Turf ironing greens after cutting when possible to produce smoother and faster surfaces 

fertilising tees on the Balcomie course to help with wear and tear 

The last few mornings we have been having haar come in from the sea 

Green 14 on the Balcomie course has been double spiked and seeded then heavy top-dressed and rubbed in to help improve the surface 

Heavy application of top-dressing sand 

Slowly brushing in the top-dressing sand 

Then the seed and sand washed in 

The Craighead course greens received their Summer fertiliser this week 

Tees over both courses have been sprayed with a wetting agent and Seaweed to help in these very dry conditions as this allows irrigation water to penetrate better into the profile and reduce surface tension

getting the greens ready in front of play 

We have edged/weeded/topped up our 16th tee path on the Craighead course 

Both courses really drying out quick in these warm drying windy conditions 

March Orchids in our roughs at hole 7 on the Craighead course 

With these very dry conditions, we have found ourselves struggling for water to irrigate our surfaces from our existing boreholes. So we had a company come in and evaluate our existing boreholes and drill pilot test holes on areas that there Geologist recommended to try and find more water for a new borehole   

Pilot hole 1 at our tank area on the driving range came back with good results, so we are in the process of making this a new borehole in the next few weeks to give us the water that we need 

Each pilot hole was drilled to over 100m depth 

pilot hole 3 which was drilled next to our 12th tees on the Craighead course to a depth of over 110m recorded really good levels of water, this will hopefully be looked at in the future to be made into a borehole to future proof us for a good water supply in any long dry spells. Pilot hole 2 was drilled at the bottom of our driving range and was dry to over 100m depth

pilot hole 1 has now been fully drilled out to the correct size and casings put in, hopefully next week the new pump, pipe work and cabling will be installed down the borehole ready for us to look at connecting into our existing pump house and tank
 

All go on the courses

when possible we have been rolling after cutting to help keep the greens smooth and a decent pace 

Greens being cut & rolled on the Craighead course 

We are cutting fairways with grass boxes on to help reduce weed seeds on the Balcomie course 

With being at full growth and damp mornings we have been brushing before and after cutting to help disperse dew and brush up the grass for a better quality of cut then after to disperse any grass 

The Craighead greens have recovered well after there major aeration work 

We have applied another 9tons of top-dressing sand to the Craighead greens to help dilute thatch and help the surfaces recover 

On the Balcomie course, we have been spiking/over seeding and heavy top-dressing a green each week not to interfere with play to help improve the surfaces 

Perfect hole for the new seed and sand 

The front roller of the seeder has spikes to make the holes before dropping seed into the surface, before we use this machine we always irrigate the surface to make it softer for a better hole 

Both sets of greens and PG's have had an application of liquid fertiliser & wetting agent to help in these very dry & windy conditions

We use a moisture probe to check moisture levels throughout our greens to help us manage our water better and have better consistency throughout our greens 

Our automatic irrigation system is running most nights from about 10pm as this is the best time as conditions are usually calmer and cooler 

Also we have been out hand water high spots on greens as these dry out very quickly in this weather  
 

All go on the courses

We are now carrying out nearly our full cutting program since the rain and heat a couple of weeks ago as the growth has really kicked in 

The Balcomie course getting set up for play, we are still at a reduced staff level so when we can manage we will try to roll greens behind cutting to help keep pace on the surfaces 

We are collecting our clippings when we cut the Balcomie course fairways to help reduce weed seeds and improve the surfaces and finish on these areas 

Our 6th green on the Balcomie course has been spiked, over seeded, heavy top-dressed, brushed in and watered to help improve the surfaces 

the spiked roller on our seeder gives a really good hole for the new seed 

surface was watered in to wash in the the sand and seed plus help with germination in the coming weeks 

The Balcomie course greens received their monthly application of fert/seaweed/wetting agent 

The Balcomie course tees received and application of fert & selective herbicide to help control weeds on the surfaces 

This is now 5 weeks of recovery for the Craighead course greens after their major aeration work, they are recovering well and hopefully back to normal in the next couple of weeks 

The Craighead greens had another 0.5 tons of top-dressing sand applied to help fill in the scarifying lines and help further reduce the thatch levels in the profile, then an application of fertiliser 

18th green on the Craighead course recovering well. Thanks to the membership for understanding and being patient and why we need to carry out this aeration work, which will help produce better surfaces longer term 

Our short game area has recovered well from all the winter practicing from golfers 

We have cleaned up/ edged/weeded and topped up our 8th tee path on the Balcomie course 

We have painted our tee bins and any wood work at these areas to help preserve the wood and keep these areas tidier 

Our Corn bunting area on the driving range is starting to come after a very dry start, this will provide a great food source for the birds etc in the coming months 

Ross Mallory one of our Junior members has just completed his NC in Greenkeeping at Elmwood College and has joined our Greenkeeping team at the start of the month 
 

Cutting of all the playing surfaces on the Balcomie course ready for the start of our competitions this weekend 

We are still cutting tees with grass boxes off so not to lift any slow release fertiliser which was applied 

We have sprayed our fairways on the Balcomie course with selective herbicide to reduce the daisies then we have left them for 10 days to allow the chemical to work and now cutting with grass boxes on to help take away the seed heads from the weeds and have a nicer/cleaner finish 

The Craighead course greens are recovering well, this is the 13th green after it's first cut and 14 days after the aeration work 

We then applied another 0.5tons of sand to help fill in any scarifying lines and further help reduce our organic matter levels 

We have put our new thin pins and hole cups out on the Balcomie course ready for the first competition this weekend. Once the Craighead greens have healed we will do the same in about 3 weeks as we are still planning to be top-dressing with sand to help aid recovery from the aeration work 

April has been a very dry & cold month with only 2.5mm of rain, so we have been using our new irrigation system most nights over both the courses & hand water high spots in the mornings on greens 

We use a moisture probe to help us gauge how much water to apply and where to apply it, which helps us reduce water usage overall and help us produce more consistent surfaces 

All our greens/PG's over both courses have had an application of liquid fertiliser & wetting agent