May course news

After a good growing month in March we’re back to normal with cold, dry easterly and northerly winds putting the brakes on grass growth.  This weather pattern is forecast to continue into next week, with the possibility of some very welcome rain at the end of the week.  The flowering of annual meadow grass in the greens and other areas is at its peak at present but this should reduce over the next few weeks.  The new tees on the 1^st, 6^th and 8^th holes are coming on nicely, they’ve just been top dressed again and we’ll bring them into play in the next week or so.  The greens were top dressed again last week bringing the total number of dressings for the year to three.  The next top dressing is planned for the week beginning Monday 15^th May.  Top dressing is our main tool for smoothing out the putting surfaces.  Once we come out of the current drought (only 89mm in the first four months of the year and only 10.6mm in April) we’ll apply selective weed-killer to the fairways.  We’ll also start the annual task of spraying encroaching gorse and bramble seedlings.  Later in May we’ll do some renovation work on the green surrounds, this will consist of hollow coring followed by over-seeding and top dressing.  The extension to the putting green is nearing completion and the turf will be delivered on the 23^rd of May.