The golfing season is coming to an end. On course items such as tee markers, ball-washers, benches, etc have been removed for the year. These will receive new paint over winter.

Leaf control is in full swing and is currently the main focus. It is a losing battle at the moment especially with a reduced crew size. We have turbine blowers, a leaf sucker, and a couple mowers for mulching.

Routine mowing has been reduced due to crew size, weather, and limited turfgrass growth.

During our fall aeration we did not have time to topdress the Tees after pulling cores. A few weeks ago there was a great stretch of weather allowing us to solid tine and topdress.

One last chemical application approaches but will need to be timed with appropriate weather. Snow Mold is a plant disease that occurs due to snow cover and cold temperatures. Usually occurs at the end of winter once the snow begins to melt. In order to protect the plant the chemical application must be applied after the last mow and around the first snowfall.

Two types of Snow Mold are shown below: Gray and Pink Snow Mold.

Quite simple to differentiate.

An update on the Empress Tree.

March of 2017: Measured 15 inches high.

October of 2017: Measured 8ft 6inches. An incredible amount of growth. It will be interesting to see what next year brings.

Enjoy the week!