Isn't it Obvious?

I get what seem like ridiculous questions every year when we aerate like; why are the greens slow and why are the greens bumpy.  The other day our local Hall of Famer, Larry Dorsey (he really is; check it out) asked me why the greens are shaggy and slow.  To me Larry isn't just any Joe Smoe.  I happen to highly regard his opinion and if he is asking these questions, then I guess the answer isn't as obvious as I thought.  Here are the answers to some common questions.

Q: Why are the greens slow?  

A:  Prior to aeration, we fertilize the greens to get them growing fast to aid in recovery.  After aeration, we fertilize them again to continue the healing process.  Every night the greens also get water to try and germinate the new seed we put down.  All of these items plus one more in which I will get to make the greens slow.  I will put down a growth regulator in two weeks to try and slow the growth down.

Q:  Why are the greens shaggy?

A:  A few reasons.  One, we don't cut them every day.  Two, we cut them a little higher with all the sand down. 3) All the sand makes the mowers dull and combined with fast growing grass the results are less than stellar.  All of these items contribute to green speed too.

Q:  Why are the greens bumpy?

A:  After aerating, the greens are extremely soft. We have to drive on them after to pick up the cores and put down sand which leaves ruts.  We roll very often to quickly smooth them out, but it still takes a week or so.

Q:  Why don't you do one course a week?

A:  We use the band-aid approach with greens aeration.  Let's just get it done.  Also, we can't afford to cut off 30% of our revenue maker for that amount of time.  Instead we offer you discounted rates to ease the pain.  

I did play the Mountain course yesterday and must say that the greens were rolling nicely considering.