Snow Removal

This week, the decision was made to remove snow from the greens.  Since early February, they had been encapsulated in ice, and we were getting close to the 60-day threshold under which Poa annua can generally survive under ice.  The snow depth varied across the course and even on different spots on the same green, but it was generally 8" deep.  The back of number two green had 2' of snowcover thanks to the bowl that it sits in.

We found anywhere from 1-6" of ice on the greens, which was more than we were expecting.  However, now that the snow is gone, the ice has softened, and they are melting quite quickly.  Greens 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 9, and 10 (those that receive more of the southerly sunlight) are mostly or completely exposed, and although it's still too early to say for sure, we like what we see. 

A few greens have a faint hint of the distinctive odor that accompanies winterkill, and of the more exposed greens, 7, 8, and 10 are the most likely to have some damage.  Luckily, it looks nothing like the winterkill that we've seen in recent years.  We will have a better idea about the status of the rest of the greens once more snow and ice melts, but until they start actively growing, the best that we can do is make educated guesses.

Today, we walked to each green to make sure that the water was draining off of the surfaces, and where it wasn't, channels were cut to allow the meltwater to flow.

Below are some pictures of the snow removal process.

We almost lost Omar in the drift on 2 green.



Getting started on the putting green.  After the first pass, it seems as if it will take hours to clear the green, but most were completed in 45 minutes.

The putting green before...

...during...

...and after snow removal.  They would have made nice ice skating rinks.

Even on a relatively cool, cloudy Wednesday, much of 5 green melted between 8 am (above) and 2:30 pm (below).  This green was cleared of snow on Monday.