opening up theputting surface with coring tines willgreatly increase the evaporative surfacearea of the green and rapid wiltingcould occur on a windy day when therelative humidity is low. Severe wiltingcan occur under these conditions evenwhen air temperatures are in the mildrange of 70° to 80°F. The chances ofhelping a green by cultivating, however,are generally greater than the chancesof exacerbating the problem.

4. Improve Air Circulationand Increase Sunlight

This is an excellent opportunity toremove trees and underbrush from the

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A simple spiker can help dry up a weak green that has becomesmothered by algae growth.

pected or assumed diseases likenecrotic take-all blight.

Severely stressed turf will not beactively growing, so this is not thetime for systemic fungicides. Shy awayfrom any fungicide formulation, suchas emulsifiable concentrates, that hasa potential to bum turf during hotweather. Try to manage disease activitywith contact fungicides if at all possibleand make the applications during thelate afternoon or early evening whentemperatures are cooler. It's no time forsnake oils or bugs-in-a-jug now; justuse the safest, most dependable fungi-cides available.

6. Spoon-Feed or Use NaturalOrganic Fertilizers

A lack of fertilizer is not likely to bea reason why turf declines during mid-summer, unless the loss of turf occursduring the grow-in of a sand-basedgreen. However, maintaining an ade-quate, readily available pool of nutri-ents in the root zone is helpful duringthe recovery process. Stick with spoonfeeding the greens with low rates ofsoluble fertilizer. Apply no more than'l'161b.to 'l'1olb. of nitrogen per 1,000 sq.ft. of turf per application. Spoon feed-ing is especially helpful for fertilizinggreens that have an impaired or non-functional root system because at leastsome of the nutrients will be absorbeddirectly into the foliage.

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Another excellent source of nitro-gen and micronutrients is Milorganiteor another natural organic nitrogensource. These fertilizers essentially haveno risk of burning the turf, and theyproduce a steady rate of nitrogenrelease during hot weather.

7.Communicate with GolfersGolfers need to be kept informed

about the condition of the greens andthe reasons for the decline in turfquality. If you do not supply the infor-mation, they will find it elsewhere,either at the pro shop or from any ofthe several hundred "agronomists"who play the course. Keep the pro shopstaff informed, but insist that they referquestions regarding the condition ofthe greens to the superintendent. Inaddition, someone who is knowledge-able and approachable needs to beclose to the first tee on busy weekendmornings.

8. Seek AdviceThis is no time to stick your head in

the sand and hide. Seek advice fromother superintendents and your localUSGA agronomist before extensivelosses of turf occur.

9. Do No HarmDo not make a bad situation any

worse. Hold off performing aggressive,

routine maintenance practices, such asvertical mowing, grooming, or rollingthat could further injure the turf.Brushing in topdressing also can injureweak putting surfaces.

10. Consider Playing aTemporary Green

As a last resort, close the green andplay a temporary. Limiting the wearand compaction associated with con-centrated foot traffic will be impossiblewhen the green is open for day-to-day play. This will not be a populardecision among golfers, but keepingthem informed regarding the conditionof the green throughout the stressevent would help them accept thisoption.

In closing, here's hoping you neverneed the advice in this article. Restassured that these are safe, common-sense recommendations that can donothing but help a trying situation.Speaking of common sense, if it werean abundant commodity in the golfcourse business, would that tiny greenhave been built in a densely shadedpocket of trees in the first place?

BOB VAVREK tenders these tips from theNorth Central Region of the USGA GreenSection.