Blog Post By: Craig McKinley, Golf Course Superintendent
It is starting to feel a bit like fall here at Bucks Run Golf Club. Nights have become cooler and days are getting shorter, but it has been the perfect weather for golf, and it looks to continue throughout the rest of September. With that, I want to share what's new with the Grounds Department this month, along with providing you some tips for your own lawn.
Aerification
For a golf course, this is a great time of year to recover from the summer and prepare for the next year. September provides great growing conditions for turf, with cool nights, warm days, and historically lower humidity. To take advantage of these conditions, it is common for aerification of playing surfaces to take place at this time. The purpose of this practice is to remove/reduce the organic matter, along with creating oxygen and water channels into the soil profile. Once filled with sand, this will help to maintain a healthy root zone. While our greens aerification will wait until October, we do take advantage of the great weather to aerify our tees and fairways.
Two September Lawn Care Tips
Seed New Grass
September is also a great time of year to get your own lawn in shape! Seeding this time of year is preferred due to the weather still being great to grow grass. There is lower disease pressure, and the temps also allow the newly seeded areas to mature enough to be able to treat for weeds and crabgrass the next spring, without hurting the new stand.
Treat your Lawn for Weeds
September is also the best time to treat your lawn for weeds, so putting down a "weed and feed" in the next couple of weeks will pay dividends for next year's weed population. It will also give your lawn a little pick-me-up of fertilizer to get itself ready for winter.
With that said, we hope to see you all on the course soon for everyone’s favorite time of year for golf. Please remember to fix your ball marks and replace your divots! Have a great week.