Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/46524
inter on a golf course is the only season where we have no immediate control over the turfgrass and its environment. Year after year, seasons of hard work and effort get set back, if not destroyed, by the ravages of winter. In my opinion, putting the course to bed to the best of our abilities is one of the most important, yet often overlooked, aspects of our profession. Ball roll, green speed, disease, heat stress are all growing season thought processes. I can deal effectively with any of the above problems during the golf season. In actuality, I have the tools and abilities to handle most any situation during this time. Disease is treatable with preventative and curative chemical programs, too little water can be added, too much taken away. What I have no control over is what happens in the middle of winter and its adverse effects on the grass plant. Not once have I seen the "perfect winter" where a slow hardening-off of the grass plant gets followed by 18 inches of snow, for only 60 days of course, with no melt, additional snow or rain in-between. This of course is always followed by a very gradual melt over 4 weeks followed by warm rains and sunshine until mid April. In the few cases where this has happened, I also win the lottery, kiss my new bride Ms. Anderson goodbye on my way to my position at Augusta ......and then the alarm clock goes off. For those of us who have lived through the ravages of a 'bad' winter we know how it not only affects the bottom line of the club, but the clubs "standing" in the golf world. This link is also directly related to the perception of the Superintendents abilities as well. In so much, if one does not at least try to do all that they can, to protect the course from all of the variables that may happen at this time of year, then they are failing their membership, employers, and the course itself. And yes.......sometimes I have had to bang on a few desks to get 'em to listen. Having had the ability to manage and construct turfgrass facilities across the country has granted the opportunity to experience first hand, various methods for over-wintering turfgrass systems. All methods I have encountered have the same basic concepts in mind: to minimize or prevent damage to the plant caused by the extremes that each winter promises to deliver. The crown is my number one concern when it comes to over-wintering. Leaf damage is cosmetic, crown damage can be lethal. It is vital to preserve the growth point in its dormant state, when the ability to hop on the sprayer or aerator is not part of the equation. Any discussion on over-wintering is incomplete without looking at the reasons we are taking strides to protect the crown in the first place. The following 4 items are what we consider the most damaging to the plant during a over-wintering state, and yes, I have felt that wrath of each.... 1) Desiccation – loss of moisture of the crown by drying winds when the plant is in a dormant state and cannot replenish itself by root absorption of moisture. 2) Cold Temperature Kill – crown kill READY TO UNROLL BUBBLE WRAP associated with different turfgrass species inherent ability to withstand a set cold temperature by genetic characteristics. 3) Crown Hydration – the taking in of water through the leaf blade and crown, lessening the plants ability to withstand freezing and causing extreme cell damage during normal freeze thaw cycles 4) Ice Damage – The build up of gaseous materials that get trapped at the crown level and become toxic to the plant. Tarping has proven to be the most viable and successful method to ensure a successful over-wintering and protect from the 4 main injury mechanisms. The history of tarping, as I know it, saw Robert T. Heron C.G.C.S., retired Master Superintendent as one of the leaders in the early development over two decades ago. His experimental approach was to combat desiccation through the use of permeable, or breathable tarps in an area of the world that saw cold temps and wildly fluctuating temperatures with little or no snow. The tarps acted as a cover in keeping the drying winds from removing the little available moisture held within the dormant crown. These methods are still used today in areas where lack of snow cover is the main culprit causing the damage. I, unfortunately, still haven't won the lottery and have rarely seen a winter where desiccation was my main headache. This has prompted me to not only seek out other methodologies but to try and improve on some great work done by others. With desiccation as a concern there is also a great chance for low temperature kill in most areas. The lack of a snow cover is a prime condition for a cold front to wipe-out a stand of turf by temperature drop alone. This prompted some to get away from permeable tarps alone and try an insulated tarping system. These tarps are typically a non-breathable tarp with a foam, plastic bubble wrap or some other kind of insulator attached to it. This method can work wonderfully if, again, there is not any snow cover. Any snow cover of appreciable quantity on most all types of insulated tarps can see them trap soil gasses and cause severe damage similar to ice damage. The edges of the tarps become sealed by ice and snow and severely decrease gaseous exchange. There becomes little to no chance of the vapours getting away from the area that has been tarped. You can, in essence, be the primary cause of a great deal of damage by ones own preventative methods, and create your own Ice Damage. So.... it seems that the permeable and insulated scenario's are great until a year of snow comes along. Well what about the 99% of us that are guaranteed to see snow.......and rain....and often inter mixed and changing week to week? The freeze, thaw cycle that is normal in the spring ( and in some areas all winter long) was combated by some developing the use of a heavy duty, non- breathable tarp that did not allow melting snow or rain to enter the green system. This worked well for crown hydration as it had the ability to lessen the chances of water getting into the plant and raising its freeze damage temperature during the spring freeze / thaw events. Worked even better if