Managing mowing

In Bristol, Ind., Gary Shaffer of the Elcona Country Club knows how to pair product growth regulators with his business.

The course superintendent said in his seven years of working for the 18-hole country club, they’ve saved approximately $3,000 to $3,500 a year in labor and fuel costs from reduced mowing back in 2011. Shaffer mows three acres of tees twice each week and treats each with two PGRs. His three acres of greens get 2-3 applications of PGRs in spring for seedhead suppression and a weekly application through the season to control growth. In all 26 acres, the course is mowed twice each week through the spring and fall and three times from Memorial Day to Labor Day. A PGR application every two weeks keeps annual bluegrass in check and gives his bentgrass the best chance to thrive.

“We also projected for 2012,” Shaffer said. “The numbers are more accurate for this year.”

The use of PGRs also allows his crew to easily meet member expectations for keeping surfaces more consistent to its green speeds from day to day while keeping the amount of required mowing down.

When they do mow, he says mowing strategies are pretty independent. Whether it’s 50/50 cut or strike mowing, just so long as the patterns look even, then Shaffer has no dilemma – and with the use of PGRs, he has fewer mowings to worry about.

The best example is his use of check plots. The greens consist of annual bluegrass - a prolific seeder in the spring. Two to three applications of PGRs help suspend the formation of the seedheads, though it is never expected to achieve full suppression. Shaffer’s hope is to reduce them by 50 to 60 percent by using a check plot. With help from the regulators, Shaffer says these practices are becoming successful and certainly more than justifiable.

“One of the best things about my job is the educational opportunities I get on a daily basis,” Shaffer said. “Since I’ve been here, we’ve never had any issues on how we manage PGRs on our golf course.”