Reel to Reel

As I mentioned in my last post , the snow on the turf has been acting as an insulator and the change in ice conditions has been in our favor.  Another method to check on actual turf conditions is to analyze samples.  To take a closer look, we pulled a couple of turf plugs. All of the turf samples we have looked at thus far are looking good.  So far, everything looks as it should. drilling through ice on #1 green    turf on #1 green looks good   sample from #15 green is growing nicely inside We will continue to inspect samples and closely monitor turf conditions.  At this time, we will not be removing the snow from the greens.  A regional update from Keith Happ, an agronomist with the USGA, further addresses snow removal from greens:  http://www.usga.org/course_care/regional_updates/regional_reports/northcentral/Don’t-Over-React-–-Time-To-Consider-All-Options---February-2014/

Snow is an amazing insulating material.  Igloos are a great example of snow's insulating properties.  Even in howling winds at 40° below zero, a properly built igloo with a person inside is never colder than 19°F and can be as warm as 60°F when warmed by body heat alone. Snow is a great insulator because of its molecular structure.  When water freezes into ice crystals, air is trapped into its structure.  This trapped air makes for excellent insulation. So how does this pertain to the golf course this winter?  Solid ice cover over the turf for extended periods of time (45-120 days) can result in turf damage because the ice traps gasses below the surface and the turf has the potential of suffocating.  Over the last two weeks we have noticed a change in the ice conditions on the greens.  The layer of ice has become more porous.  This is good because porous ice allows for more gas exchange...

Fresh snow this week made for great pictures.  It is pretty difficult to maneuver around the golf course, but it sure is picturesque. #5 #2 #7 #9 #12 #13 #11 #5

With over 18" of snow on the ground, my thoughts have been concentrated on what the golf course is going to look like once all this snow starts to melt. Snow water equivalent is the amount of liquid water contained in snow.   The National Weather Service uses this information to help determine flood potential once thaws occur. I was curious on what the snow water equivalent of our snow was.  This morning, I removed 1 square foot of snow from #2 green and let it melt down.  The meltdown resulted in 1.96 gallons of water.  This is about what I expected due to the dry powdery consistency of the snow. The good news is that the snow water equivalent could be much higher than it is.  The bad news is that this will still be a huge amount of water to deal with.  Below are a few greens with their square footage and how much water we are going to potentially have to deal with on each. #2 green...

Another 3" of snow this morning has brought our February total to 7".  Myles and I walked around this morning inspecting greens.  Most of the greens have about 18" of snow cover over .25" to 1.5" of ice.  Typically ice on the greens is not desirable. The good news is the ice appears to be doing a good job insulating the turf from the bitter cold temperatures and is not a concern at this time.  We exposed an area in the center of #15 green that had previously been damaged in the winter of 2010.  The turf looks great thus far. #5 green covered in 18" of snow turf looks great on #15 green ice off of #15 green is about an 1" thick  

Over the last few months, we have taken delivery of new pieces of equipment.  As part of the club's capital expenditures this year, the Board of Directors approved the purchase of some new equipment.  I would like to thank the Board and all who were involved in approving our new equipment purchases this year. Many mowers and utility vehicles in the fleet were well past their life expectancy and had become quality liabilities.  These purchases will help us continue to produce a quality product that the membership desires and deserves.  These purchases were a large investment - my department appreciates and thanks the membership for their continued support.  The entire grounds staff is elated with the new additions and are excited to put them to good use.  A few of the new pieces can be seen below: rough mower utility vehicle and topdresser tee and collar mowers