3/31/2020

Our friends at the Carolinas Golf Course Superintendent’s Association recently posted a very good YouTube discussion about the impact of social distancing on golf course maintenance practices. In the video, Dr. Bert McCarty (Clemson University - ret) and Dr. Fred Yelverton (North Carolina State University) discussed how golf courses in the Carolinas can alter their maintenance to ensure social distancing, deal with a limited number of employees, and make it through a period of fewer tee times. To help you manage this unique situation, they share some great tips. Keep in mind, these tips aren’t necessarily limited to golf course superintendents but can also be applied by other growers confronted with social distancing constraints, like sports turf managers. Highlights from the discussion are listed below:

• If you can, chemically spray out your ryegrass. If you can’t, use a Plant Growth Regulator (PGR) like Primo MAXX® to minimize the amount of mowing required.

• Don’t start applying PGRs to your bermudagrass until it’s fully greened up and actively growing.

• Don’t push bermudagrass growth out of dormancy, but also make sure you don’t starve it. 

• Focus on the fundamentals for now, like aerification.

You can also take this time as an opportunity to work on some spring fertility planning. Work with your Harrell’s representative to run a PolyGraph to determine your POLYON® controlled-release fertilizer needs. Here’s an example of the data your representative can provide you:

In this example, you can see that the weekly Nitrogen release reaches an optimal amount for growth towards the end of May. Hopefully we’re back to full crews by then, but if not, plan on a PGR application around then to minimize the amount of mowing required by your crew.  

In the end, most of your navigation through these challenging times will require specific adjustments based on your individual turf situation and needs. If you’re still dealing with a lot of activity on your turf, then you probably still need to take time on the details. If the numbers aren’t there, then maybe it’s a good time to double down on aerification, so that you can possibly skip a round later. Whatever your situation, your local Harrell’s rep can help you to determine the best course of action for your turf management. We’re here to help!