Spring Transition

Temperatures are rising, and the wind has been blowing. I am now looking below the surface of the soil for activity that is going to help the Bermuda grass come back to life. Warmer soil temperatures and increased irrigation will help with this, but there are many more steps involved in a successful transition.

Spring transition is the process of removing winter or "cool season" ryegrass and promoting the growth of the Bermuda or "warm season" turf. There are many debated methods of removing ryegrass that have been discussed throughout the agronomy industry. There are superintendents in the industry who hang on to the ryegrass as long as possible and others who want to get rid of it as soon as they can. I tend to lean more toward the second approach. My reason and my belief is that if we have healthy Bermuda grass going into overseed, not only will we have a nice "bed" for the ryegrass to germinate, we will have a successful transition the next year. This is all in a perfect world, of course.

The problem with removing perennial ryegrass is just that. It IS perennial, meaning it has a dormancy period, and if left alone will come back year after year. This is best described in what we see in the rough areas outside of the normal overseed.

Because of the warmer weather last month, along with the windy conditions, some areas appear to be brown. This happens when ryegrass gets stressed; its roots shrink and go into a defensive mode. We were 20 degrees above normal for the month of March. We typically don't see 95 degrees until well into April or May. Irrigation run times have been, adjusted and as it continues to warm, the Bermuda will "green up". This is a yearly process that we encourage to ensure a better transition from the cool season grass back to warm season for the summer months.

Charles Keys

Golf Course Superintendent

Life Line Screening Offers Valuable Tests

On Wednesday, July 29, Life Line Screening will be here at IronOaks offering five screenings that scan for potential health problems related to:

1) Blocked carotid arteries, a leading cause of stroke

2) Abdominal aortic aneurysms, which can lead to a ruptured aorta

3) Hardening of the arteries in the legs, a strong predictor of heart disease

4) Atrial fibrillation or irregular heart beat, which is closely tied to stroke risk

5) Bone density screening, for men and women, used to assess their risk of osteoporosis.

If interested in getting screened, call 1-888-653-6450 to schedule your appointment.

Life Line Screening will also be offering the Medicare Annual Wellness Visit which is FREE to QUALIFIED Medicare beneficiaries (no co-pay if you have Medicare Part B). This is not a physical, but a personal wellness consultation designed to help you and your doctor keep you healthy, safe and independent for a long time. Medicare is billed for this visit. Pre-registration is required. CALL 1-866-579-5069 to schedule your Annual Wellness Visit.

Sun Lakes Fly Fishing Club

On April 11, 2015, the Sun Lakes Fly Fishing Club (SLFFC) hosted an outing for disabled veterans from Project Healing Waters at the East Lake in Cottonwood. Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing, Inc.™ is dedicated to the physical and emotional rehabilitation of disabled, active military service personnel and disabled veterans, through fly fishing and associated activities, including education and fly fishing outings. Nearly all veterans landed multiple fish and everyone had an outstanding time. Veterans enjoyed donuts and coffee. After more than 3 hours of fishing, the veterans and volunteers from Healing Waters, enjoyed a lunch sponsored by SLFFC at the Cottonwood Restaurant.

On Saturday, May2, 2015, the SLFFC will be hosting veterans at the East Lake in Ironwood from 8:00 am to 11:30 am. IronOak's General Manager, Faye Stone, is providing breakfast burritos for the veterans, courtesy of IronOaks. When the fishing is done, the veterans will enjoy lunch at one of the IronOaks restaurants. An anonymous Oakwood resident is paying the majority of the cost and SLFFC is paying the balance. Arrangements for lunch are being handled by Danielle Bowls, IronOaks Banquet Sales Manager.

In the picture, it looks like I'm telling one of the veterans how big the fish was that got away. Of course, all fly fishermen have many stories about the big ones that got away. Actually, I was explaining how much line he needed to strip in a woolly bugger fly.  

During our outing at Cottonwood, several residents stopped by to say hello and one resident dropped off 3 cases of ice cold soft drinks for the veterans. I really encourage our residents to do the same. If you or your group would like to sponsor lunch for the veterans at one of our outings, please contact me.

Fish On! Fish On!

George Abernathy

480-521-1060

Apachescout@gmail.com 

Por Favor, 

Come la comida, es muy bueno!!!! 

Sunsets at Oakwood 

Beef or Chicken Fajitas $8.00 

Marinated beef skirt steak, with rice, beans, flour tortillas with shredded cheese, salsa and sour cream. 

or

                  Grilled chicken breast with rice, beans, flour tortillas, shredded cheese, salsa