Preperations for Course Closure

The golf season is coming to a close for the 2014 season and the maintenance staff will soon start preparing the course for winter.  After the hellacious winter of last year, Meadowbrook will be "put to bed" a bit differently this time around.  The main area of focus will be the greens, and the process is detailed in the list below.

1. Raising the Height of Cut- Greens have been raised from their original .120" to .180".  Turf with higher canopies seem to be able to fend off ice and winterkill damage better. 
2. Fungicide Applications- Pink and Gray Snow Mold are the prevalent diseases during this time of year, actually being able to thrive under snow cover.  Fungicide applications are made as late as possible to ensure the longest residual protection. 
3. Late Fall Aerification/Heavy Sand Topdressing- This isn't the most common of practices but we've seen excellent results in terms of amount of sand that can be applied and its winterkill prevention properties.  The staff buries the greens under approximately .20" of sand and then solid tine the surface.  A layer still exists after the aerficiation and channels of pure sand are now present to remove water away from the surface in the event of a mid-winter thaw. 
4. Potassium Application- Potassium strengthens cell walls and hardens off the plant before winter.  An application of 1lbs of K/M has been made on the green surfaces. 
5. Impermeable Winter Covers- A combination of bubble wrap and heavy duty impermeable tarps are used on 8 of the greens most prone to winter damage here at the club.  These have been almost bulletproof until last winter, when damage did occur. 
6. Evergreen Covers- The staff acquired these in the spring to aid in the recovery of the greens.  We now intend to use them as another form of winter protection on greens without the impermeable covers on them. 

A large portion of the winterkill from last season was due to an excessive amount of shade on the greens from surrounding trees.  The worst trees have been removed as the members may have noticed, however there are still shade issues that exist and the staff will be monitoring these areas closely over the winter months for ice formation and heavy snow layers. 

The tees will receive a similar treatment in terms of topdressing and aerification, a heavy layer followed with solid tining.  Snow mold applications are made on all low mowed turf (i.e. tees and fairways).  The pictures below show some of the processes.  We wish the membership a happy holiday season and to keep their fingers crossed for a milder winter.

Pink Snow Mold

3rd Green Impermeable Cover