I've Got Ice Damage... Now What?

We have now reached that time of year when turf managers start to get the first glimpses of whether or not Mother Nature has been kind to them over the winter. This can be one of the most exciting times of the year knowing that a new golf season is almost here and that we will soon be seeing the grass grow! Unfortunately for what we hope is always a small few people though the spring can be a very stressful time as the melt reveals damage from ice encasement. 

Ice damage is now becoming a more and more common issue in the prairie provinces in recent history with more unpredictable late fall/winter weather. It is now almost certainly a guarantee that a certain area is going to suffer from ice damage each and every year. On my last post we discussed what can be done to help prevent the occurrence of ice damage but unfortunately there is no way of 100% preventing the damage. So the next question we must ask is now that I have ice damage; what can I do to recover from it as quickly as possible?

My first answer for those of you who are fortunate to have a larger, high quality bentgrass nursery is without hesitation to use that nursery for its intended purpose. Nothing will get you back on track quicker then removing the dead areas of turf and replacing it with new healthy turf that was grown on site. If you do not have the area for a nursery but have the money to order in bentgrass sod from a sod grower this can also be a good option but it will be quite costly and require some extra work as sod grown offsite will never blend/thrive within an existing green as well without aggressive cultural practices during the rooting stage. Aeration/topdressing is always important for new sod to help blend the different growing mediums that the sod was grown on compared to the growing medium within the green it is being transplanted on. 

When sod is not an option then seed will be your next step. Reestablishing from seed will be slower but it can be done. There are always a few things that can slow seed establishment down though that we need to be mindful of. Early spring soil/air temperatures can always be an issue as spring weather is unpredictable and the seed will only germinate under consistently warmer soil conditions. The use of tarps or any type of blankets that can help to trap heat will always be of great value to increasing seed germination success and speed. Golfer/equipment traffic is always a major factor on recovery seed success as well. If activities can be limited on the surface during the seed establishment stage this will always help. The biggest influence on seed success when overseeding into ice damage though is actually dealing with the anoxic conditions that still exist in the soil following the turf death from ice encasement. The high concentrations of CO2 and toxic gases that exist under the ice do not immediately disappear when the ice melts. A lot of these gases remain trapped within the soil and thatch and prevent seed from establishing if not dealt with. Aggressive cultural practices to open up the soil and thatch to breathe along with diluting these areas with clean topdressing material is very important. This is quite often why people see greater success from aerating areas and then adding seed to the aeration holes compared to just slit seeding as the aeration opens up the soil much more effectively and allows for the exchange of these harmful gases. This is another reason why sodding is so great though as it is completely removing this entire layer of dead material and toxic gases. Consistently opening up the soil and reseeding ever week to two weeks max is valuable as it continually is allowing the soil to breathe and increasing the seed bed.

Seed selection is also very important. It is always good to stick with the variety of bentgrass that you greens were currently seeded to unless you are wanting to long term change the variety within them. In these reestablishment circumstances you are going to want to look at bentgrass seed varieties that are more aggressive in spreading. Unfortunately many of the newer varieties of bentgrass that are currently available that we love for their playability advantages are not as effective in spreading during recovery due to their more upright and bunch-type growing habit. Many of these verities of creeping bentgrass do not "creep" as well as some older varieties so it is certainly important to look at these characteristics when selecting your turf variety.  

Fertility is always important during the new establishment stage as well. We believe that foliar fertilization is generally the most effective way of feeding for recovery during the spring. The use of granular fertilizer and its effectiveness will be greatly dependent upon environmental conditions such as temperature due to the fact that the granular fertilizer will not be taken up in solution through the roots as effectively unless adequate soil temperature and plant activity exist. Foliar fertilization removes most of these factors. We are not concerned with soil temperatures in the spring so long that the plant is not 100% dormant which is very unlikely. As long as there is some active metabolizing taking place with the newly germinated seed or the grass plants that did survive the ice encasement; they will then be able to take in and utilize the fertilizer you are providing. It is recommended to go at lower rates but very frequently (atleast ever week to few days) for best results as each time you fertilizer there will be more and more living tissue to take the products in and allow for more rapid recovery and spreading. 

Unfortunately recovery never occurs as quickly as you or your customers would like but these few steps will certainly help you in getting back to the shape you expect much sooner. 

With Turf Fuel we have a specific spray combination that we recommend for spring recovery that is tried and proven and has helped many turf managers get back on track these past few springs. The products you will find within this spray include Photo Fuel and Element 6 at 1.5oz/1000sq ft and Quick Green at 3-4oz/1000sq ft per application. This application is designed to target lateral growth, energy production and maximized recovery for the playing surface. 

Photo Fuel aids in enhancing photosynthesis for the plant through nutrition and biostimulation. It also features Nutrifense which we have discussed in the past. Element 6 provides maximum energy to the plant along with strength/stress management and root production. It contains a full dose of Nutrifense. Quick Green is a high phosphate biostimulant fertilizer. It aids in rapid new establishment, damage recovery and early season colour. 

Turf Fuel is committed to developing products that are not like any other on the market and finding solutions to the problems that have been plaguing turf managers for years. They are committed to always improving the already great products they currently have. Turf Fuel has solutions available from the most simple aspects of nitrogen nutrition to the much more complicated solutions that you have been looking for such as stress management.