Covering Process To Begin Soon

This week we will cover our greens for the first time this winter. Covering greens is a common practice done on ultradwarf putting greens during the winter months. This process helps our greens hold heat in the soil profile, prevents plant desiccation and protects turfgrass plants against extreme cold temperatures and wind. Covers will only be deployed on the front nine greens and practice green where shade and air pockets are a constant challenge to turfgrass health.

We will deploy covers at 3:00 PM in the afternoon prior to overnight temperatures forecasted to be below 40 F. If you plan on playing an afternoon round of golf, we suggest checking the overnight forecast before teeing off so you are not disrupted by the covering process. We will remove the covers after the frost has lifted the following morning (see frost blog).

We will communicate with the pro shop when we do cover the front nine greens. In the afternoon, the back nine greens will be available for play during the course of front nine turf blanket deployment.

Please contact the pro shop with any questions you may have.

Figure 1. Covering greens can increase soil temperatures substantially. The picture on the left is from a green that does not get covered (45.8 F) while the picture on the right is from a green that gets covered (49.5 F).  

Figure 2. It takes approximately 1 hour to cover all of the front nine greens.

Figure 3. Once greens are covered they are fastened to the ground using fabricated tent stakes. 

 

Figure 4. The covering process traps heat in the soil and helps maintain a healthier turfgrass plant.