Lake CPR For Your Golf Course

Emergency –You have a big tournament coming up and want your lakes to look especially good for the players and media.  Half of your golf course water features look fine but half are green with algae. Yet, you treated them each exactly the same all summer.  This, of course, is precisely the problem.  None of them have identical eco-systems and this reliable quirk of Mother Nature is the biggest reason to seek the help of a specialist. Learning the individual needs of each water feature is a complex and lengthy process for the non-professional. Employing guesswork remedies will only worsen the problems.  This article will outline both the quick-fix and long-term remedies that specialists use to save the aquatic health of your golf course. 

PROBLEMS

Water is innocent, but its stowaways are not. Organisms build up on the bottom and sides of a water feature.  When they die, they become nutrients for other aquatic organisms.  They create a self-perpetuating problem unless you step in and break the chain.  Phosphates, nitrogen, organic material, oils and minute plant life are the villains. 

Some of your troubles are caused by over-watering fertilized turf that surround your ponds, streams and lakes.  Fertilizer is loaded with nutrients that serve as a growth stimulator for weeds and algae.  In essence, you are nurturing the very problems you are trying to solve.  Grass clippings pose another serious problem when dumped into the water feature.  The tips of grass clippings contain the highest level of nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus) of the entire grass stem.  Emptying these clippings into a body of water makes “today’s grass clippings tomorrow’s algae bloom.”   Once again, you have merely fed your own weed and algae invasion.  

The debris from tree leaves is another major source of trouble, adding nutrients that promote algae growth.  Then there is the issue of reclaimed water, which is an entirely different (and extensive subject) to broach.  Golf Course Superintendents already know the problems inherent to the use of reclaimed water due to the nutrient load and the high salt content.   The color is off, the algae is harder to control and the odor is difficult to manage.

When your water feature gets hit with an unsightly pea soup green appearance or starts to emit an odor, the answer won’t be a single fix-all.  It will be a package of solutions working together to resolve the problem.  Bottom line, an aquatic problem can’t be fixed by making one change and moving on.

Related: Water Hazard: Reimage. Reinvent. Rebuild.

SOLUTIONS

No one solution works all by itself, but natural balance is key.  The best way to restore that balance is provide adequate circulation, manage nutrient levels, ensure adequate aeration and adjust suspended solids and organic content with equipment and registered chemicals.  The trick is not to create a new problem by overloading one side of the equation.   We can manipulate acidity and alkalinity by adding products to ensure the additives effectively block contaminants.  We can run filters and periodically remove visible contaminants from the bottom.  We can block sunlight to organisms that use sunlight and chlorophyll to grow.   

Keep filters and filter media clean.  Circulate water in a volume and frequency that permits sufficient filtration and oxygenation. Filters only work when the pump is on, therefore, in a perfect world the pumps should run 24/7 but in this time of energy conservation, the pump should be activated at least twelve hours daily so the filter can do its job and the water does not become stagnant. 

Design has a significant influence on weed problems.  Depth is important and the shape of a feature greatly affects circulation and filtration.  Debris from trees, fertilized turf and ornamentals are big factors in the introduction and increased growth of aquatic weeds and algae.   A good aerator, properly placed, will keep water circulating and recharge water with oxygen.  However, realize that aerators and fountains alone will not eliminate contamination.

Dyes block some of the sun from hitting the algae and aquatic plants which need sunlight to grow.

Dyes also offer an emergency fix by covering a multitude of sins for tomorrow’s tournament.

There are dyes available now that are safe for water, waterfowl, fish and other living organisms.

In summary, please bear in mind that much more of the earth is covered in water than land, yet we often behave like land is the only thing that counts.  We already know there is an earth filled with water that matters a great deal to us, we just need to give it the respect it is due. Don’t assume that one thing can resolve all problems; after all, this is nature with which we are dealing.  You can have it all, if you delegate lake and pond management to a knowledgeable professional.  Keep in mind they aren’t cleaning pools, they are attempting to preserve and maintain the delicate balance between the natural aquatic organisms and the desired aesthetics of the highly visible bodies of water within your golf course.  This is an aquatic professional’s specialty and the reason his/her business exists. 

Keep your water feature healthy.  Call a professional.

The author, Patrick Simmsgeiger, is President of DWI.  He is a second-generation specialist in the field.  His company provides aquatic maintenance services and manufactures products that control algae, clean, clarify and beautify aquatic environments.