2022 saw a very different approach to our renovation program and something we have been working towards for the past 4 or 5 years. This year is the first year we did not need to conduct a major aeration on greens, tees, or approaches!

Over the past few years, we have been dialing in the sand applications and growth rates to keep soil organic matter from rising outside of our set threshold levels. Last year’s renovation also saw soil organic matter levels in the top 20mm drop by 0.8%, keeping us within these set parameters.

After another successful course renovation last year, Nikanti Golf Club was able to drop its soil organic matter levels in the top 20mm by a further 1.9%. Although this is not as much of a reduction as they were hoping for, both course conditions and playability continued to improve.

This year’s program aims to reduce soil organic matter in the top 20mm by a further 1%. The course is almost at optimum year-round greens firmness, and believe reducing OM a little more may see them achieve their target.

After the renovation program last year, soil organic matter in the top 20mm of the greens was reduced by 5.4%! Needless to say, we were all very happy with the results, and the golfers were loving the firmer surfaces. This year we planned a similar program with the hope of taking another large chunk out of the surface organic matter and hopefully getting down to what would be our ideal organic matter concentration.

The last week of March heralded the start of the annual course renovations at Nikanti Golf Club. This year would see a much more aggressive program for the greens on account of the soil organic matter levels rising despite the work we did last year…

There are countless research, articles and opinions available when it comes to organic matter management, yet it still remains and will continue to remain a dominant issue in our maintenance and renovation programs. Through accurate assessment of organic matter, the turf industry’s knowledge of its development and maintenance is evolving.

The 2nd of April saw the beginning of the annual course renovations for Nikanti Golf Club. The aim of the process was to remove the excess organic matter that has accumulated over the last 12 months, relieve any compaction and present the surfaces in top condition for the clubs biggest event of the year, the BMW Golf Cup which begins on the 10th of May.

Is it possible to reduce fertiliser expenses by 69%? I certainly wouldn't have thought so 2 years ago. I used to dig my heels in a little at monthly P&L meetings when management would ask to reduce our expenses, but once I started to embrace it as a challenge, it was like new motivation! To maintain our surfaces at the same high standard or better, for a fraction of the price.

Zero! Except after a scheduled aeration. I exaggerate but that is indeed how much I thought I needed to apply in the early days of my career. Phosphorous is bad, it makes the plant puffy and the leaf soft. (Sigh)

From the first week of April we began our course renovation practices which would include re-landscaping some large focus areas. We were lucky enough to have the course closed for 10 days as there were also some maintenance scheduled on the clubhouse.

This was a big opportunity to go a little more aggressively in some areas (predominately the fairways and approaches) than we have done in the past and will allow us to achieve the surface performance standards that we have been targeting.

Organic matter management. Probably one of, if not the most important aspect of our role as turf managers in consistently maintaining high performing playing surfaces.

Do we need to core greens? Can we manage organic matter with sand top dressing and the use of solid tines only? How much sand is needed and how often do we need to apply?

As I've shown in my previous post, the lab targets for Calcium and Magnesium always seem to be unattainable and only lead to frustration and what seems to be an over-application of fertiliser. It is still only early days, but the MLSN guidelines just seem to make sense. Why apply fertiliser if the plant is not showing signs of a deficiency or continue to apply if there is no measurable response from the plant after application?

For years I have been following the recommendations from soil testing laboratories trying to create the "ideal soil" with the correct ratios of nutrients. After each soil test I would follow the recommendations, most of the time adding more and more calcium… I grew frustrated with the recommendations and after reading article after article and research papers online, I came across the MLSN guidelines produced by Pace Turf and Dr. Micah Woods.