Clean up Begins

Willow tree on Hole #2 at East

Clean up has been going on since the violent wind storm Friday afternoon. Many trees were damaged or blown down. The East course received much more damage than the Valley. The power however was out at the Valley until Sunday morning. The it seems the golf course was just put back together again since the last storms. The main thing was no damage to any buildings and nobody was hurt. Until next time...David



Cedar Tree on Yellow deck on Hole #5
 

Equipment problems at the Valley!

Jason and David hooking up the chain for the tow truck

 It was an exciting day at the Valley yesterday. One of our tractors ended up in the pond on Lakes # 8. Thankfully no one was hurt! The tractor will have to into the shop and shall we say dry out!
The water was nice and warm.
We don't need anymore excitement like this for the rest of the summer.
Until next time... David

 

Tow Truck pulling tractor and mower out

Recent Storms Wreak Havoc at Victoria Park

Lakes # 9 at Valley
 

Cart Path # 5 East
 






The recent thunderstorms have caused a lot of issues here at Victoria park. The already saturated ground could not absorb any more water. The amount of rain and how fast it came down on Sunday night then again on Monday evening caused major washouts to cart paths and sand traps. The east course was hit hard twice all the repair work done during the day on Monday had to be done again on Tuesday. The Valley however received only half the rain on Monday as the East course and did not experience the washouts. We are only 4 km apart. That is the thing with thunderstorms, they are vary hit and miss.  We dodged a bullet on Wednesday afternoon as more thunderstorms raged through Guelph. Both golf courses only received some rain. If any of you have been out this week you can see what we are dealing with. We hope get all the washouts fixed today (Friday) and catch up on the grass. With all the rain we are extremely behind in mowing grass and there are may areas we just cannot mow because the areas are too wet. At the East course we have not been able to mow the fairway or rough since last Friday. The hole has been playing as a par 3 instead of a par 4. We are attempting to mow it today. You may have also noticed the greens are slower than normal. When they are so wet we are unable to do many of the cultural practises like roll, verticut, topdress etc. with out causing serious damage.
I would like to thank you for all your patience during this time. Until next time..
David





 

 

Wet weather adds to disease pressure at Victoria Park

Dollar spot disease on fairway

The wet spring has many benefits for the turf at Victoria Park. The rough has never been this lush and thick this time of year. We have hardly had to water the golf course. The water table is high and the course looks great. The downfall of all the rain is we can hardly keep up to keeping the rough mowed and as a result, some golfers complain about how hard it is to play and find their balls. The other problem with so much wet weather and especially the high humidity is the presence of turf diseases. Turf diseases which are also referred to as fungus, pathogens, mould etc. and are the most persistent (and expensive) pest problem on golf courses in southern Ontario. The main reason is the type of turf grass used on most golf courses. Creeping Bentgrass and Annual Bluegrass is much more prone to turf diseases than Kentucky Bluegrass which is primarily found on home lawns. There are also many different types of Turf grass diseases some prefer cool weather and some prefer hot weather. Some diseases will only occur once if the weather conditions are just right and some are more persistent and last all season long. Some disease are more of a nuisance and some can be devastating if left untreated. Some diseases can go untreated  especially if the weather conditions will that caused the outbreak are no longer present. Some diseases do have to be treated with a fungicide. This is especially true for dollar spot. Dollar spot shown in the picture is the most persistent disease at Victoria Park East. The Creeping bentgrass and annual bluegrass (poa) greens, tees and fairways are very susceptible. Golfers may have already noticed the spots about the size of a silver dollar. If left untreated the spots will spread and eventually kill the turf. Lets hope for some less humid weather.
Until next time...
David

Wildlife at Victoria Park

This fawn was found by members on Sunday morning near the 13th ladies tee at Victoria Park East. I actually drove by it earlier and thought it was a brown paper bag. The humane society was called they moved the fawn to a more secluded spot and told us it is normal for the mother doe to leave the fawn during the day. I checked on the fawn at 5:30am on Monday and it was gone.
The golf course is full of diverse wildlife. Unfortunately most golfers only see the Canadian Geese! This time of year keep an eye out for snapping turtles trying to nest in a sand trap or cart path. Wild Turkeys are becoming more prevalent in our area. They are around but quite shy.


The most unusual presence of wildlife at Victoria Park Valley has been the number of coyote sightings. It is rather the same few coyotes seen frequently. They have always been around but are usually much more aloof of humans. Some people are understandably concerned by this. The coyote's main diet is rodents, small mammals, reptiles, birds, berries and seeds. - NOT GOLFERS!We have spotted what seems to be a den on the golf course which would explain the multiple sightings.   Until next time...... David

May Projects at Victoria Park

Green side Bunker - Hole #1 at East
 

 May is a good time to finish spring projects before the golf course gets really busy. At the East course we are rebuilding a few bunkers edges. Bunker edges are continually changing because the sand is blasted up in the faces from golf shots and to a lessor extent wind. Green side bunkers with a lot of play need to be rebuilt every six to eight years.

New Rain shelter at Valley

New Rain shelters are being built at the Valley. Locations of the new rain shelters are Between Lakes # 4 and #6, Beside Pines #6 green, and beside Valley #6 fairway. The shelters should be completed some time next week.
Hopefully we don't need them. Until next time...
David

Ice storm causes major damage at Victoria Park!

The ice storm yesterday caused a lot of tree damage, power outage at the Valley and major damage to the driving range fence at the East course. We are assessing the extent of the damage but I know it is extensive, will take a lot of time and cost a lot of money. We will let golfers know the fence is damaged and balls from the range will potentially go onto holes # 1 and # 9.  Old man winter clearly wanted to leave his mark on 2013! Until next time... David