April 1, 2015 Golf Course Update

Golf Course Update                                                                                                                 April 1, 2015

 

                There has not been a significant amount of melting since the last update. The golf course has several hole that still have an 80% snow cover. The golf and grounds crew has cleared all the greens of snow and ice and after examining the 10 greens that we do not put turf covers on and there are some signs of winter injury on several of those greens, (1, 6, 8, & 18). We are hoping that once the soil temperatures warm that the damaged areas will grow out of the injury. The damaged areas will be aerified and seeded. The damaged areas will be put on a recovery program which will include weekly foliar fertilization and light topdressing. The areas affected will be covered with turf covers and if necessary those greens may remain closed until the turf has recovered enough to survive foot traffic. The remaining greens that have covers on them will be examined next week to assess the health of the turf.

There are early indications that some areas of our fairway turf also has winter injury. Pockets of ice that formed in early January and have been coved with snow for the last 60 plus days has deprived the turf of the necessary oxygen to survive. Aerification and seeding will also be performed on the damaged areas.

The practice tee mat system has also sustained some damage from the winter winds, snow and ice. The supporting structure for the mats has shifted and several mats have been moved from the structure. Presently the mats are still under snow and ice. The company that installed the mat system has been notified and we are on their schedule to fix the problem as soon as the snow and ice are melted and the ground is workable.

Unfortunately with the amount of snow still present on the course it will be some time before we can safely open the course for play. Trying to predict an opening date is difficult, but I am guessing sometime in the third week of April. The weather will obviously be the determining factor if that date is viable.

I will continue to keep you updated on the changing conditions.

Peter Rappoccio, CGCS

Course Update

 

 

Spring 2015 Golf Course Update:

 

The seasonal temperatures this past week has begun to melt the heavy snow cover on the course.  The Golf and Grounds crew has been able to open some roads around the course to get to the greens that do not have covers on them and do an assessment of the conditions under the snow. Several greens have a one to three inch ice layer on them and those green had the snow removed so the warmer temps could help melt the ice. Presently greens 3, 6, 8, 1, 9, 10, 12, 16, 18, and the practice green have been cleared of snow.  The ice levels on greens 3, 6, 18 & half of 12 are completely gone and we are hoping within the next week the remaining greens that were cleared will also be devoid of any ice.

The green surfaces with the exception of #6 look ok. There are several areas on #6 that are discolored and appear damaged. We removed plugs from those areas and have them inside at the maintenance facility trying to “push” the turf out of the winter dormancy to assess any damage. When temperatures rise and the turf comes out of dormancy a better assessment can be made.

The greens with covers appear to be ice free under the covers so at this time we have decided to let Mother Nature do her thing and melt the snow off the covers.

When the snow does melt off,  the turf will be super saturated and will need several days under normal temps to firm up to be safe to walk on without doing damage to the grass plants and soil structure. The 2.5 feet of snow we have had equates to 605,000 cubic yards of snow on the acreage we maintain at the club. That is a lot of frozen water

I would say at this time, our normal opening date of the first week of April is definitely in jeopardy.

I will continue to keep you updated during the next few weeks.

Peter

FROM JANUARY USGA RECORD

What Do You Do All Winter?

By Dave Oatis, regional director, Northeast Region
January 20, 2015


Just about every year, turf professionals everywhere get the same question: “what do you do in the winter?” The answer to this question may surprise you. Understandably, golfers sometimes assume that winter is “kick back time” for golf course superintendents. After all, not much golf is being played in the northern half of the country. However, nothing could be further from the truth. Winter in the northern half of the country usually brings a change of schedule – and some relief – from the day-to-day grind of the golf season, but there still is much work to be done. Often, winter  is “project time,” allowing superintendents to focus more resources on accomplishing bigger, more disruptive projects at a time when grass doesn’t require mowing and golfers won’t be bothered. Tree work, drainage work, bunker construction, and myriad other projects all can be done in the late fall and winter – provided the weather cooperates. When the weather doesn’t cooperate, there may also be snow to plow and parking lots and sidewalks to treat. Just as it does in the summer, the weather presents its own set of challenges during winter and outside work on the course can be a battle against the elements. Additionally, course accessories like ball washers, tee markers, and benches need to be cleaned and painted, future projects planned, equipment maintained, etc.
In addition to on-course projects, several opportunities for continuing education take place during winter. The turfgrass management profession is dynamic and the development of new products, techniques and research constantly occurs. Therefore, it is important to continually learn about new advancements within the industry. The USGA annually funds turfgrass research projects at universities across the nation. The information developed from research is published and presented at turf conferences and meetings, so attendance is critical. There are many education opportunities during the year, but the winter turf conferences are among the most important for turf professionals. Furthermore, educational conferences provide time to obtain certification credits and allow superintendents to network.
Hopefully you get the idea; a superintendent’s work is never done. So, while the occasional winter vacation may take place, winter still is definitely not “kick back time” for golf course superintendents. Winter means changing schedules and shifting priorities while always striving to improve professionally so the job can be done more effectively.

Greens Aerification

 

Greens Aerifier at work

Aerification Schedule for the Fall

Fairway Aerification

Greens Aerification

Fairway topdressing

Tee aerification: September 2 & 3
Fairway aerification and topdressing: September 4,8,9,10,11
Greens aerification: September 29,30
Practice tee aerification: September 15th

Aerification of the walkways and rough areas will take place after the fairway aerification is completed. The schedule is subject to weather and may be adjusted if necessary.

USGA visit

Silver Spring Club President Bette Spielman and USGA Senior Agronomist Jim Skorulski prepare to tour the course for Silver Spring's annual USGA Turf Advisory visit.
During this years tour, all the playing surfaces, and the programs we have in place for those areas, were examined for promoting and sustaining playability and plant  health. Jim also took a close look at all the new construction areas from last fall focusing on root development and soil structure.
Other areas that were examined during the visit were our practice tee, tree management program, and the areas of proposed new construction for our future Master Plan work,
Jim travels  throughout the Northeast during the growing season visiting over 100 courses, as well as being part of the USGA prep for all their championships.  He is a valuable resource to tap with questions on turf research and plant health as well as golf design.

Air fracturing Soils

The Air2G2 machine was developed to help turf managers keep their fine turf healthy and green. The machine will send inject compressed air into soils to a depth of up to 12 inches. The injected air will fracture the soils providing channels for nutrient and water to move throughout the soil as well as fresh air channels for root growth.The air exchange will also push harmful CO2 from the soil structure.