Low ponds, active bees, and open greens??

Good news and bad news.
The good news is we will be opening 18 holes to regular greens this Thursday, April 2nd. Please remember that ALL players are required to check in with the golf shop prior to going on the course. We are excited to start the 2015 golf season and Mark and Cory are eager to show off new goods.
We are also excited to report the great news that two of the three bee hives have survived the winter. This is wonderful as the last few winters have claimed entire populations. The bees were observed doing some "cleaning flights" on one of our warmer days.
Now the bad news. We are not so excited about the condition of nine red pond. It seems that a repair that was made several years ago to a metal overflow pipe, has an issue now. The result is a really low pond. We will be "digging" into this situation soon.
Don't forget to check out the Easter events at the club. Easter egg hunt on the 4th, and brunch on the 5th.
Check your clubs grips, they have most likely dried out over the winter, the golf shop can install new ones.
Here we go,
Turf

Golf course update

We have had some major snow melt! The snow has all melted in the sunny open areas, places where shade dominates, the snow remains. The ground has thawed to about three inches, below which I could not get the soil profiler in the ground.
Our course tours have revealed minimal damage. We observed very little snow mold (cold weather fungus), and some mouse damage (photo below next to path). The mice create tunnels under the snow by chewing up all the vegetation.
As soon as the green banks dry to a level that they will accept equipment traffic, we will roll the greens to prepare them for the first mowings. We want these surfaces firm to prevent any footprinting. Looking at the long term forecast, the lows will remain below freezing for some time. Nighttime temps above freezing is one of the critical factors for our opening of the regular putting surfaces.
It appears like we are still a couple of weeks away, but as the forecast changes, so will the message.
Happy St. Paddy's day,
Turf

Battle of the seasons

The forecast for the next 15 days looks like an epic battle. Winter will prevail in the darker hours while spring will make appearances in the daylight. I noticed chickadees singing the other morning and it was sweet music.
Before we open the golf course to play on regular greens, a few things must happen;
1. The ground must be thawed completely through the soil profile and remain that way overnight.
2. The soils are not excessively soft or wet.
3. The grass is not longer dormant.
Looking at the forecast it appears that we will be completely free of snow mid-late next week. The melting snow will will drain slowly as the frost remains in the ground. Nighttime temperatures for the next couple of weeks are below freezing and this will keep our putting greens closed. I would not anticipate opening the greens for at least three weeks at this time. I will keep updating our status and progress as the forecasts are sure to change.
There is still much snow and ice cover on the turf as you can see.
Temporary greens will be available as the snow melts, carts are restricted to paths.
If you venture out to play the temp greens, wear your dry joys,
Turf