HIGHLAND CC GROUNDS

I am sure that you have noticed we have a new fresh look to our blog. I hope that our members will continue to utilize this form of communication throughout this season. As we work through the winter I will be posting different topics pertaining to our department. Topics like weather trends, professional developement and tasks that are completed in the shop will be presented. With the warming trend that we recently went through we continued to have snow cover (for the majority) which is good for the turfgrass. We do have some ice formation on fairways and tees but nothing to speak of on our greens. We will continue to monitor and evaluate conditions throughout the rest of the winter.

With the warming trend that the London area is experiencing, we will be out clearing areas around drains to aid in snow melt drainage. The problem that stems from ice accumulation (solid ice cover of turfgrass) can arise when these thaw cycles begin and the melting snow has no where to go. As the large amount of snow (that we have accumulated) starts to melt, we need to ensure that it reaches the drains before it freezes again. These are the times of the year that we are thankful that we completed our late fall cultural practices that aid in surface water drainage. Some of these practices are Deep Tine aeration and heavy topdressing of greens. As stated before, this practice creates vertical channels for the the water to seep into rather than sitting on the surface (where it can refreeze and suffocate the turfgrass). As with anything in the golf course managment business, a little luck and some major cooperation from mother nature is always welcome. We have and will continue to do our ...

During the golf season our department's equipment is worked extemely hard. In the golf season our Equipment Manager Alan Wood maintains our equipment at a very high level. Not only are all of our cutting units kept sharp and intune but all of the necessary service work is also carried out (plus there is the occasional break down that needs tending too!). In the winter months we have more time to tend to the more detailed type of work. Paul Snelgrove our 2nd Assistant is helping Alan with some finishing touches on our equipment. As we work through our fleet, not only is every piece serviced and sharpened but every working part of these machines is thoroughly cleaned and buffed. As this inspection is continued all worn or rusted metal is tended to with primer and rust resistant paint. We here at Highland lease our equipment, but we treat each piece like we are going to have if for a long time. We feel that having safe, clean and fully operational equipment produces a sense of pride i...

Golf Course Superintendents have always been very diligent about record keeping. We keep records on pesticide applications, fertilizer applications, cultural practices as well as budgetary items, health and safety issues and HR related issues. Integrated Pest Management (IPM) has been a component of turf grass management for as long as I have been in this business. In recent times pesticides have come under rigorous scrutiny both on the municipal and provincial government levels. Currently golf courses are exempt from the pesticide ban. All golf courses are now required to obtain full accreditation through the IPM Council of Ontario. This is a rather lengthy process that we here at HCC have been working on for the past two seasons. Before you can start the process I was required to write an exam to become the agent for the club. Secondly, we apply for the first annual desk review, this accreditation step requires submission of fertilizer and pesticide application records as well as app...

We would first like to wish everyone a Happy New Year! The snow finally arrived shortly after Christmas with a vengeance . The snow squalls have been very persistent over the past week or so, leaving well over 50 cm of fluffy snow on the golf course. The rain that persisted on Christmas day resulted in some ice on our fairways, mainly in the low lying areas. Ice can be a problem if solid ice cover persists for a long period of time (approx. 6 weeks). If history is any indication of how our winter will go, all of this snow will melt and re-accumulate at least once before spring. We have already completed some minor renovations to our maintenance facility and have begun to service equipment. Alan Wood, our equipment manager has a long list of jobs and tasks to complete over the next couple of months. The septic bed for the Halfway house is nearing completion. The system is installed and we are just waiting for some favourable weather to put down the topsoil.