Golf
The sand/gravel profile found typically across the course
What’s in the shed? John Deere 220B pedestrian mower John Deere 220A pedestrian mowers x 4 John Deere 2500 triplex Toro Greenmaster mowers x 3 Jacobsen Greens King IV tees mower John Deere 1200A bunker rake Allen National 64 mower Jacobsen LF3800 fairway mower Jacobsen 5111 rough mower Jacobsen TR3 mounds mower Stihl FS350 strimmers x 2 Ryan sodcutter Blec Multiseeder Allen 450 hover mower Tru-Turf greens iron Toro Workman Atom Golf bunker edger Everris fertiliser spreaders x 2 Ultra spreader Iseki 530 tractor Ford 1520 tractor Massey Ferguson 135 tractor Stihl HS 81R hedge trimmer Stihl BR 420 leaf blower Agrimetal BW 300 leaf blower Hardi 200lt sprayers x 2 Yes 300lt sprayer Sisis slitter Wiedenmann 7416 TerraSpike Hunter Juno in-situ grinder and hoist
jumped at and gave their full support. “I invested heavily in seed and started
overseeding the greens with fescue in April of that year, using a dimple seeder. I managed my fertiliser programme carefully and concentrated on overseeding and more overseeding.'” Willie’s task wasn’t easy at first. With
restrictions on fertiliser, the poa started to look hungry and became susceptible to disease. But he was persistent. Wherever bare areas developed, grass seed was sown, and it was not long before young fescue shoots began to appear. The fescue started thriving and now, after four years, Willie has a sward of turf on his greens that is the envy of many. The grass gets hardly any disease now. In
fact, Willie has not sprayed fungicide since December 2012. His nitrogen inputs are now reduced to between 32-36 units/hectare (from a high of 150 units in 2007). His annual phosphorous and potassium applications have also been reduced. They are now down to 11 units and 48 units respectively, from a high of 50 units and 240 units. Willie often seeks the advice of his colleague, Fintan Brennan of Portmarnock Golf Links, a man who knows all about fescue. Willie’s nutritional programme consists of applying a granular fertiliser in spring (TX9:1:10) and again in autumn (T-Plex3:0:6), with liquid seaweed in between. He believes in some of the old greenkeeping practices -
Mother Nature’s deep valley - the 11th
such as diluting sulphate of iron and applying it on the greens and surrounds in autumn - to harden up the grass before the onset of winter. It has been three years since he last hollow
cored the greens. Instead, he solid tines with 5mm pencil tines each spring and autumn, along with an application of around 27 tonnes of sand over the eighteen greens. He only scarifies the greens once each year. Greens slitting is carried out three or four times during the winter. Willie has seen huge benefits with the changeover. Because fescue is a fine leaf grass, it is possible to mow at higher heights without losing green speed. Willie mows as high as 5mm in summer and has invested in a TruTurf greens iron, which also helps in keeping the green speed up. With such a high height of cut, he can still manage to get a reading of 11 on the stimpmeter. Another benefit he has seen is how little
water is needed in the summer. “I only turned on the sprinklers for one night during this summer - and, as we all know, this was a dry summer. Every other time, one of the lads went around with a hand hose and wetting agent tablets and just watered local dry areas,” says Willie. He has not sprayed wetting agent on the
greens for two years. The result of using no fungicides and wetting agents, with better fertiliser regimes, can be seen on the greens, and it has made a big saving on the annual
The greenkeeping team l-r: Valdis Grikovs, Willie Allen, Tom Naughton and Valdis Parfjonov
30 I PC DECEMBER/JANUARY 2015
Ryegrass left, fescue right
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