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| SUNRAYS AUGUST 2014
ONLINE:
SCTXCA.ORG
GOLF
Spring 2014 – It was a tough one!
Submitted by Gary Wilson, Director of Golf Course Maintenance
The 2013-2014 winter was recorded as
one of the worst winters in nearly 60
years. When spring arrived, we saw the
effects of the harsh winter on turfgrasses
throughout the region—the lack of sod
availability from sod farms made it very
evident that courses throughout the state
had suffered turf loss due to the winter
temperatures. This article will aim to
answer the most common questions we’ve
received, to gain a better understanding
of the situation and how we can prevent
these outcomes in the future.
What made this year worse
than previous years?
The cold weather played the largest role
in what we experienced this spring—
compared to last year, twice the number
of days had temperatures below freez-
ing (42 days). The most detrimental
weather we dealt with took place from
mid-February to March 3-4. Begin-
ning on February 14, afternoon tem-
peratures were in the high 70s and low
80s, which triggered the grass to come
out of dormancy and transfer all of its
energy into promoting growth. During
this two-week period, all three courses
were actively growing. On March 3, an
ice storm brought the temperature down
to 34 degrees, with a low of 19 degrees.
This situation was very detrimental to
the grass, because it had already used
most of its stored energy. To explain, in
late fall, as a plant prepares for winter, it
stores carbohydrates in the roots. When
spring arrives, it takes that stored en-
ergy from the roots and utilizes all of the
carbohydrates to focus on plant growth.
The unexpected extreme shift in tem-
perature in early March caused the plant
to go back into dormancy, with little “left
in the pantry” for another transition.
Why didn’t we cover the
greens?
The reasoning behind covering greens is
to ensure that the rootzone temperature
stays above freezing temperatures. If
the rootzone freezes, the plant will most
likely die. Greens covers do an excellent
job of insulating the rootzone from ex-
tremely low temperatures, but are not
necessary when the temperatures drop
for short periods of time. Typically, if the
temperature drops below 25 degrees and
maintains a temperature below freez-
ing for an extended period (two days or
more), we will utilize greens covers.
Soil moisture plays a large part in insu-
lating the rootzone and, with adequate
soil moisture, we can buffer drops in soil
temperature. There is a very difficult
balance to achieve in soil moisture be-
cause oversaturation decreases oxygen
content in the rootzone. We monitor soil
moisture more in the winter than we do
during the growing season to ensure that
we maintain this balance. For example,
at Cowan Creek, we closely monitored
soil temperature compared to ambi-
ent air temperature on three specific
days. On January 6, we recorded an air
temperature of 31 degrees, with a soil
temperature (at a 4-inch depth) of 33 de-
grees; on January 7, the air temperature
was 17 degrees, but the soil tempera-
ture was 34.2 degrees; and, on March
3, the air temperature was 21 degrees,
with a soil temperature of 36 degrees.
We achieved these soil temperatures by
watering the evening before, when the
air temperature was well above freezing.
Why did we see different
conditions on each course?
Although we dealt with analogous
weather conditions for all three cours-
es, each course encountered different
issues. Overall, the cultural practices
and fertility programs are very similar
for each course, but the soil profiles vary
in regard to water infiltration, moisture
retention, nutrient exchange ability, etc.
These factors create different results
when under stress—Cowan Creek
battled with Bermudagrass decline
throughout the month of March; while
Legacy Hills also had disease pressure
and some winter kill turf loss on several
greens. White Wing was hit the hardest
coming out of dormancy. In the warmer
days of mid-February, the White Wing
greens came out of dormancy with the
The Couples Golf Association is
flourishing, both in membership
growth and activity level. We held
our first social event after the May
playday, and another social event
will immediately follow our playday
on Saturday, August 2. A second
playday this month will be on Sat-
urday, August 23. Two playdays
are on tap for September; Satur-
days, September 6 and September
27. Be sure to watch for our club
championship tournament coming
in mid-October!
Visit the CGA website for the com-
plete calendar of events and in-
structions for signing up for these
events. You’ll also find detailed
membership information on the
website, so join us now and don’t
miss another day of play! Member-
ship fees are only $7.50 per person
now through the end of the year.
Come join us today and find out why
everyone is talking about the CGA!
CGA News
Submitted by Sandy Phillips
S 2 1
Continued on page 49
