Collar levelling Cancel The title field is required!

1. Kennedy David F

   
   3/18/2013 3:03 PM

   We are looking into levelling collars that have become raised over the years. I'm looking into stripping, levelling and resodding. Will also try aerating collars without topdressing and running a heavy roller over the area.
   I'd appreciate any experiences/ insights from anyone who has dealt with this issue.
   
   David Kennedy,
   Vancouver Golf Club

   
   
   
   
2. Dru Clark

   

   0 posts
   
   3/19/2013 7:03 AM

   We have core aerified with a 5/8" tine and rolled with a one ton vibratory roller with little benefit. I would say it helped but not enough to recommend the process. We ended up removing the turf with a sod cutter, then used the sod cutter again to remove the excess soil from the area. This is a much better idea than using shovels because you can ensure that everything is consistent. We re-used existing turf as much as we could although we did end up buying sod for some areas. We did not have to lower the entire collar on every green, only portions.
   I hope this helps!! Good luck!!

   
   
   
   
3. Dennis Ingram

   

   5 posts
   
   3/20/2013 7:03 PM

   Double aerify, removing cores, soaking the area, rolling continues to work around the world for us, if you have less than an inch or so to level. Anything more will need to be striped and sufficient material removed.

   
   
   
   
4. Ryan Walsh

   

   0 posts
   
   3/22/2013 12:03 PM

   If you're looking to salvage the existing turf and re-utilize it for your new grade; make sure that the turf has not been aerified recently. The holes from aerification will weaken the turf and will be difficult to lift without tearing it. Using large cores to level out an area is good preventative maintenance but if you want to make an immediate impact, break out the sod cutter and go to town! We have done this to several of our greens that had a build up of bunker sand on our green/collar with great success. Using a 1-ton roller after our hydroject saturates the soil helps make a seamless transition.

   
   
   
   
5. Grayson Grainger

   

   0 posts
   
   3/22/2013 3:03 PM

   We did it during a greens conversion. I used a vertidrain with 1" x 10" hollow tines, the biggest I could get to fit. I also rented a 2500 lb vibratory roller. Aerify, clean up, hand water to saturation, then roll. Repeat as necessary. It does take some time but it worked pretty well. I think the key is that you have to remove enough material, the reason for the large tines. It will take a while to heal. It's not 100% perfect but it gets close. Hope this helps.

   
   
   
   
6. Sam Reznicek

   

   0 posts
   
   3/22/2013 9:03 PM

   Did a 5/8 core aeration in the collars last fall with greens. Used a 2 ton vibratory walk behind roller and beat the HELL out of the collars. Bruising was significant in some spots. But, dropped some of the bad collars a good half inch and the bruising grew out very quickly.

   
   
   
   
7. Kennedy David F

   
   3/25/2013 8:03 AM

   Thanks all. I'm going to try aerating and rolling, but it sounds like stripping and levelling is the way to go here. In some cases I've got to lower the turf 2".
   Cheers,
   Dave Kennedy

   
   
   
   
8. Jacob Valentino

   

   0 posts
   
   3/25/2013 9:03 AM

   We've had to do this process around all of our collars due to improper aerification procedures. The best way that we have found is to remove the existing turf with a sod cutter and remove the excess soil by hand using a shovel. The process, depending on size of the green, takes around 8 man hours to complete. I would suggest this method because it has worked for us in the past and has worked tremendously. The members couldn't be happier with the results. I would also suggest watering heavily after the job has been completed to help turf recover quickly.

   
   
   
   
9. Edward Doda

   

   0 posts
   
   10/23/2013 8:10 AM

   Looking at expanding some greens for some extra cupsets and to give others nicer contours.In some spots the collars are higher than the greens level so that I'm sure scalping would occur to the bent/poa. Not a big height difference but at .110 HOC would be very apparent. Has anyone had luck with the collar coring plus rolling to bring these areas down low enough to have a seamless transition.
   
   Ed Doda, Barrie CC an hour north of Toronto

   
   
   
   
10. James Smith

    

    112 posts
    
    10/25/2013 2:10 PM

    Edward Doda said: Looking at expanding some greens for some extra cupsets and to give others nicer contours.In some spots the collars are higher than the greens level so that I'm sure scalping would occur to the bent/poa. Not a big height difference but at .110 HOC would be very apparent. Has anyone had luck with the collar coring plus rolling to bring these areas down low enough to have a seamless transition.
    
    Ed Doda, Barrie CC an hour north of Toronto

    
    
    We went through this this year. what started working for me was when I used my tractor with my soil releaver aerifyer on the back to run around the edges that were high with the rear tires after we aerified. by being able to lower the humps just a little we saw a lot of areas start growing in. I plan on repeating these processes next year to help the areas even more.
    
    One reason I have found for high collars is from dragging the sand on the greens into the collars after topdressing. You may not think it is much but after 20+ applications per year it adds up.