Greens Aeration

The USGA continues to educate the golfing public on maintenance practices and turfgrass management through their Green Section. Here is an excellent video clip on the importance of aerification. It is important to understand that every golf course varies with their approach to aerification. In Vail, our mountain climate can drastically effect how plants respond to this critical maintenance practice. Copy and paste the following address to your browser to view this short video. 

http://www.usga.org/turf/articles/video/aeration.asx

winter reading

Clink on the title "winter reading" for a link to a USGA article that discusses snow removal from putting greens after prolonged cover.

Landscapes Unlimited

Last week Tom and Greg from Landscapes Unlimited came to Vail for a couple of days to research and tie up some loose ends to get the project off the ground. We discussed the construction of the pump building, permitting, licensing and other odds and ends of the installation. We met with Town of Vail officials concerning the irrigation project and to keep them updated. It was a very productive couple of days and everything is on schedule.

Clearing Greens

Friday, we began clearing greens to prepare for the upcoming golf season. With the amount of snowfall and elk traffic through the winter, we need to clear the greens of snow and ice. After almost 3 months of cover, the turfgrass plants need to be free of ice to prevent any damage. The staff will continue to clear the greens through the month of March, particularly on warm and sunny days to promote melting .

Under 3 feet!

Today I measured 35 inches of snow for the golf course. It's not such a great sign for skiers where the conditions are a bit icy. However the days have been real nice lately and we are getting some decent melting. The forecast is looking good for new snow fall this weekend. 

Staffing so far is working out nicely with only a few spots left for the maintenance crew this year. We have a number of returning employees and we just finalized our fourth intern for 2009. With the renovation on the horizon, it creates a fantastic learning opportunity for students.