Watching turf get destroyed by traffic during the winter is difficult for golf course superintendents. Cold temperatures result in minimal growth or complete dormancy on both cool-season and warm-season grasses, which leaves the turf vulnerable to abrasion and wear from carts and foot traffic.
Add rain to this scenario, and you end up with a wet, muddy mess that lasts for several weeks until warmer temperatures return, and the turf starts growing again.
The tendency for most superintendents is to want to do something and get the turf to respond and quickly recover from the damage. “Should I aerate?” and “Maybe some fertilizer will get the grass to perk up” both come to mind. It is important to remember that temperature and day length determine turf growth, and actions like aeration and fertilizer applications will not have much effect when conditions are cold.
What can be done? Here is a checklist to help evaluate and manage winter traffic:
- Have a sensible cart policy. Carts may produce revenue, but I have never seen carts improve turf quality—they only make it worse. Consider a policy of restricting carts to the paths during the winter when the turf is dormant. If that is not an option, restrict carts to the paths on two or more holes per nine on a weekly rotation.
- Rotate where carts enter and exit the cart paths to help spread out the wear over a wider area.
- Avoid traffic in shaded areas.
- Move tee markers to create a corresponding shift in the fairway landing zone to spread out wear and divot injury.
- Be aware of maintenance vehicles and instruct employees to avoid unnecessary traffic on the turf.
- Develop a map of chronic thin areas and determine the underlying causes of the turf injury (traffic, shade, soil conditions, drainage or other factors).
- Develop a plan of action to address the chronic thin areas once temperatures get warmer and turf growth resumes so that the turf is stronger next year. Be sure to include basic agronomic programs such as extra aeration, sand topdressing, fertilizer application, drainage improvement and shade reduction.
- Increase mowing heights going into next winter by 0.25 to 0.35-inch to give the turf extra padding that can withstand winter traffic.
- Establish grasses with better density and wear tolerance in chronic traffic areas.
The article, Managing Wear Stress on Turfgrass at GCMOnline.com, provides additional information and details on what you can do to effectively manage traffic.
If you have any questions about turfgrass management, irrigation or water use efficiency, feel free to email them to me at pgross@ewingos.com.