Course Update
April 9,
2014.
As the snow
and ice melts the damage left behind from the hardest winter I have seen in my
career is becoming evident. It's took 3 days to chip and clear off the ice and
snow on the greens but we finally have the covers off. Many courses across the Province managing Poa
Annua on their greens have suffered significant winter damage. We also have
sustained some level of damage on all but 6 of our greens.
It is still
too early to distinguish between tissue and crown damage at this point in time.
Rain and warmer temperature expected over the next week will encourage growth
and help us better differentiate between the two. Tissue damage will grow out
quickly, crown damage means the plant is dead. It seems no matter the approach
taken to manage ice over the winter the outcome was inevitable speaking with my
peers.
The ice caused
more damage to our trees than we had first thought. It was difficult to see all
the debris until the melt over the past week. Clean up will be a long process
but the greens will require that time to heal. Our staff is ready for the
challenge and eager to start.
So where do we
go from here? Staff have returned back to work this week to begin course clean up
and make preparations for opening. The health of the greens will dictate
opening which is still some time away. We will take it week by week. We will
encourage growth on the greens by reapplying covers, incorporating a specific
nutrient program which works better in cooler weather stimulating new growth
and over seeding the affected areas. It will take time. The biggest
contributing factor will be the weather, I figure Mother Nature owes us that
much.
I have uploaded
a few pictures on my Twitter account @mark_piccolo for members to see. We will
continue to keep everyone updated with the progress. If walking on the course
please avoid stepping on the greens, they are very soft and impressionable.
Avoid the tree lines as they’re many hanging limbs and we are concerned for
your safety.
Pictures to come!
Regards
Mark Piccolo
Golf Course
Superintendent
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