2020 Winter Update

2020 has given us some ups and downs to this point. Until recently, the buildup of ice on the greens has been quite minimal. Other than the 4^th green, there was zero buildup of ice at the end of January. The fourth hole, as a whole, falls victim to shade issues with the trees that line the left side. The angle of the sun is quite low in the winter and left side of the fairway and green are left in the shade for much of the day, as the pictures below illustrate. It takes a lot longer for the turf to bare off in these conditions. It is also similarly difficult in the summer as the lack of vital morning sun decreases photosynthetic activity.

Hole #4 Green January 31st

Hole #4 Fairway. January 31st 2020

December and January were kind to us. While the battle is not necessarily won in these months, it can certainly be lost. How the late portions of winter fare play a heavy role in how and when the golf season begins. 2015 has been the benchmark in terms of extensive turf damage. The multitude of snow/rain/freeze events in January and February laid the groundwork and the record amounts of snow in March (and even into April) was the straw the broke the camel’s back in terms of the significant damage we saw on the greens. The duration of ice cover was prolonged until the final week of April because of the several feet of snow that had to melt away to begin to expose the turf on the greens. We are happy with the way the approximately first half of the winter has played out. We can only guess how the rest will go. We will be monitoring the situation daily and will begin taking samples if and when any concern arises.

To this point February brought with it a variety of weather events. The freezing rain event that we received during the first weekend of the month covered what was a few inches of snow in a layer of ice. This past Friday we received another good dose of freezing rain that resulted in further ice buildup. Thankfully the system turned to rain to mitigate the situation somewhat, though as the temperatures dropped overnight the standing water froze. The result is most of the greens having at least a portion of the turf covered in an inch or two of ice with a layer of frozen snow on top of that. We know the perils of ice buildup over extended periods of time, particularly to poa annua plants. Given the time of year we are in the glass half full approach is that this has occurred in early February as opposed to early December. Rule of thumb is 60 days of ice cover for poa annua is the limit before the anoxic conditions begin to cause damage. The fact remains however, that anoxia (inadequate gas exchange) is merely one of several causes of winter damage. This is a single variable in a multi-variable equation that determines plant health coming out of winter. Stay tuned.

Hole #3 February 10th, 2020