After three days of hard work, we can finally say the worst of aeration is over and we are on the path to recovery. All in all, I would say this year's aeration was a success. I was able to remove a lot of thatch and we also got a lot of sand down to manage what is remaining.
Going forward, we will continue to water the greens just a bit every night and before we mow or roll in the morning to keep working the sand in. We will mow the greens every three days until the following weekend when we will go back to a full time mowing schedule. Mowing every day right now only picks sand up which I want to leave there.
I already have an idea for what I would like to do different for next year. Instead of 3/8" tines on 1.5"x1.5" spacing, I am thinking I could get away with 1/4" tines on 1"x1" spacing. It is just slightly less material coming out and I won't be able to fill the holes with sand, but that is not what I am hoping to accomplish. This method should provide an even better product than this year. I will try this out in October on the practice greens and make sure that this is what's best for our greens. Until then, enjoy your time at Cinnabar!
