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| Another frosty morning |
The frost is slowing us down this morning from the aspect of completing the aerification of greens but feel confident we will complete all greens by the end of the day to put stage one of recovery behind us. A nice weekend looks to be ahead of us so I am going to attempt to open all greens for the weekend. Next week we will look to cover & close the greens that suffered the most from the winter to speed up the recovery but that is still to be determined. As time allows me over the weekend, I will post a more detailed plan of the total recovery process.
****Please find below a letter written following Dr. Ed Nangle's visit to Idlewild****
Mr K Sams CGCS
Golf Course Superintendent
Idlewild Country Club
19201 Dixie Hwy, Flossmoor, IL 60422
Dear Kurt,
As a follow up on the recent visit we made to your course I
want to make note of the conditions observed and also indicate the impact that
this recent winter 2013-2014 has had on your course and others in the area.
As indicated our weather problems began with early cold and
snow cover. To a large extent this was not necessarily a big issue as
traditionally snow cover tends to offer insulation over the winter period. The
issues really began to occur when temperatures reached mid to high forties on
January 9-13 (Figure 1). It was noted that there was melt ongoing under the
snow and that water was running (Picture 1). There was a freeze prior to all
water disappearing while some courses never saw complete snow melt. This
initial ice formation meant that further snow packed on top of the ice and
following almost record snow fall there was another slight thaw on top of the
canopy in February which served to only thicken the ice.
Turf managers took various options as far as management but
no one was completely safe. The removal of snow prior to thaw / rain events
left one course with covers on four greens (Picture 2). Others who put covers
on suffered from 30% damage (Picture 3) and will have some temporary greens
until mid-May.
Your actions of snow removal in February were appropriate in
an effort to reduce the impact of the ice – however record cold temperatures
and total snowfall amounts meant that the task was impossible and also did not
help with recovery. The growing of
Poa
annua in such climates leads to susceptibilities when weather extremes
occur and after the coldest winter on record
1 with average
temperature of just 22 degrees – next is 22.3 degrees there was an expectation
that damage would be seen on a somewhat unprecedented scale. The damage left a
distinctive smell which we discussed and is an indicator of anaerobic
conditions which occur under the ice and is considered the main reason for
turfgrass death.
Looking forward, the use of covers to try and increase soil
temperatures to >55°F which is needed to really push bentgrass seed
germination is going to be crucial to trying to return the golf course to top
conditions. If the spring remains cold this will be a slow process, but if we
receive warming temperatures then conditions could be back to optimal by mid to
late May. Ensuring the irrigation system has not been affected by soil heave
and that the salt content in the water is not too high is also going to be
important. Allowing seeded areas to establish will be crucial otherwise the
fight for quality surfaces will drag on into July and August as happened last
year in Minnesota (Ref: Bob Vavrek / USGA). I would not hesitate to call Bob
Vavrek and the USGA in for a visit also as they see this type of extreme
weather further north on a regular basis.
In summation it seems like every course in Chicago has been
affected by the winter. Creeping bentgrass greens faired consistently the best
but fairways and tee boxes have suffered damage where
Poa annua has invaded and all courses will need a warm spring to
try and enhance recovery.
If you have any questions or comments, please do not
hesitate to contact me.
Thank you
Edward Nangle PhD
Director of Turfgrass Programs
Chicago District Golf Association
