Winter Injury Guide

I have put together a quick little guide book for our membership to understand some of the winter turf injury sustained on the golf course this season.  Some of the injury is intentional, some is desired and some is not. Either way the guide shows in basic terms what each injury looks like and the cause of it.  Sometimes  Mother Nature provides the best selective herbicide on the market. 

Winter Injury Guide

Crown Hydration:  Occurs when large amounts of surface water from snow melt turns into ice crystals outside the plant cell (extracellular) of the Turfgrass crown tissue. As these ice crystals form and enlarge, they pull water out of the cell, which will result in dehydration. At some point a dehydrated cell and cell membrane stop functioning and the result is cell death. Many times superficial damage occurs but If enough of the cells in the crown of the plant die, the entire Turfgrass plant will die as a result.

Figure 1 Hole #5 1st Fairway Under Trees

Figure 2  Hole #6 Fairway and Rough Sheet Water Flow Areas

Desiccation: Winter desiccation is the death of leaves or plants by drying during winter when the plant is either dormant or semi-dormant. Desiccation injury is usually greatest on exposed or elevated sites and areas where surface runoff is great. Tree root completion for water also affects the quality of the Turfgrass.

Figure 3 Hole #7 Exposed South Facing Mounds

                                                                   

Figure 4 Hole #4 Tree Root Competition For Water

Selective Herbicide Kill: Selective herbicides kill specific targets, while leaving the desired turf species relatively unharmed. We are using both older and newer chemistries to control Poa Annua in our key playing areas.

Figure 5 Hole #7 Fairway Poa Kill

Figure 6 North Chipping Green PoaCure Trials