GREENKEEPER BLOG

GreenKeeper Q: A New Way to Measure Putting Green Performance

While GreenKeeper Q looks fun to use—and it is—inside its clear shell is a robotic measurement platform that represents a major departure in putting green performance measurement. For decades, golf course superintendents have largely measured greens performance by...

Fall Wetting Agent Timing Matters for Winter Preparation

Fall weather can make wetting agent scheduling deceptively difficult. As air temperatures cool—especially nighttime temperatures—growing degree days accumulate more slowly and microbial degradation of wetting agents slows. That means an application that may have...

How Much Can Surface Organic Matter Change in a Year?

Scheduling cultivation and topdressing is always a tricky and sometimes controversal task. These practices are disruptive to players, costly, and tough on turf equipment. How much cultivation is really required? What's the right amount of sand topdressing for a...

A Thermometer Is a Better Clock Than a Calendar

In the first article of the GreenKeeper Growth Series, we used nearly 500,000 clipping-volume measurements to examine how much putting greens actually grow. One of the clearest environmental signals associated with that growth was temperature. This week, we are taking...

A Very Strong El Niño Is Building. What Should Turf Managers Expect?

El Niño is strengthening quickly, and the months ahead could bring unusual weather patterns around the world. The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association now gives greater than a 90% chance that the 2026–27 El Niño becomes very strong during the Northern...

How Much Does a Putting Green Actually Grow?

This launches the GreenKeeper Growth Series: an ongoing look at what we’ve learned from 500,000 clipping volume observations. Over the coming weeks, we’ll use this dataset to explore how putting greens grow, how factors like weather, fertility and PGRs influence...

When 60% Regulation Still isn’t Enough

Summer Created a Misleading Growth Surge It has been a hot, humid summer across much of the U.S., and one of the most common questions we’ve received is some version of: “Why is my PGR program not working anymore?” The evidence is usually sitting in the mower baskets....

Hi-Res Surface Organic Matter Analysis in GreenKeeper

Surface organic matter has always been one of the most important—and frustrating—variables to manage on putting greens. We know it influences firmness, infiltration, water holding capacity, and pest pressure. We also know that topdressing and cultivation are our...

Why Your Rainfall Data May Be Wrong: The Challenges of Estimated Precipitation

GreenKeeper, like the weather apps on your phone, uses extremely high-resolution weather models to estimate current conditions and forecast future weather. These systems combine observations from airports, weather balloons, satellites, and weather radar with...

A Completely New WhiteBoard Experience for Turf Managers

GreenKeeper WhiteBoard has been rebuilt from the ground up with a modern user experience, intelligent planning tools, and unmatched flexibility for daily turf operations.Daily labor planning in turf management is complicated. Every day, turf managers balance changing...
One Easy Task Will Transform Your Management Program

One Easy Task Will Transform Your Management Program

I can assure you that this simple task, taking less than one minute each day, will provide valuable insight that directly impacts agronomic decisions. It is the most valuable piece of data that I collect, and it’s my biggest pet peeve when it’s skipped. This measurement predicts putting green performance, helps schedule mowing and topdressing frequency, and guides PGR and nitrogen application rates. It also helps me manage high and low performing greens differently. Still, there are a lot of questions about how to collect, log and use the data. This short article will help answer those questions.

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Making the Case for GPS Sprayer Technology

Making the Case for GPS Sprayer Technology

Access to GPS-equipped technologies have exploded in the turfgrass management industry over the past decade. These technologies monitor soil moisture, measure turf health, and improve application precision. The rise of GPS-enabled sprayers offer the potential to...

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A New Era in Wetting Agent Programming

A New Era in Wetting Agent Programming

There are literally hundreds of soil wetting agents in the turfgrass management industry. Some are marketed to retain water while others to move it. Some claim to increase surface firmness while others supposedly reduce firmness. Labeled re-application intervals range...

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What are shapefiles anyways?

What are shapefiles anyways?

Geospatial data is becoming increasingly important to turf managers. These data link observations and measurements to specific locations (latitude/longitude).  Examples include locating the position of pests and problem areas, mapping irrigation head and value...

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