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nursery green sizes

13 posts
  1. Reece Jody D
    Reece Jody D avatar
    6/13/2012 8:06 AM
    Looking to build a nursery green. What size nurseries do you guys have? We have about 140,000ft2 of greens.

    Thanks,


    Jody



  2. Verdun Scott M
    Verdun Scott M avatar
    6/13/2012 9:06 AM
    As large as you can make it within reason. I have worked places where we ideally would have had at least an acre nursery due to regular projects and worked other places where we had an acre but only used some every couple years. Bottom line is if it's not a huge additional cost it will be nice to have all that turf at some point in time. I'm currently establishing about 30,000 sq ft from old aeration plugs and seeding bent and since we already have the irrigation in the area I'll probably almost double that by the end of the year. This will help us with green expansions and squaring tees but if we ever NEED it due to hydraulic leak etc... it will be nice to have.

    My $0.02



  3. McCallum David K
    McCallum David K avatar
    6/13/2012 9:06 AM
    We have approximately the same sqaure footage of greens and our nursery green is a tad over 3500 sq.' Basically all we do is mow it, have taken very little sod from it in eleven years. Used more as a trial green than anything...........exotic experiments and such.



  4. Wallace Jeffrey V
    Wallace Jeffrey V avatar
    6/13/2012 1:06 PM
    Jody Reece said: Looking to build a nursery green. What size nurseries do you guys have? We have about 140,000ft2 of greens.

    Thanks,


    Jody


    Hi Jody,

    A quick Google search shows you at Chatmoss CC in VA. Is that you? If so, you have bentgrass greens and bermudagrass everywhere else. Again....correct?

    I agree with Scott, the bigger the better, but 10,000 sq. ft. should be a minimum. "If" you have bermuda from the collars out, then you will need to do some math, and build a much larger nursery, along the lines that Scott mentioned. Assuming every few years you may want to re-sod your collars along with another 2 foot buffer of bent, then you'll need enough to do that on your regulation greens. I have no idea how large your greens are, or how large your practice green is. But you'll be surprised, after doing the calculations, how much sod is required. Figure your regulation greens apart from your practice green, as the first is something you'll need to schedule, whereas the latter can be done most anytime.

    If you don't have any encroachment problems (good for you!), and are only using it for repairing and as a test area for different applications, then you can get away with something smaller, but still "try" for at least 10,000 sq. ft. For whatever reason, you may face the possibility of needing to re-sod an entire green. Yes, boys will be boys, and drunks will be drunks.



  5. David Brandenburg
    David Brandenburg avatar
    3 posts
    6/13/2012 4:06 PM
    Ours is a leftover green complex so it 7,000 like all the others. I would say to consider how much sod you use per year over the past 5 years and size it accordingly.



  6. Andy Jorgensen
    Andy Jorgensen avatar
    1 posts
    6/13/2012 5:06 PM
    We built one a few years back that is at most 3,000 ft2. We have over 10 acres of greens and this is not enough. We're looking into building a bigger one, more like a half acre. I don't even factor the one we have now into our regular maintenance. But another half acre will change things significantly.

    Once you have it, you'll find that you'll use it a lot more that you would think. Funny spot, plug it. Weak area, plug it. Encroachment, plug it. If you have it available, then use it.



  7. Wahlin Scott B
    Wahlin Scott B avatar
    6/13/2012 7:06 PM
    I wish I had a nursery green, but I don't. I use Pike Creek as my nursery green and so far so good.



  8. Jeffrey Parker
    Jeffrey Parker avatar
    0 posts
    6/14/2012 5:06 AM
    Scott,

    I am looking to build a nursery green out of aerification plugs. Can you tell me how you built yours? Did you use mix, what kind of depth you used starting out with the plugs, etc.

    Thanks



  9. Verdun Scott M
    Verdun Scott M avatar
    6/19/2012 3:06 PM
    Jeffrey Parker said: Scott,

    I am looking to build a nursery green out of aerification plugs. Can you tell me how you built yours? Did you use mix, what kind of depth you used starting out with the plugs, etc.

    Thanks



    Jeff,

    We already had a nursery that had been seeded pure bent about 3 years before I arrived as Supt and it worked well and had a good base, mostly clay but some 7-2-1 mixed in and topdressed. The process we used was KISS (keep it simple stupid) and up to now I like the results.

    -Round-up late August
    -Core aerate with 5/8"tines 8-10 times essentially softening the surface to feel like we roto-tilled it 3" deep
    -Drop seed bentgrass at 1.5 lbs/M then slit seed another 1.5 lbs/M
    -Topdress with cores late September after core aerating greens then roll the plugs to get good contact with soil
    -Regular and heavy fertility, treat it just like a grow-in.

    Things I'd change from the process would be to topdress heavy with sand or construction mix before the aeration to improve the rootzone. Topdress the cores heavier than we did, in the spot where we dumped the cores we will have our best results. We are mowing the area at .410" now and will soon drop to .375" with a walk mower. We have verti-cut a few times and I'm probably going to core aerate, seed, topdress with plugs and drag those plugs in the next week to help fill some of the thin spots. I am confident that If we need to we will be able to use for green expansions/tee squaring by this fall.

    Hope this helps, email me if you have any other questions sverdun@kenoshacountryclub.com



  10. Dalton Andrew
    Dalton Andrew avatar
    6/19/2012 4:06 PM
    I just built a nursery green last season and it just over 8,000 square feet, which I think is a good size for my 4 acres of greens. I don't treat it quite like the others, but almost. I don't regulate the growth or spray it for seed head suppression.

    Andy



  11. Keith Pegg
    Keith Pegg avatar
    0 posts
    6/19/2012 6:06 PM
    Jody Reece said: Looking to build a nursery green. What size nurseries do you guys have? We have about 140,000ft2 of greens.

    Thanks,


    Jody

    I just finished a new green that is 11,000sf. My old one was 5,500sf and never enough. Just remember a nursery green treated like all greens will most likely have the same problems. I like to mix it up some on the nursery with a different fungus treatment program and other. Easer to fix it over the greens if I have a problem. I also do most of my testing on that green. I keep it about 1mm higher cut and get a little better root system that way. This green will be used up next winter on a new putting green complex that I will sod in. We have built all greens to a 100% sand with drainage over the last few years and most were sodded for speed. I have rebuilt the nursery 6 times + in 6 years. Has worked great for us.

    Keith Pegg
    http://www.mwrjapan.army.mil/business/golf/



  12. Kerry Ohlwine
    Kerry Ohlwine avatar
    0 posts
    6/21/2012 4:06 PM
    Hi Jeff

    I found this article that you will find helpful http://gsr.lib.msu.edu/1990s/1999/990309.pdf. I am going to establishing a nursery for greens sod too. Do you think it is necessary to build it like a USGA green? The nursery at my last course did not have good drainage and got very thatchy(A-4 bentgrass). Still usable but not ideal. My new nursery here will also be A-4. Do you guys think USGA specs for a nursery is necessary. If not how much mix do you think I should use?

    Thanks

    Kerry Ohlwine
    Chestnut Hills Golf Club
    Fort Wayne, IN



  13. Jeffrey Parker
    Jeffrey Parker avatar
    0 posts
    6/22/2012 10:06 AM
    Hey Kerry,

    Thanks for the information. I am thinking about digging down around 4 or 6 inches, putting in some 60-20-20 mix, seed with bentgrass and level off with plugs.

    How long have you been at Chestnut Hills?



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