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After 30 years as golf course superintendent at Whitemarsh Valley CC, this will be my final blog post. Merry Christmas to all of the membership and have a Happy New Year !

Whoops! Somebody missed the road.

 

A vehicle last night somehow made the wrong left turn and drove across the bench area of #10 tee last night. The ballwasher was completely destroyed, the bench and trash box were ok. Never saw this coming!

Late season deep aerating and sand back fill on the 3rd green.

Special attention is being paid to the green expansions from a few years ago. The expanded areas were aerated 8' deep with a 3/4' hollow tine followed up with a 3" deep 1/2"  hollow tine. The soil brought to the surface was removed and is being replaced with straight sand.

A sample of the 2017 Whitemarsh Valley CC “Mean 18” tournament.

This may be an old trencher, but it still works for root pruning.

     Tree roots are always growing, so once in a while you have to prune them. The picture on the top has Jerry Stockmal and Nate Rix trenching a line between 10 fairway and the three Red Oaks to the right of the fairway.

     The picture on the bottom shows the results. All those thin roots that were severed no longer will draw valuable moisture and nutrients away from the fairway. 

Sunday November 12, 2017 Heavy frost this morning.

Very heavy frost this morning with heavy cloud cover. This may be a long delay so please be patient. Come on over to the club to enjoy a delicious breakfast cooked by Alvarro.

Belgium block being installed at the 5th tee.

Another cart path area being improved with Belgium block! Gary Farrer takes a break from his job to pose for this picture. He is installing the block along the path at the 5th tee to improve the appearance and to make sure carts stay on the path.

Fall is the time for projects!

     You would not know it by the green leaves on the trees, but it is actually November. I can not remember any time is recent years that the leaves too so long to turn.

     Anyway, this time of the year we can concentrate on projects that will make Whitemarsh Valley even better for next year. This picture shows Jerry Stockmal, Bobby Marterella and John Fleming installing irrigation on the middle tee at #15. This tee was constructed in the spring and we waited until now to install the irrigation not to be disruptive during the golf season.

     The new sprinklers will provide even watering coverage on the tee along with the surrounding area.

Catching up on the little things!

We have had a busy fall at Whitemarsh Valley CC. Spending a lot of time Aerating, greens, tees and fairways. During the same time prepping for tournaments and outings. Right now before the leaves really start to fall it is time to do the little things. Assistant superintendents Jerry Stockmal and Bobby Marterella fill in thin spots on the fairway short cut with a special soil and seed blend. These areas were also aerated right before to provide a nice seedbed. 

Aerating tees today. Every golf hole will still be open today.

Assistant superintendent Bobby Marterella is seen here aerated the tee at the 13th hole at Whitemarsh Valley CC. During this process, all golf holes will remain open for the golfers.