Carolinas supers tackle ultradwarf research

COLUMBIA, S.C. - Nearly 50 superintendents from throughout the Carolinas gathered here at Columbia Country Club in May to exchange their ideas and experiences with TifEagle and other ultradwarfs such as Champion.

Superintendents from the Midlands Turfgrass Association have been staging similar meetings locally for the past two years, but the latest gathering brought in superintendents from all over the two-state area.

“The first year [Camden CC superintendent] Danny Allen and I got together with 10 other guys who all had TifEagle in our area and we tried to find some common denominators,” said Jeff Connell, superintendent at Columbia CC. “We were willing to learn from other people’s mistakes if they were willing to come talk about them.”

This year, the meeting not only grew in size and scope, but it also provided more information.

Mitchell Wilkerson, superintendent at Moss Creek Plantation GC in Hilton Head, presented results from a yearlong study of 14 golf courses in the Carolina low country.

“The 14 courses gave $100 each to the research,” said Wilkerson. “They filled out a worksheet every week and sent the information in. I have compiled it and sent the numbers to various universities.”

According to Connell, research on the new varieties was lacking.

“The grass was thrown onto the market and there was never any research done on it,” he said. “We are coming together because we have been given the responsibility to teach each other. The new bentgrasses were studied by the USGA, but with the new bermudas it was not done.”

While the group is still developing a set of best management practices, they have learned a lot so far.

“We are learning the age curve of the grass,” said Wilkerson. “You have to find out what guys did three years ago and how they got to this point. If you do something in the first year that someone else is doing in the third year, you are going to be in trouble.”

In terms of management, the group has determined that cutting the turf at 1/8 inch is just as good as cutting it at 1/10.

“You can do the lower cut, but you don’t have to go to 1/10 to get the speeds you need,” Wilkerson said.

In addition to compiling information on fertilizer rates, the group has discussed aerification, thatch removal and topdressing practices.

“The keys appear to be doing as much as you can without disturbing the turfgrass,” said Wilkerson. “That means light frequent verticutting, some use quad tines or cut down tines, and light frequent topdressing.”

Both Connell and Wilkerson said superintendents who have previous experience managing bentgrass are having the most success with the new ultradwarfs, whereas those who upgraded from Tifdwarf bermuda were having a tougher go of it.

“The grass is finicky,” said Connell. “You can’t just fertilize it once a month and go home at two o’clock.”