Golfdom, June 2014
Super Science meltdown Winterkill in the crosshairs Cultural considerations for preparing greens for winter By Sam Bauer Brian Horgan Ph D and Lindsey Hoffman Ph D Editors note This is the first of two articles by the authors on turf survival during winter T he 2013 2014 winter has gone down in the record books as one of the worst Depending on your location conditions may have included severe and prolonged freezing temperatures aka polar vortex temperature fuctuations above and below freezing excessive rainfall followed by freezing temperatures and significant snowfall events from December through March With this in mind it is important to understand the multitude of factors contributing to winter injury and the cultural practices that can be implemented to minimize damage Te term winter injury is a catchall term that refers to damage caused by a number of diferent factors including crown hydration anoxia and gas buildup desiccation low temperature fungi and freezing temperatures Tese factors may act alone or in concert causing damage to plants and are collectively recognized as winterkill Regardless of the type or number of stresses afecting the plant the occurrence of winterkill is directly attributed to death of the turfgrass crown Management strategies should be implemented throughout the year to promote crown survival during and following winter months Tis involves minimizing or eliminating conditions that would favor the development of PHOTO 1 30 Golfdom June 2014 Golfdom com photo by Andrew hollmAn An ice melting study at the University of Minnesotas Turfgrass Research Outreach and Education Center conducted this last winter These manufactured ice blocks were treated with 20 different salt and solar absorption products to evaluate ice melting potential More detail on this study can be found at www turf umn edu
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