Springbank Links Calgary Canada In Early Spring

Spring Has Sprung At Springbank Links

After doing a write-up for what it takes to put my course “to bed” for the winter in Calgary, I thought a quick follow up on what it takes to get it ready in the spring was in order.

It begins by keeping a close eye on the weather forecast and crawling under the tarps to determine when the best time may be to pull back the tarps, when to be tank watering, when to begin feeding the turf, and when to charge the irrigation system.
This year after a very mild winter in which we tank watered 3 times since Christmas, we started pulling back half a dozen tarps each day and tank watering the turf with some potassium nitrate in the tank on March 19. Our daytime highs were around 14C but the overnight lows were around -4C so the tarps were replaced to give the turf some sort of protection and also create a bit of a greenhouse effect on the warm days. This process was repeated daily until April 11 as opening day was scheduled for April 12 (on which it snowed!).

The greens that had Evergreen tarps were completely thawed by the time we pulled the tarps off for good and the soil temps a half inch down were around 2C, while the four greens with solid bubble tarps were still frozen an inch down and temps were around -2C.

After the tarps are pulled off, we use a trap bike with brushes on the back to drag in the topdressing sand that was still sitting on the surface. This was followed by the first mow of the season at .160 with the groomers set a neutral just to help remove any dead and brown leaf tissue. The final step was a foliar feed during the heat of the day to begin getting the plant in gear for the season ahead.

Results for this spring are quite good as the Penncross survived 100% while the poa annua probably has a survival rate of 80-85%. We will continue to monitor the forecast, the growing conditions, and the turf to make an informed decision on whether we need to do some soddding, some interseeding, or if the spots will fill in themselves.

Thanks Again to John Faber and I hope to add more to this blog from him for years to come. John has sent along photos to share from his course that show how harsh the winter can be in his area.

Top-#17 - Solid Bubble Tarp, turf excellant with exception of some ice damage in corner
Middle-#7 - Evergreen tarp, some poa damage
Bottom-PG - Evergreen tarp, minimal poa damage

See and read more about Johns Course at:www.springbanklinks.com