Yellow and Red; The Colors of Fall

You may think I am referencing leaf color but in this circumstance I am referring to the painted marks on the fairways.  If you've golfed since Friday you will have noticed dinner plate sized paint marks on the fairways.  We do this for 2 reasons.  One is to mark the heads so staff members can trim around them since after a seasons growth the irrigation heads start to get covered by turf (especially after a year like this one which turned out to be a good year to grow grass!).  The second reason relates more the seasonal reference.  Starting next week we begin preparing for the end of the season.  The first task this year will be aerating the fairways before the final fertilization in mid to early September.  Cool season turf has two growth stages throughout the year and we are in the second.  Cooler days are more suited for root development and soil temperatures anywhere between 50 and 65 degrees F (or 10 to 18 degrees C) aid in root growth versus the hot days associated with summer.  Other factors influencing root growth are soil moisture and oxygen.  After a season of traffic from play and maintenance the soil tends to "tighten up" and limit oxygen and water movement.  When we aerate we are increasing oxygen within the root zone and ensuring that water reaches the roots where both are needed to encourage root growth (mass and depth).  A healthy root system will better be able to make use of soil nutrients from fertilization and natural organic matter breakdown.  Ultimately, it is the nutrient uptake which, in combination with photosynthesis, helps create and store carbohydrates (CHO) that the turf needs to recover next spring.  The more tools and time we give the turf to create CHO's the better the chances of success in the spring... maybe... (Oops!  I forgot to explain the red and yellow marks as they relate to aeration.  It is to make it easier for the guy operating the aerator to see the heads)