It was brought to our attention that someone spotted a snake while playing golf at Staley Farms. I went to the Missouri Department of Conservation website and found the following information about this topic.
Snakebites are Rare
Contrary to popular belief, snakes do not go looking for people to bite. In fact, snakes are more afraid of you than you are of them. As Jim Low says in his Snakebytes blog post, "Snakebite ranks just above falling space debris as a threat to human life." Read his post to learn more about who gets bitten by snakes, when, and why.
Fun to Study, Important to People and Nature
Missouri, with its variety of wildlife habitats, is home to a total of 47 species and subspecies of snakes. The majority (88 percent) of our snakes are harmless.
Snakes are reptiles — a group that also includes lizards, crocodiles, and turtles. Reptiles in general are covered with scales, are the same temperature as their surroundings, and have been around for millions of years. Snakes and lizards are closely related. Snakes are legless, have no external ear opening, and are not slimy. About half of our snakes lay eggs, and half give birth to completely developed young. As they grow, snakes shed their outer skins three to five times a year. All snakes can swim. The internal organs of snakes are elongated, which allows them to fit into the tubular body cavity. Most species have an elongated right lung and no left lung.
All snakes eat other animals and are classified as carnivorous. As noted above, they play an important role in controlling rodent populations, and they also serve as a food source for other wildlife, such as hawks, owls, mink, skunks, and herons. Some snakes even eat other snakes. Kingsnakes, which are immune to the venom of our venomous snakes, will kill and consume them if given the opportunity. Although many of our harmless snakes will bite to defend themselves, usually their bite produces nothing more than simple scratches. Many kinds of snakes, both venomous or nonvenomous, will vibrate their tails when alarmed or threatened.
How to Tell Venomous from Nonvenomous Snakes
Venomous snakes
All venomous snakes native to Missouri are members of the pit viper family. Pit vipers have a characteristic pit located between the eye and nostril on each side of the head. They also have a pair of well-developed fangs.
Note the shape of the pupil. The pupils of venomous snakes appear as vertical slits within the iris.
Our venomous species all have a single row of scales along the underside of the tail.
Missouri's venomous snakes include the copperhead, cottonmouth, western pygmy rattlesnake, massasauga rattlesnake, and timber rattlesnake. The western diamond-backed rattlesnake and coralsnake are not found in Missouri. The most common venomous snake in Missouri is the copperhead. To our knowledge, there have only been two human deaths attributed to venomous snakes in Missouri: a 1933 timber rattlesnake bite and a 1965 copperhead bite.
Nonvenomous snakes
Harmless snakes have round pupils and a double row of scales along the undersides of their tails.
A triangle-shaped head doesn't necessarily mean danger. Although the venomous snakes have a somewhat triangle-shaped head, several harmless species, such as watersnakes, gartersnakes, and hog-nosed snakes, can and do flatten their heads, which can cause them to appear triangular.
Please visit the link below to see more information about Missouri snakes.
http://mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/common-plants-and-animals/amphibians-and-reptiles/snakes
Thursday, April 3, 2014
PAR THREE DIVOT SAND BOXES
If you have played golf this spring at Staley Farms you may have noticed that the sand boxes on the par three tees are not there. We will not have divot boxes on the par three tees this season. Our maintenance staff will be repairing divots on the par three tees daily. It is part of our morning setup routine. We can do it in an efficient manner adding the perfect amount of sand to make the surface level. The divot boxes will serve no purpose so we removed them from the tee to offer a clean and less cluttered look to our course. You will still be able to fill your cart sand bottles from the sand boxes on holes 5, 8, 13, and 16.
RANGE GRASS TEE OPENING
We will be opening the range tee Friday the 4th of April. We close the tee during the dormant season for Bentgrass. High traffic negatively effects the turf wen it doesn't have a chance to recover through seed germination and lateral growth.
We also close the grass tee surface when it is too wet. When the ground is soft traffic is compounded. We close the tee to reduce compaction and unacceptable divot damage that happens with wet conditions.
Thank you for your commitment to making Staley Farms great.
We also close the grass tee surface when it is too wet. When the ground is soft traffic is compounded. We close the tee to reduce compaction and unacceptable divot damage that happens with wet conditions.
Thank you for your commitment to making Staley Farms great.
WHY DO WE AERATE GREENS?
It's a perfect, sunny morning and you've just reached the first green in regulation. You feel great and you know you're within birdie range. Then, you see them, those little holes in the green. Arrrgh! They've just aerified the course, and it's going to ruin your round, right?
Well, maybe not. Consider the fact that PGA Tour legend Tom Watson shot a sizzling record 58 at his then-home course, Kansas City Country Club, just days after the greens had been aerified.
Consider also that aerification is merely a short-term disruption that has long-term benefits for the course. When you see them, remember that without those little holes, the greens would eventually die.
Like so many things, the quality of a good putting green is more than skin deep. In fact, the condition of a green has a lot to do with what goes on below the surface. In order to keep grass growing at less than 1/8" you have to have deep, healthy roots. Good roots demand oxygen. In good soil, they get the oxygen from tiny pockets of air trapped between soil and sand particles.
Over time, the traffic from golfers' feet (as well as heavy mowing equipment) tends to compact the soil under the putting green - particularly when the soil contains a lot of clay. When soil becomes compacted, the air pockets on which the roots depend are crushed, and the roots are essentially left gasping for air. Without oxygen, the grass plants will wither and die.
Aerification is a mechanical process that creates more air space in the soil and promotes deeper rooting, thus helping the grass plants stay healthy. In most cases, it's done by removing 1/2-inch cores (those plugs you sometimes see near a green or in fairways). The spaces are then filled with sand "topdressing" that helps the soil retain air space and makes it easier for roots to grow downward.
Consider also that aerification is merely a short-term disruption that has long-term benefits for the course. When you see them, remember that without those little holes, the greens would eventually die.
Like so many things, the quality of a good putting green is more than skin deep. In fact, the condition of a green has a lot to do with what goes on below the surface. In order to keep grass growing at less than 1/8" you have to have deep, healthy roots. Good roots demand oxygen. In good soil, they get the oxygen from tiny pockets of air trapped between soil and sand particles.
Over time, the traffic from golfers' feet (as well as heavy mowing equipment) tends to compact the soil under the putting green - particularly when the soil contains a lot of clay. When soil becomes compacted, the air pockets on which the roots depend are crushed, and the roots are essentially left gasping for air. Without oxygen, the grass plants will wither and die.
Aerification is a mechanical process that creates more air space in the soil and promotes deeper rooting, thus helping the grass plants stay healthy. In most cases, it's done by removing 1/2-inch cores (those plugs you sometimes see near a green or in fairways). The spaces are then filled with sand "topdressing" that helps the soil retain air space and makes it easier for roots to grow downward.
Other aerification techniques use machines with "tines" or knives that simply poke holes through the soil profile. A newer technique even uses ultra high-pressure water that's injected through the soil profile to create small holes that relieve some compaction but heal quickly.
The bottom line is that aerification is a necessary practice. But before you curse the superintendent for ruining your day, just think of Tom Watson.
This article is credited to the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America website.
At Staley my first observation of the putting surface I noted the soft surface. This is likely a result of higher organic content in the top 4" of the root zone. We have already enlisted the services of ISTRC to help us determine the physical properties of our root zone. We will ultimately make our aeration master plan after the ISTRC report is completed. ISTRC tests the majority of the top 100 golf courses in the country providing sound recommendations resulting in superb playing surfaces. We will base our aeration practices on science and you will see the positive results each time we aerate the greens. This spring we will pull 1/2" hollow tines on very close spacing. We are using top of the line aeration equipment to ensure a high quality result. We will fill the holes with sand and then we will roll the greens multiple times to smooth the surface. You should be putting high quality greens within 10 days of the aeration process. We are scheduled to aerate greens on April 6th and 7th.
Thank you for your cooperation. Aeration will play a huge part in our goal of providing the best putting surfaces in the city.
Brent
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