Mike Bird at golf on June 15, 2013

This article appeared in Issue 48 of Pitchcare Magazine

Located on a huge limestone outcrop formed 360 million years ago, the Southerndown Golf Club is located near Bridgend in South Wales. It provides golfers with part of the sand connection and part of the acid wasteland, making the course one of the driest courses in the UK. Golf test. As Mike Bird discovered, Southerndown also tested the greening skills of the stadium manager Andrew Mannion and his six employees well.

Southerndown Golf Club was founded in 1905 and has been described as a hidden gem by members and many tourists who have admired its natural contours, fast greens, sand pits, and fairways lined with gorse and bracken over the years.

In addition to these characteristics, the magnificent views of the Bristol Channel and the challenging prevailing southwesterly winds, there is also a golf course that is very different from any other part of the country.

The word "unique" needs to be used with caution, but as far as Southerndown is concerned, it is impossible for anyone to find a reason to disagree.

Although climate, location and geology have a major impact on the maintenance and maintenance of the 18th hole in Southerndown, the setting of the course on public land provides additional year-round challenges for the green team.

"Before the arrival of golf, sheep have been eating Southerndown's native fescue and curvy grass," points out course manager Andrew Mannion. "The Civilian Association has the right to graze that dates back to the Middle Ages. My job is to live in harmony with nature and herders. In the summer after lambing, the number of sheep can double to more than 600. This is a challenge, but I don't want to Go anywhere else."

Andrew arrived at Southerndown Golf Club in February 1995 and previously worked at Warrington Golf Club, a traditional park course located three miles south of Cheshire Township.

"I joined Southerndown as Gary Johnstone's deputy head of greenfield manager," Andrew recalled. "I am keen to take the Links course. Although it is not a real Links style throughout the process, Gary is using the management practices he learned with John Philp at Carnous Stylinks to take care of Southerndown. ."

When Gary moved to Portmarnock Golf Club in 2007, Andrew took over as course manager and applied his own green style to a golf course, which he said is best described as a lowland link at 70 meters above sea level.

"The grasses that grow in the first nine holes overlooking the sea are mainly curved and fescue. They are all well established on the undulating and elastic links-like terrain formed by the sand deposits carried by the westerly wind for hundreds of years. "He said. "The remaining caves are located further inland, covered in rocky, silty soil, just like the rest of the 2,800 hectares of public land in Southerndown, where sheep graze freely."

Because these soils provide higher nutrient levels than barren beaches near the sea, they have a higher incidence of bluegrass. In recent years, this soil has been steadily promoting fescue on golf courses. As a result, due to the regular mowing, the sheep seem to prefer the grazing conditions to the longer, tougher, more scattered grass that grows nearby.

The high incidence of sheep, mainly in the back nine holes, caused costly damage to the greens, tees and bunkers, and the continuous year-round task of clearing sheep dung from most of the 85 hectares was used by the golf club. .

Andrew estimates that this operation alone costs the club between £12,000 and £14,000 a year on labor and machinery usage, including dragging an inverted lawn chain rake through the turf most of the time to move manure away from the main playing area. .

"As public land, no part of the golf course can be fenced, so a plan was implemented in 2010 to improve the ground areas that are within the boundaries of the course that are densely covered by gorse and rough grass," Andrew explained Say. "The aim is to provide better grazing for the sheep and encourage them to use completely natural methods to stay away from the main sporting areas."

Using the club’s own tractors and heavy flail mowers, in the past three years, golf course crews have cleared approximately 20 hectares of previously impenetrable rough ground to provide a series of flat, open, paddock-like areas for the golden bird Flower is the boundary.

In 2010 and 2011, there were three reductions in production. In 2012, due to bad weather and ground conditions, only two reductions were possible. Andrew said that this treatment has proved very successful. Sheep definitely prefer to eat grass and lie on the grass. The grass grows longer than the main sports area of ​​the stadium a few meters away.

Persuading sheep to stay away from the actual golf course has a positive effect on reducing the damage of their hooves and urine to the fine turf. It also reduces the erosion of the sides and surface of the bunker caused by sheep and lambs leaving the bunker when the golfer approaches.

Andrew pointed out that before 2011, many bunkers in Southerndown needed to be rebuilt on average every three years, including refurbishing the front and sides.

However, because they have experienced very high wear and tear, the "favorite" bunkers of sheep and lambs need to be rebuilt every year.

Such bunkers are often deeper, more remote, south-facing bunkers, where lambs can lie comfortably in the sun and shelter from the wind. When the animals leave the bunker, Andrew said that their preference always seems to be at the steepest point, eroding and exposing their carefully trimmed faces to wind and rain.

The winter of the 2009-10 season was particularly expensive for the club. Between November and March, Andrew and his team rebuilt 34 bunkers at a total cost of nearly £20,000.

"It was a good job that we established our own lawn nursery a few years ago, otherwise the cost might be higher," he commented. Andrew is determined to find a way to reduce the time, effort, and expense involved in continuing to repair and rebuild the bunkers. He said that he is considering several options, including replacing sand with grass and reducing the angle of the bunkers. However, this behavior will not be welcomed by golfers because it will adversely affect the distinctive and long-established characteristics of the course.

Then an incident occurred and immediately a better and more acceptable alternative appeared for re-repair, retaining the shape and content of the bunkers, while greatly extending their durability and service life, as Andrew explained Like that:

"At the end of 2010, the local company Envirosports Ltd approached the club to provide a sustainable, patented bunker renovation and repair system called EnviroBunker. It uses recycled synthetic turf for protection and helps prevent bunkering Surface erosion to reduce repairs and maintenance."

Andrew was invited to visit a nearby golf club to inspect the bunker repaired using the system. Andrew was very impressed with the result. He said it was almost the same as the result he achieved using natural turf. Andrew discussed the cost calculation with the golf club committee.

In January 2011, it was decided to try this method on a practice bunker. The speed and ease of using recycled materials to replace natural turf convinced Andrew that the system could prove to be a useful and cost-saving solution for Southerndown.

Although the company provides full contract services for installation, Andrew decided that he wants to manage and execute all future bunker reconstruction projects by himself, and obtain permission to work in a short period of time when course maintenance personnel are available.

After calculating the amount of materials required for the bunker on the court that needed the most urgent attention, Andrew arranged for him to deliver recycled synthetic turf for the first time. The materials are neatly stacked on the pallet, and are pre-cut to the same size when they arrive for easy handling and laying.

Each "turf" is 500 mm long, 200 mm wide and 20 mm deep, and can be treated and laid like ordinary turf used for slope protection.

"The main difference is its resistance to wear and damage," he said. He said: "I think we can get at least 20 years of life from the reconstructed bunker before these faces require any attention." "We also want to emphasize environmental benefits to club members."

All materials currently used for bunker repairs were previously used as sports surfaces for hockey and football training activities.

At the end of its useful life, the existing synthetic turf is lifted and replaced. Previously, the removed materials would be sent to landfills or piled up in the corners of the yard.

Discovering good business opportunities, Envirosports is making full use of this material and has provided more and more golf clubs with their bunker systems in the past three years, including Turnberry, Addington Palace and Sand Moor, and Southerndown. Now promise to use this method on all eighty-four bunkers on the court.

After completing 20 more renovations last winter, Andrew said the club’s goal is to repair and upgrade all bunkers by the end of 2015.

Regarding cost, he found that the materials and labor are very similar to the use of natural turf. Due to the system's high stability and excellent resistance to wear, tear and harsh environments, the biggest savings lies in not having to constantly repair the bunker.

The turf nursery established at Southerndown Golf Club more than ten years ago is still used frequently to provide turf for the top of the bunker, the extension of the tee, and the restoration of the ground damaged by sheep or rabbits.

At the same time, the greens on the court have also received their own special attention. About six years ago, Andrew and his staff noticed the appearance of some partially bare patches on the green, accompanied by the increase in the level of bluegrass and the inconsistency of turf growth.

When discussing at the committee meeting, some even talked about digging the most affected greens and starting over.

Andrew felt that this step was too much, so he asked the agronomist Andy Cole for advice. He confirmed Andrew's diagnosis that the underlying structure of the green is very good, but the native fescue and curved grass that grew on the green are being gradually eliminated by more dominant species.

Andy's suggestion is to establish a more streamlined and stricter management system on the greens. This involves many key actions.

First, switch to pure sand topdressing instead of the 70/30 mixed fertilizer that has been used for the past 15 years.

Second, use high-quality surfactants to quickly remove water from the surface and achieve a balanced air-to-water ratio within the soil profile.

The ultimate goal is to produce a drier and firmer putter surface and a consistent and more uniform moisture content in the root zone, which, presumably, will promote native bending and rebuilding of fescue.

To achieve this goal, Andrew decided to use Aquatrol's Revolution, a product developed and proven to be equally effective in wet and dry conditions. From March to November or December, once a month, it helps to create a better root zone environment under all growing conditions, provides healthier and stronger turf, and particularly encourages finer grass.

Assisting this action is the monthly application of Farmura's Porthcawl liquid feed, which starts in March of each year and continues until October when the temperature is above 7OC.

It is mixed and used in 50 liters of water at a ratio of 10 liters per 1,000 square meters. The mixture of organic ingredients includes seaweed, iron and trace elements, designed to feed, condition and green the turf.

"The result is once again very effective in encouraging the reconstruction of finer grass," Andrew commented. "The last link in our application chain is Primo Maxx, which is a liquid growth regulator that helps to produce and maintain a more consistent and realistic playing field. By increasing grass density, Primo Maxx has proven to be effective against bluegrass. Useful extra help for management."

Andrew recognized that better native grasses need additional help to regain a foothold on the greens, so in 2011 he launched a global field species exchange program.

The first season involves 15 mm hollows of all greens and sowing Johnsons J Fescue, a 100% fine fescue mixture, applied at a rate of 35 g/m², and then brushed in. The whole process is repeated 3 times during the planting process. .

In 2012, the entire timetable was originally scheduled to repeat itself in April. After conducting a hollow and broadcast seeding operation throughout the process, the committee asked Andrew whether it was possible to reduce the interference to the greens and find a way to speed up the work, which already took nearly a week to complete.

Knowing that the local contract company @turf is operating the only Vredo Super Compact disc planter in South Wales, Andrew asked the co-owner David Pierce to bring his machine for evaluation.

The results were so effective that they were taken to supervise all the greens in July, August and October last year, and 6 further visits were booked in 2013 and 2014.

"Not only does the Vredo machine produce less disturbance and faster turf recovery, but it can supervise our 21 greens in a day and a half, with two passes on each green," Andrew commented. "This has also had a very positive impact on our grass seed exchange program, and we hope that our new fertilization activities will further encourage this program."

Since Andrew took over as stadium manager, the fertilizer will be prepared in the traditional on-site method for the first time, using three basic ingredients: ammonia sulfate, potassium sulfate and iron sulfate, all of which are 25 kg by the club’s preferred material supplier ALS Shipped in bags for more than six years.

“We will add a sand carrier and use our truck-mounted Dakota topdressing machine to apply household compost, which was previously underutilized in the course,” explains Andrew. "Making our own fertilizer not only gives us more control, it is also 50% cheaper than buying proprietary products. In today's economic environment, this saving is very helpful for golf clubs."

Mowing equipment 3 Toro Greensmaster 3250-D green lawn mowers 1 Toro Reelmaster 5410 fairway lawn mowers 1 Toro Greensmaster 1000 walk-behind lawn mowers

Tractor 1 x John Deere 4520 (2002) 1 x Kubota 5040 (2011) 1 x Iseki 4290 JCB 2CX excavator

Trucks and utility vehicles 1 x Mitsubishi L200 Pick Up 3 x Toro MDX Workman 1 x Toro HD Workman

Tractor-mounted equipment 2 x 2.5 ton trailer 1 x 4 ton trailer 1 x Wessex 185 flail mower 1 x Hardi 600ltr sprayer 1 x Dakota 410 Mounted top dressing machine 1 x Wiedenmann Terra Spike XD6 1 x Blec disc x6 Proseder Core 18 x Wessex Rotator 1 x Chain Harrow Set 1 x Cambridge Roller 1 x Pipa/Leveler 1 x Green Slitting Machine

Manual machine 2 x chain saw 1 x Flymo 1 x auger

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