Pitchcare
Frosty the ‘no’ man!
How many golf courses allow play on their greens during frosty conditions? In an ideal world, the answer would be none, but there are many golf clubs who do and, unfortunately, external pressures usually outweigh the knowledge of the greenkeeper ... and the needs of the grass!
- pressure from members - many members believe they have a God given right to play on ‘their’ greens all year round
- no course closure policy implemented - no temporary greens available - a lack of understanding about the damage frost can do to the plant
- a club’s need for revenue - understandable, but greens going into spring as a direct result of frost damage. Poor greens will have much more impact on revenue
Turf is especially prone to damage when it is frozen, and also when the ground is thawing. snaps, not at all.
Frost on the grass leaf tells us that the water inside the leaves is frozen. Remember that turf causes the ice crystals in the cells to puncture through the plant’s cell walls, thereby
When frozen, the leaves of the turf get easily turf turns black or brown and becomes sparse. More long-term damage can be caused when
sub soil. The process of damage to the turf normally
- bruising and damage to the leaf - loss of turf colour - severing of grass roots - thinning of the sward
and air temperatures prevent any likelihood of the grass recovering.
Remember that approximately 80% of plant tissue is made up of water
” Many golf clubs do operate a favourable frost
in place to reduce frost damage and allow golf to out for the winter period
- temporary green areas mown out and approaches, but also dedicated areas that have been set aside and managed, of sorts, ahead of winter
- the course is inspected every morning by judgement on whether the greens are playable, only those greens where frost remains all day will be taken out of play, allowing for as much ‘normal’ golf as possible
If the frost is a haw frost, it is likely that many of the greens will be playable by late morning once thawed. In most cases, frost damage will not be has already occurred. A poor thin sward, a heavy, all consequences of play being allowed on frosty courses. The best policy is for the club to inform golfers
of the reasons why greens need to be taken out of to be closed. This can be done online via email and the club’s
quality greens for the majority of the year. A handful of disgruntled members in the winter is a warmer weather!
142 I PC DECEMBER/JANUARY 2016
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