Another one in the books!

Another season in the books but so many more preparations for the long winter months will be continuing over the next few weeks. I would definitely say the most challenging part of our job here in the turf department is insuring that the golf course survives the winter. With that being said there is no silver bullet to guarantee that because ultimately we are at the mercy of the weather. However there are many strategies that we implement to increase the chances that the golf course successfully survives the winter, which is why this part of the season is so crucial. A few strategies that I believe to play key roles in the success of turf in a northern climate are late season fertilization, plant protection applications and the installation of impermeable turf covers on our greens. With all three of these strategies there is one constant theme that comes up every season no matter what and that's timing of application. Watching the weather, soil temperatures, past records (dates of applications) and the feeling in your gut are some of the things we use to help hit the timing on the mark.

The fall fertilization has been completed and was done when soil temperatures reached 55 - 60F. Just an FYI we have 3 wireless soil sensors in the ground here and they are located in 1 fairway, 18 green, and the middle putting green. Not only do they monitor temperature but soil moisture and salinity as well. By the end of the week I'm anticipating having the plant protection applications completed but as of now the greens and tees remain. As for the tarps it's all about forecasting but would anticipate them going down the week of November 25th, however that could be sooner. Once the tarps are down the final task is to put up all the fencing and signage to keep unwanted traffic off of some areas.

While we are waiting for the right moment to complete our winter preparations a couple of things that we will be working on are the annual deep tine aerification to the greens (completed this week), completing the renovation of 11 fairway sand trap, final grading of the landing area to the left of the cart path on 12, filling the remaining part of the ditch on 4, and hopefully installing drainage in 4 fairway. This of course is all weather permitting. The weather turning to the point in which that type of work can't be completed is the time when we start the never ending tree work. We have already started doing some of that on the frosty mornings but will continue with more when the snow is here to stay.

2013 was year for me in which I realized no matter what you do, mother nature rules but I have to believe without any of the strategies that we implement to survive winter the condition of the golf course would be so much worse. Thanks must go out to the membership for the constant support of our turf management plan and allowing us to implement it as best we see fit. The difficult start once again proved to me that I have a great team of dedicated and hard working individuals. The condition that the golf course was in would never be possible without their contributions so I say thank you to them. Success can be measured in many ways but I like to use improvement as a measuring stick. I think we can confidently say that the product produced this season was better than the last even with that difficult start that required so much time. I look forward to the challenge of 2014 and I'm dedicated to insuring that the product we produce is improved over this seasons. The philosophy in our department is not to meet your expectations but to exceed them and I relish that challenge.

Remember the golf course is a great place to get and walk around throughout the winter months so don't forget to use the best piece of property in Sudbury. Have a great winter and see you all in the spring.


Best regards,

Jay Sisko
Golf Course Superintendent