First Cut on Greens

Yesterday the greens were mowed for the first time this season. There is nothing like fresh smell of cut grass and after a long 5 month absence from cutting turf. Before greens could be cut they also had to be cleared of debris, so back-pack blowers were used to clean the surface. This was followed by the task of rolling the greens. Due to the soil heaving from frost we want to make sure the surface is smooth before we put the first cut on the greens. Typically the first cut is set higher than normal and as we progress into the season and as the turf begins to grow we will slowly lower the height of cut.

The practice range will open today at 11:00am and the golf course will open on Thursday at 11:00am. Golfers will required to hit form the mats for the first couple of weeks at the range. We avoid hitting off the turf until soil and air temperatures are warm enough to germinate seed so we can begin the healing process in the divots created by the players.

We are all looking forward to another GREAT season here at The Minikahda Club

Irrigation System Up and Running

We will soon be coming to and end to the month of March and for the first time since 1878 the Minneapolis/St.Paul area will have received not even a trace of snowfall. This is quite unusual since March is typically one of the snowiest months of the year for us. At this point in the season the lack of snow and rain as well as the loss of frost in the ground has translated into us not only thinking about pressurizing the irrigation system, but actually doing it as well as breaking one of Rick Krause's (Irrigation tech) first rules, never pressurize on a Friday.

March 28th is extremely early for us to be even considering pressurizing the system let alone watering greens. But one thing that needs to be considered is the type of cover that we use. We are placing a plastic impermeable covers on the greens to not allow water to make contact with the turf throughout the winter. Water forms ice and ice kills poa. So while the covers are accomplishing their goal of protecting the turf from winter damage, unfortunately in the spring when the snow melted and we received .50" of rain, that free water is not making it's way into the subsurface of our greens. Thus in a during a dry spring season such as this one, with no rain or snow fall, our greens are left in a difficult situation with little to no moisture. During a typical spring we usually begin to utilize our irrigation system around the 17th of April. By that time we have had time to bring in some labor, clean the golf course and usually have the course open for play. Thank goodness we checked a few greens last week, since this weather is so unusual it is very easy to get caught off guard and not realize how much the plants are in need of water, at least the poa annua plants that is.

Not Surprised, but Relieved

All 19 green covers have been removed as of today. Based on the mild weather conditions this winter and the continual snow cover that we experienced I was not surprised to see our greens emerge from winter is this good of condition. But based on the history of passed years when we always seem to have some damage from one degree to another, it is such as relief to see virtually no damage on any of the greens. Typically I am an optimist when it comes to the turf, I want to give it the benefit of the doubt and feel that it will survive even the most adverse conditions, let's face it, it wants to survive, but when poa annua is the dominant species on the greens it is easy to lose faith in it's ability to survive.

There are only two greens where the poa annua looks a little funky and that is on the back of the 5th green and on the back of the 7th green. The poa appears to have a wilted droughty look, but from what I can tell the crowns of the plants appear to be healthy. The color of the green is definitely green and some of that color will fade and will come back as soon as the plants begin to grow. If our mild temperatures continue it won't too long before we might begin to see some growth from the plants.

A date has not been set for opening. We have great deal of clean-up on the course and a lot of work needs to be completed before we are ready to stick the flags in the green. It's only March 23rd (which is the earliest the course has ever opened, back in 1998) and one just never knows what Mother Nature has in store for us from year-to-year, much less from day-to-day.

The year of Gray Snow Mold

A view of the course from the 9th green. The finer turf areas are absolutely perfect.
Ever wonder what a Turfgrass Pathologist dreams about at night? This might come close.
Gray Snow Mold covering the 3rd green bank. Looks like a heavy frost.
Heavy Gray Snow Mold damage mixed in with some Vole damage. Not a pleasant sight, but it will recover after a good raking and when warmer temperatures arrive and the turf begins to grow.


Conditions were perfect this year for the development of Gray snow mold. Thankfully that damage has been limited to the rough. Green and tee banks as well as bunker faces and large areas in the general rough is where this disease took hold. Following a good raking and some warm temperatures these areas will come back. In the mean time the golfers will have to tolerate the look of brown turf.

Turf on the greens, tees and fairways is in great condition. We have yet to remove the covers, but from what we have seen from peeking under them the turf looks to be in great condition. Not having to deal with damage to our finer turf areas is a blessing and it will allow us to focus on other areas of the golf course this year.

Spring Thaw-4th Fairway

Some additional video taken on Tuesday this past week.

Inside Winter Maintenance Continues

We still have a few weeks to complete some much needed work inside the facility. Johnny has been workinga at repainting the walls in the paint room as well as all the cabinents. A fresh new look has been needed for quite some time. Last week Ryan and Johnny also re-epoxyed the maintenance shop floor. We had a company do this a few years ago. The floor has not held up as good as I expected it would. After the first time the company had to redo their work and now we are continuing to touch it up each year. This year we decided to repaint the entire surface.

After the MGCSA seminar last week on Sustainablity, Nick has beefed up our efforts to be better at recycling. New trash cans with clearer labels. There better be less confusion about where to place what in what trash can now.

These improvements, though small, make a big difference in the overall appearance of the facility and as we all know the little things make a BIG difference.

Spring Thaw-5th Fairway

Here is some video I shot this past week. Since the video wa taken we have lost even more snow.

Skeet Shooting-Cookout Shootout

2010 Cookout Shootout Champion Pat Smith

Second Place-Max Smith

Shooters- Alex Knopick, Bob Paulson, John Paulson, Pat Smith and Max Smith

Enjoying some camaraderie and a few burgers and brats.

The annual Cookout Shootout competition was held this past weekend. There were a total of 35 rounds shot between 12 shooters. This year the competition came down to two individuals from the same household. Pat Smith, last years Skeet Champion, this year edged out his son Max. Pat shot a 45 out of a possible 50 and Max delivered with a solid score of 42. Congratulations to the Father/Son duo. I know they have a friendly rivalry between them so you can be sure that Pat is making sure Max still knows who the Big Dog is in the family.

Staff outing to Target Field

Removing snow from the field

Ryan Parris, Jeff Johnson, Nick Folk, Head Groundskeeper Larry Divito, Ken Diethert, Johnny Jarosz, and Rick Krause.

Sweet, some Minnesota State Fair staples will be at Target Field!

This is going to be a great place to finally watch the Twins play baseball outside.

The Minikahda Club, and myself included, are blessed with an outstanding full-time staff here in the Grounds Department. Each winter we take part of a day to tour golf related facilities in our area. In past years we have toured the Toro Cooperate Headquarters, Turfco Manufacturing, MTI our Toro distributor as well as mixed in some fun outings such as go-cart racing and simulated Nascar racing and of course lunch is always a critical aspect of the day. This year we had the opportunity to tour the new Twins outdoor ballpark, Target Field.

Larry Divito, Head Groundskeeper, was generous enough to take some time out of his busy schedule to show us around the facility. I think the biggest thrill for all of us was walking on the field and seeing the view from the players perspective. Even if you are not a baseball fan, and many on our staff are not, they really enjoyed getting a first hand look at this awesome ballpark. Now we are ready for the Boys of Summer to start playing some B ball here in Minnesota.

Target Field

The snow might not be all gone but us Turfheads here at Minikahda don't care, today we are headed to Target Field to get a tour of the facilities from Head Groundskeeper, Larry Divito. When I spoke with Larry on the phone he said, "sorry I won't be able to get you access to the clubhouse." Clubhouse? We don't care about the clubhouse, we are Turfheads for gosh sakes, we want to see the behinds the scenes actions. We want to see what Larry and his team are doing to prepare for the season, we want to see some equipment and yes hopefully walk around in the dugout. I am so excited to be taking my staff on this little adventure today and I know they are as well.

This will be one of those personal tours that not many people get will ever get the opportunity to take and I am truely thankful that Larry has agreed to take time out of his day to show us around. "We're gonna win Twins we're gonna score..."

Sustainability

This week the MGCSA is presenting our annual March Mega Seminars. On Wednesday I will be sitting on a panel discussing the sustainability of golf turf management with five of my peers. This should be an interesting topic to discuss in front of about 100 other turf managers. Not only do I hope to share my experiences but I know I will learn from the other speakers as to what it is going to take to have a more sustainable turf environment.