To tarp or not to tarp ?

[Andrew Hardy]

Brad,

I view it as a binary decision because the Green Committee and Board must first vote for and then get approval to dedicate the funds to pay for a set of tarps.

Hence the decision isn't a seasonal decision, but a long term decision on the club's part.

It's the Superintendent's decision as to when and where to deploy the tarps.

I think you're simplifying this decision. The actual tarping is but one step in the process. The greatest factor in anything tarp related is when you remove snow in the spring. And subsequently when you remove the tarps after that. A course close to us tarped this past winter, came out looking great, but their greens declined based on the timing of the removal. There is no silver bullet when it comes to tarps, but, in the right place and when managed well (part of that winter down time I always hear about) tarps can be a great asset.

Someone mentioned aerifying ice as well. It too works in the right scenario. But I know a course that did it last year here in the Toronto area and was left with nothing. Aerifying the ice works, as long as the turf underneath isn't already dead.

[Gary Sato]

One course I play on eastern Long Island just placed the tarps on last week in order to retain heat ad try and speed things up.

[Jeff Shelman]

Pat,

A club has to make a decision about whether to cover greens, but they can phase in usage or test by covering a smaller subset of greens that have had more winter issues than other greens.

[Patrick_Mucci]

Pat,

A club has to make a decision about whether to cover greens, but they can phase in usage or test by covering a smaller subset of greens that have had more winter issues than other greens.

Jeff,

So you would vote to spend $ 50,000 for 19 tarps, but not use them ? ?  ?

[Patrick_Mucci]

Brad,

I view it as a binary decision because the Green Committee and Board must first vote for and then get approval to dedicate the funds to pay for a set of tarps.

Hence the decision isn't a seasonal decision, but a long term decision on the club's part.

It's the Superintendent's decision as to when and where to deploy the tarps.

I think you're simplifying this decision. The actual tarping is but one step in the process.

The greatest factor in anything tarp related is when you remove snow in the spring.

That's got nothing to do with the decision to tarp or not tarp

And subsequently when you remove the tarps after that.

Again, that's got nothing to do with the decision to tarpon not tarp.

A course close to us tarped this past winter, came out looking great, but their greens declined based on the timing of the removal.

Again, that's got nothing to do with the decision to tarp or not to tarp

There is no silver bullet when it comes to tarps, but, in the right place and when managed well (part of that winter down time I always hear about) tarps can be a great asset.

Then I take it that you favor tarping.

Someone mentioned aerifying ice as well. It too works in the right scenario. But I know a course that did it last year here in the Toronto area and was left with nothing. Aerifying the ice works, as long as the turf underneath isn't already dead.

How many courses "aerify ice" ?

[Andrew Hardy]

Mr . Mucci,

I have myself and a mechanic over the winter until April 1. You don't think I consider removal of tarps with just 2 guys? You asked a question and I gave an opinion from one Superintendent. The entire tarping process is in my thoughts. We tarp certain greens and won't tarp the rest. Cost, labor and what I see is lack of need in the areas we don't tarp are the determining factors. Search ice removal on golf greens on YouTube, that'll show you who aerated ice. http://youtu.be/GAHtaYPnmKk

Here's another http://youtu.be/31ojl9Pho4E

[Patrick_Mucci]

Pat,

As usual, it's more complicated than a binary decision even at any one club. You could easily decide which greens to tarp, when, for how long, and you better be prepared to go in there and remove the tarps if there's a sudden warm spell that could induce germination (tarps add a lot of temperature to the green) that might be followed by a deep freeze, in which case you're toasted. I'd hate to work for someone who demanded yes/no decisions in this business. If you have one green in a microclimate that includes a low area with pine trees (that shade sun in winter) on the east/south side and 80% Poa on the putting surface you might be more likely to tarp than with a largely exposed, bentgrass green with hardwoods on the east (leaves drop, sun gets through). Greenkeeping is about 77% nuance, hunch, compensation and luck and only 23% science and predictability (most of which is benefit/cost analysis). And when you have the pressure of a dogmatic membership or green committee demanding yes/no decisions, the job becomes impossible.

Brad,

Would it be safe to say that if you didn't have tarps, you couldn't use them if you wanted to, could you ?  

You're getting lost in micro management.

As to conditions, someone has to establish the expectations and benchmarks.

Absent reasonable goals, defensive or mediocre practices can become the norm.

Is mediocrity what superintendents should strive for ?

Brad
 

[David_Tepper]

Having read this thread with some interest, I would offer the following observations:

1) It appears some courses in the north and northeast do use tarps. Other courses do not.

2) The courses that use tarps do not necessarily use tarps on all their greens during the winter.

3) The effectiveness of tarps can depend upon the type of grasses on the greens.

4) The wide variety of weather conditions that occur over the winter months can have a substantial impact on whether or not tarps offer appropriate and effective protection to the greens.

In short, the use of tarps on a regular basis over the winter months is, in itself, not a panacea.

[Patrick_Mucci]

Having read this thread with some interest, I would offer the following observations:

1) It appears some courses in the north and northeast do use tarps. Other courses do not.

2) The courses that use tarps do not necessarily use tarps on all their greens during the winter.

3) The effectiveness of tarps can depend upon the type of grasses on the greens.

4) The wide variety of weather conditions that occur over the winter months can have a substantial impact on whether or not tarps offer appropriate and effective protection to the greens.

In short, the use of tarps on a regular basis over the winter months is, in itself, not a panacea.

David,

What's the downside of using them ?

[Tom ORourke]

We even tarp in South Carolina. Not on a regular basis but the past 2 winters have had some very cold weather including the ice storm that took out the Eisenhower Tree, which was 23 miles from me. We do not do all 36 but probably 10-14 on most really cold nights. Bermuda grass and a lot of tall pines that block out sunlight so it is needed. I was just up in Philadelphia and heard that a few of the premier courses have some holes that are damaged and maybe even closed?

[Patrick_Mucci]

The question I asked David Tepper is a critical question.

"What's the downside of using tarps in the winter months" ?  ?  ?

[Joe Hancock]

I would like to know the correlation between budget and occurrence of ice damage.

I would also be interested to know why ice damage seems to be almost epidemic in certain areas, but not in others.

It would be interesting to identify all the common maintenance practices and inputs at the hardest hit, most frequently hit courses.

[Michael Moore]

"What's the downside of using tarps in the winter months" ?  ?  ?

The possibility of the grass germinating prematurely due to the trapped heat and moisture and then getting killed by a deep freeze. This happened naturally a few years ago in Maine with a great many apple trees.

[Joe Hancock]

"What's the downside of using tarps in the winter months" ?  ?  ?

The possibility of the grass germinating prematurely due to the trapped heat and moisture and then getting killed by a deep freeze. This happened naturally a few years ago in Maine with a great many apple trees.

Existing grasses and trees don't germinate when they emerge from dormancy. The fruit trees didn't die, did they? Probably not, but what happens often is they set their fruit bud and then that part of the tree freezes, thus producing no fruit that year. The issue with grasses is not that....

[Patrick_Mucci]

"What's the downside of using tarps in the winter months" ?  ?  ?

The possibility of the grass germinating prematurely due to the trapped heat and moisture and then getting killed by a deep freeze. This happened naturally a few years ago in Maine with a great many apple trees.

Michael,

I've never putted on Apple trees, how much slower are they than grass ?

Any grain to be concerned about ?

[jeffwarne]

Damage to courses at the eastern end of Long Island has been extensive.  Some courses may not open until June.  The cold weather this week is not helping.

At some courses but not others.

The Bridge(pure bent-no poa) opened two weeks ago in great condition, and absolutely was perfect this weekend-very firm and fast.
Noyac (poa/bent) is in the best shape I've ever seen it , Southampton (poa/bent) appeared quite good when I drove through the course today.
So there's a newer grass and two with older grasses and one (the Bridge) which is easily the most exposed and windy than any other course (except maybe Shinnecock) Noyac is less exposed being lower and more protected-Southampton a mix of the two.

Interestingly, the only lost grass on the property was on the front of our driving range tee where we had seeded in over time some blue/rye to make it a bit less tight for our members when taking lessons (driving range is very exposed and one of the highest points on LI)
That area was perfect prior to winter and the rest of the range, (mostly bent) was unscathed by the winter

[Patrick_Mucci]

Joe,

Good questions.

I've seen ice/snow damage that lasted for years.

I've seen ice/snow damage so bad that the turf had to removed and portions of the green sodded or reseeded.

I've observed ice/snow damage this winter that was worse than anything I've seen previously.

But, I've never seen damage like this on greens that were tapped, so I asked, what's the worst damage that could occur to a green tapped over the winter.

[Jim_Coleman]

   My course (Rolling Green in Philly) tarped for several winters before this year.  In 2013 we didn't have great greens in the spring, and in 2014 they were downright bad.  Who knows whether the tarps had anything to do with this?  The super does not believe so.  I asked the USGA consultant for this area (Darren Bevard) if any other courses in the Philly area covered their greens.  He said there were none.  This tells me that, at least here, there is a consensus against tarping.  This winter we did not cover the greens, which are bent.  So far, so good.  We were also told by Jim Nagle, our architecture consultant, that last year those courses in Chicago that covered their greens seemed to fare much worse than those that did not.

[Steve Okula]

As a historical perspective, I began my golf course management career in Connecticut and Maryland in the 1970’s, graduating the University of Maryland and then working at several clubs around Hartford and D.C. Back then, nobody covered their greens, and tarps were practically unheard of. I don’t remember anybody having special problems with their greens coming out of winter dormancy, and we certainly had Poa annua, the species most susceptible to any kind of damage.

It would appear reasonable to assume that if winter damage is an issue these days then it has something to do with the management of the greens. (Do other areas of the course ever get hit with it?) My first guess would be that greens are weak going into winter due to player pressure for green speeds, forcing the GCS to mow low (sometimes at half the height that was '70's standard) and hold back on nutrients (like 25% of what we used to use back in the day) throughout the growing season.

[Bryan Izatt]

One of our public low end courses up here in Toronto has used tarps for years.  The greens generally come out bright green and fuzzy while the rest of the turf is still dormant.  Last year, in the year of the great ice storm, the greens, largely poa, mostly died despite the tarps.  Seems ice can smother poa whether it is covered by a tarp or not.

[Patrick_Mucci]

Steve,

You bring up a good point about the possible relationship between winter damage and green heights

Like you, I don't recall the use of tarps in the 60's, 70's and early 80's, and, I don't recall seeing the type and extent of damage I've seen in recent years.

Adding to your observation is the fact that fall conditions seem to be ideal for getting greens to putt at high stimp speeds.

The next question I would ask you would relate to the comparison of winter damage to fairways versus greens.

If the fairways suffered the same damage as the greens would it be safe to conclude that the winter damage is not a function of green heights ?

[Chris Hans]

Tarping or covering greens introduces an entirely new set of variables.  Topdress the greens in late Fall, hope for snow cover, scout for ice throughout the Winter and go from there.  If you find ice, remove it.  If you're pure Bent, you'll be fine either way.  If you have poa that doesn't make it through the Winter, seed Bent.  It's really not this difficult.   

[Steve Okula]

Steve,

You bring up a good point about the possible relationship between winter damage and green heights

Like you, I don't recall the use of tarps in the 60's, 70's and early 80's, and, I don't recall seeing the type and extent of damage I've seen in recent years.

Adding to your observation is the fact that fall conditions seem to be ideal for getting greens to putt at high stimp speeds.

The next question I would ask you would relate to the comparison of winter damage to fairways versus greens.

If the fairways suffered the same damage as the greens would it be safe to conclude that the winter damage is not a function of green heights ?

If fairways suffered damage similar to the greens, and provided they were of the same species, then it would suggest that cutting height is not a factor.

[Keith Phillips]

One non-agronomic downside to the use of tarps is 'member inconvenience'.  The last two winters have been outliers - in most winters in we can play regular greens in northern New Jersey about half the time (I played 12 January-February rounds in 2012).   Tarps relegate golfers to temps, worsening the experience and keeping some golfers at home.  If tarps are necessary to protect certain greens then by all means use them (we do); but member inconvenience has to be a factor.

[Keith OHalloran]

I have always been under the impression that the tarps are used as much for wind and greens exposed to wind as they are for ice. Is this not the case?