Les Bolstad
Sometimes you have to be creative
By Andrew Hollman
When people hear that I work with turfgrass, inevitably the question comes up of “what do you do all winter?” The assumption from some people is that when the weather turns cold and you no longer need to mow your lawn, what else is there to be done? If you are involved with the turf industry, you likely know that there is a myriad of things that need to be done after mowing has stopped and before the ground freezes and the snow arrives. Irrigation needs to be blown out, snow mold fungicides sprayed, and covering greens are a few that come to mind for the golf courses.
New research publication from our team - 1/22/21
Learn more about our research! A new research article from our group has been published in Landscape and Urban Planning. Brian Horgan, one of the co-authors, is formerly part of our Turfgrass Science group and this work was conducted while he was still at the University of Minnesota. In this paper, Eric Lonsdorf and co-authors analyzed the ecosystem services contributions of golf courses.
Winter turfgrass protection
By Andrew Hollman
For some people, winter and snow cover might be a welcome relief from maintaining a yard and lawn.
Introducing GolfLAB
By Parker Anderson
Tuesday, February 14, 2017
What is a GolfLABSM?
The University of Minnesota (UMN), founded in the belief that all people are enriched by understanding, is dedicated to the advancement of learning and the search for truth; to the sharing of this knowledge through education for a diverse community; and to the application of this knowledge to benefit the people. UMN has an incredible resource on its campus, the UMN Les Bolstad Golf Course. The Science of the Green® initiative is focused on developing this resource as a collaborative multidisciplinary laboratory known as GolfLABSM.
Pace of play research creates opportunities in environmental stewardship and sustainability
By Parker Anderson
Thursday, November 30, 2017
Recently, the Science of the Green Initiative at the University of Minnesota, in partnership with the United States Golf Association (USGA), collected data on golf pace of play to examine the impacts of green speed on pace of play at seven golf courses of differing characteristics around the United States. The implications of the data collected, however, are far greater than just measuring the time each player spent on the putting greens; the results have additional value regarding golf facility sustainability and productivity.
Preservation of deacclimated annual bluegrass prior to spring
Plants that overwinter undergo physiological changes to acclimate to cold temperatures, allowing them to survive until spring. However, when warm temperatures occur in winter, cold hardiness gained through acclimation can be lost, a process called deacclimation.