Spring 2014 vs. Spring 2015

Our turf conditions this year are looking to be much healthier than last year coming out of winter. Last year's turf loss at golf courses in the Detroit area was due to solid ice formation that lasted over 75 days, essentially suffocating the turf. This winter we took a different approach for winter maintenance on greens by removing snow frequently to reduce ice formation during freeze/thaw cycles. Removing snow, even with its apparent benefits of reducing ice formation, is not a silver bullet. Turf grass can still be killed by other winter stresses.  

When removing snow in the winter, there can still be turf injury from extreme cold temperatures, desiccation of exposed turf to wind, or mechanical damage from equipment used to remove the snow. Removing snow through the winter is a hard decision and one that needs to be timed correctly for positive results.  With this said, our new program appears to have worked well for us this year. Below is a comparison photo taken 1 week apart from last year and this year.  We are continuing to clean the golf course up and are looking forward to welcoming members and guests back soon.

2 North on 3/25/2015

2 North on 4/3/2014