Winter Greens Preperation Springbank Links Golf Club

John Faber

Superintendent
Springbank Links Golf Club
Calgary, Alberta
www.springbanklinks.com

Golf Season: 3rd week of April – 3rd week of Oct
Summer: July/Aug 30C is common
Winter: may or may not have snow cover, potential for -30C, high winds common, weather phenomenon called Chinooks (warm winds from Pacific coast could bring temps up to 20C)

Winter preparation starts with a fungicide application on the greens near the end of September to clear up any existing disease pressures and begin preparing the turf for winter. Applications of fertilizers with a high potassium content are also applied to prepare the turf (2 liquids, 1 granular) from mid September to mid October.
This year we are going to try an application of a wetting agent to hold moisture near the surface and crown through the winter months. With the high winds we can experience, desiccation is a major concern.

Once the course is closed, one final application of fungicide is applied to give us protection through the winter months and early spring. Also new this year is an application of an anti-desiccant to coat the leaf blade and surface. This will be followed by a heavy topdressing to again protect the surface, and the final step is covering the greens with an permeable tarp. I have several greens which are predominantly poa annua; which will also get an impermeable tarp with a bubble wrap backing to protect them for extreme cold temperatures.