Summer Solstice: Preparation for the Season Ahead

The summer solstice arrived at 4:24 this morning, and today in Southwest Florida, we will receive approximately 13 hours and 48 minutes of sunlight.

For golf course superintendents managing warm-season turfgrass, that is significant.

While the winter solstice remains the most critical agronomic date of the year, the summer solstice provides the conditions that help us prepare for it. In winter, we are managing bermudagrass during the most limiting period of the year. Day length is short, sun angles are low, air and soil temperatures decline, and turfgrass growth slows dramatically. During that period, our focus is preservation. We are trying to maintain healthy playing surfaces through the busiest part of the golf season while the turfgrass has the least ability to recover.

Summer provides the opportunity to prepare for that challenge.

The summer solstice marks the longest day of the year. The sun is higher in the sky, light intensity is greater, air and soil temperatures are consistently warm, and in Southwest Florida, summer rainfall typically becomes more frequent. These are the conditions warm-season turfgrass needs to flourish.

At Olde Florida Golf Club, our playing surfaces are primarily bermudagrass, a warm-season turfgrass species that responds best when sunlight, warmth, moisture, air, and nutrients are available in balance. During the summer months, the plant has the energy to grow, recover, and respond to the cultural practices necessary to build long-term turfgrass health.

This is why our summer work is so important.

Aerification, topdressing, verticutting, and other cultural practices are not performed simply because the calendar says it is summer or because member play is traditionally lighter. They are performed because this is the period when the turfgrass plant has the greatest ability to recover from disruption and benefit from the work.

These practices allow us to relieve compaction, manage organic matter, improve water movement, strengthen rooting, smooth and firm playing surfaces, and improve overall plant health. In many ways, the quality and resilience of the golf course during the winter season is directly connected to the work completed during the summer.

Winter is about survival.

Summer is about preparation.

That does not mean summer is without challenges. Heat, humidity, disease pressure, heavy rainfall, saturated soils, weeds, and intense thunderstorms are all part of managing turfgrass in Southwest Florida. However, from a growth and recovery standpoint, summer provides the environmental support we need to make meaningful improvements.

For my staff and me, the stress level is different in the summer. In many ways, it is reduced because the grass is actively growing and has a much greater ability to recover. At the same time, the workload increases significantly. The days are longer, the temperatures are higher, and the physical exertion required from the team is greater. Summer may be an easier time for the turfgrass plant to grow, but it is not an easier time for the staff doing the work.

For golfers, summer cultural practices can be inconvenient. They may temporarily affect appearance, smoothness, firmness, or playability. However, that temporary disruption is necessary. The work being performed now is an investment in the health, quality, and consistency of the golf course during the winter golf season.

The goal of this summer work is not only to improve turfgrass health, but to provide the best possible playing conditions when member activity is at its highest.

The summer solstice is a reminder that sunlight drives everything.

As superintendents, we can manage irrigation, fertility, mowing, traffic, drainage, and cultural practices, but we cannot create sunlight. When nature provides its longest days, warmest growing conditions, and seasonal rainfall, we must take advantage of that window.

The work completed during the summer helps the golf course flourish now, but more importantly, it prepares the turfgrass to remain healthy, resilient, and capable of performing during the peak golf season.

Summer Work, Winter Results

After a successful winter golf season, we are entering the summer with a strong turfgrass foundation, which means it is once again time for cultural practices.

Every year brings its own weather nuances, but the work we complete during the slower summer months is a key reason the golf course consistently produces excellent winter playing conditions. While this work creates some short-term disruption, it is essential to long-term turf health, consistency, and playability.

We will continue to rely on our tried-and-true approach: aerification, vertical mowing, and topdressing. By performing these practices early in the summer, we take advantage of long days, abundant sunlight, and the active growth of our warm-season bermudagrass. It also allows us to stay ahead of the cloudy, rainy weather patterns that often become more frequent later in the summer, as well as the increased potential for severe weather.

Healthy turfgrass needs sunlight, water, nutrients, and air. During the summer, much of our focus is on increasing air movement within the soil profile. Aerification, vertical mowing, and topdressing help dilute organic matter, improve air space, increase water infiltration, and encourage stronger rooting.

As in past years, we have already completed our first Drill and Fill process on the greens, which took place May 26–28. This process uses a one-inch drill bit to penetrate 10 inches deep into the greens profile on a 7-by-7-inch pattern. This year, we incorporated more than 110 tons of sand into the greens profile. We followed that work with core aeration and topdressing.

Fairways have also been topdressed. During our first closed week, 880 tons of sand were spread evenly across 26 acres of fairways. This practice continues to improve surface firmness, drainage, turf density, and overall playability.

In addition to our five week-long closures, the golf course remains closed each Monday from May through October so we can complete important single-day cultural practices. For example, tees were aerified on May 18 using the same thorough approach we apply to the greens.

As part of our ongoing shoreline stabilization efforts, we have also expanded the ShoreSox Erosion Control System. In 2021, we installed the system around the greens on holes 1 and 5. In 2025, we reclaimed more than 10 feet of shoreline along the 150-foot lake bank adjacent to the 2nd green. This summer, we increased those efforts by installing ShoreSox along 850 linear feet of lake banks. During our first closed week, we regained approximately 8 to 10 feet of shoreline around the green complexes on holes 10, 14, and 16. These efforts are important not only for aesthetics, but also for protecting valuable golf course infrastructure and preserving the long-term integrity of the property.

Although these practices require patience, they are a major reason the golf course remains healthy, consistent, and enjoyable throughout the year. The work we complete now directly supports the conditions our members expect and enjoy during the winter golf season.

Finally, for those who follow my social media, you are aware that in addition to a wonderful winter golf season, we once again enjoyed a very active “birding season.”

Our three Purple Martin structures were bursting at the seams with fledglings, and two of our Eastern Screech Owl boxes were active as well. “Ginger,” who resides behind the No. 5 green, successfully fledged three owls, while “Sleepy,” who spends time in the box at the driving range, also produced three screech owls this year.

It was another rewarding reminder that the golf course is not only a place for great golf, but also an important habitat for wildlife.