A Winter Wonderland

Three days of consistent snow fall starting last Friday accumulated nearly a foot of snow on the golf course. The weather has been a bit inconsistent this winter but the severely cold temps have not really been a factor. The ground is not frozen so when the sun comes out and the temperatures rise we get a decent rate of melting. This is good in many ways. Since the ground is not an ice cube it prevents the snow from sticking around for long periods of time which would promote disease (Discussed in an earlier blog entry about Why we spray?) Another factor that we benefit from due to the ground not being frozen is when we do have any melting of the snow or rain the excess water can infiltrate the soil profile thus preventing any appreciable ice buildup. Ice accumulation can have many adverse affects to the turfgrass which can be explained in another blog entry. I will make sure that an entire entry is devoted to ice damage which we have seen many times in Central Oregon.

Anyway, a couple of pictures to show off the beauty of the golf course under snow. It is probably one of the most peaceful moments on a golf course other than sunset during the summer. For those of you who live on the course, I am sure you love to look out your living room windows after a snow fall.

Hole #15 with a blanket of snow

Hole #14 with Cosmo enjoying the snow. Cosmo does not have much work during the winter since the lakes are frozen over and the geese have no place to swim. In any case, she really enjoys running around in the snow.

Since the snow has fallen and our outside projects are on hold, this will give us a chance to focus on a few projects inside the maintenance facility. Only three of us on site currently, but between the snow plowing and shoveling there are a few ideas that I have for us to plan and construct for next season. I am going to keep these a secret until they are ready to unveil to everyone. One of the ideas is going to make a huge impact next season. I hope! A hint: What should come back quickly after the golf ball has left the the ground?

To everyone who follows our blog, have a great Holiday Season!