The truth is that we have had a great winter so far. We had
frozen ground which allowed us to traverse the course for our annual tree work.
We accomplished our goals.
Now we have a protective, insulating blanket of snow on our
fine turf areas. The best part is there is no ice beneath the snow! The deep
blanket of snow is actually a blessing because it protects the fine turf areas
from dramatic temperature changes and potential desiccation.
We may have to plow the white fluffy stuff off the parking
lots, but I’ll take that any day!
We are expecting another six plus inches on early Monday,
but that only fortifies our protection from the deep freeze that is forecasted.
The next hurdle will be how we come out of the deep freeze
as Spring approaches. I am hoping that as the snow melts we don’t form ice
layers directly on our green surfaces. More importantly is the hope that when
the snow is gone, we don’t see several days of warm temperatures, then a severe
drop in temperature. That is a critical time for us.
We usually are “holding our breath” in early March. The snow
is gone and we have a few days in a row when temperatures hit the forties. Then
we get a dramatic drop in temperature that goes into the “teens”. This is when
our turf on greens is most vulnerable.
The warm days tell the plant to start growing and imbibe
water as if Spring is here. A following cold-snap can cause what is called
crown hydration injury. This damage is most severe on greens that are predominately
Poa Annua. Our greens are very susceptible to this damage.
Basically, the Poa Annua hydrates with moisture and the
following freezing causes ice crystals to form and rupture the cells in the
crown (heart) of the plant.
Understand, we constantly try to reduce the Poa Annua
population and increase creeping bentgrass percentages. We are slowly winning
the war!
I am being generous when I say our average Poa Annua
percentage on greens is over fifty percent! Five years ago I would have said
seventy percent!
Our adoption of the plan of a slow transition to increase
creeping bentgrass populations through less aggressive measures has served us
well. Overseeding genetically superior creeping bentgrass varieties, at proper
aerification times, and the use of plant growth regulators which effect Poa
Annua more than the desirable creeping bentgrass varieties has been integral
and successful. We also stress the Poa via cultural maintenance practices like
allowing it to wilt during summer stress and allowing insects, which only
effect Poa Annua, to feed until we reach an agronomic threshold (the point at
which you, as a player, notice damage and it effects your enjoyment and
playability of the course).
Creeping bentgrass has a much more sustainable and genetically
deeper root system than Poa Annua during summer months.
Ultimately, creeping bentgrass has less “enemies” than Poa
Annua. Our agricultural program, in all accounts, is designed to continually
increase creeping bentgrass populations without reducing playability yet reducing
immediate and future maintenance costs.
We manipulate our turf management strategies, in detail,
down to every micro climate, in an effort to gain ground every year. This means
we look at every individual green, tee and fairway on an individual basis and
formulate our management plan.
In my ideal world, the snow and ground frost will be gone by
the second week of March leaving me with dry ground conditions so I can hit the
ground running. I just can’t wait!!!