What the Heck is Overseeding?

It’s that time of year again…OVERSEEDING!  What the heck is an overseed and why do we do it here at Grayhawk Golf Club?  To put it in layman’s terms, the hot weather summertime Bermuda Grass goes “dormant” or turns yellow in cooler weather.  We like to have nice green grass year round here at Grayhawk, so we go through the process of OVERSEEDING to make sure this is the case.

Here is a quick overview of the OVERSEED PROCESS…Grayhawk Style.

1. THE SCALP - The scalping process is basically a really short mow of the existing summer Bermuda Grass.  A buzz-cut if you will.  Our super Super Ernie Pock and his staff simply lower the mowers to a height of about 1/2 an inch and mow away.
2. THE VACUUM - Literally!
3. THE PRE-PLANT FERTILIZER - This is an insider tip from Ernie for all you homeowners out there.  Once you have scalped and vacuumed, throw down a little fertilizer as a base which will aid in the germination of the Rye Grass.  Smart guy that Ernie!  In the inner sanctum of the Maintenance Building, this process is respectfully referred to as “CHICKEN %*#&” referring to the organic nature of the fertilizer used:)
4. THE SEEDING - Pretty straight forward on this one as well.  The guys use big machines to spread the seed evenly across the intended areas.  In those tough to reach corners and bumps, they seed by hand and always mark with paint, where they have been!  In overseeding (as in life) it’s always important to know where you are going and to remember where you have been.
5. THE WATER - Lots of water.  From the time the first seed is dropped THROUGH the first week, you need to water every 1.5 hours for 3 to 4 minutes from daylight until dark.  Once the seed has germinated and established, you should reduce the frequency of watering while increasing the watering time which will allow for deeper watering.  Ernie says this makes for deeper, stronger roots that will carry you through the season.
6. THE MOW - The first mow typically takes place 9 days after the seed has been thrown…amazing I know!  I definitely helps us that Ernie is the best around!

We have 2 great golf courses here at Grayhawk…Talon and Raptor. Our Talon Course will be closed from Sept. 19 through Oct. 2 and our Raptor Course will be  closed from Oct. 3 through Oct. 16. We look forward to another great winter season here with GREAT COURSE CONDITIONS. Hope to see you at the ‘Hawk!

Until next time-

Colin

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