mitigating ice damage with a drill bit??? Cancel The title field is required!

1. Johnson Aaron M

   
   2/7/2015 8:02 AM

   hey all:
   I was thinking about some ice cover we have on greens this winter and how to minimize the damages this coming spring without totally removing the ice, which will probably expose the underlying turf to some real cold nights. We had some rain in December and January which formed the ice layer, along with some snow melt after the rain events. We have little snow cover this year, and were approaching the 60 day ice cover point. We have penncross/poa greens with penncross being more prevalent.
   I guess my question is, the main reason we're trying to remove ice is for gas exchange and to not let it build up under the ice, right? Why couldn't I take a small drill bit and punch down through the ice layer and into the turf a few inches? Maybe a 1/4" drill bit? The ice layer that iv tested is clear, right down to the soil surface, and about 1/4" thick. Would there be any benefit from going deeper, like an improvised drill without the fill? Maybe get down past where we core and needle tine, because we haven't deep tined the three years I have been here. We don't have any drainage issues on our greens, they drain extremely fast!!!
   Any comments would be great, I am just wondering if this is a viable route to get some gas exchange.

   
   
   
   
2. Bobby Jaeger

   

   0 posts
   
   2/9/2015 12:02 PM

   Its worth a shot! If you're at the 60 day point though, I would personally remove the ice layer for the poa's sake. Let me know how it works if you do. I'm always looking at new ways in managing ice layers.
   
   Bobby Jaeger
   Superintendent
   Lake Tahoe Golf Course

   
   
   
   
3. James Smith

   

   112 posts
   
   2/9/2015 12:02 PM

   I see the perfect opportunity for you to do some trial test on your greens. Maybe chart them and do different depths and different size holes on different greens. That way you can go back into your records and see what worked best or what made them worse.
   Sorry I cannot give you any advice but Ive never seen ice on my greens before (or anyones else's)

   
   
   
   
4. Jack Tripp

   

   3 posts
   
   2/9/2015 4:02 PM

   The problem I see with using only a 1/4" drill bit is if you get some melting during the day the hole is probably going to fill with water by the end of the day and refreeze solid at night. You would have to drill a lot of 1/4" holes to cover anything bigger than a very small area.
   
   In our area if you get the snow off the ice melts pretty fast on a sunny day. Never had to do anything besides removing the snow to melt ice on greens.
   
   I always try to clear the snow on a very cold /cloudy day when the sun is going to come out for the next several days. If the ice is hard and the snow is not sloppy we can use our tractor/loader and a 3 pt. blade to clear the snow very quickly and not do any damage to the turf.
   
   Jack Tripp
   La Crosse Country Club
   Onalaska, WI

   
   
   
   
5. Jeremy Hreben

   

   0 posts
   
   2/18/2015 3:02 PM

   1/4" thick doesn't sound too thick. What about a 648 with solid tines?

   
   
   
   
6. Kenneth Schumacher

   

   0 posts
   
   2/20/2015 8:02 AM

   Use your aerator, set up to not touch the grass.