Aerating in the late fall, just prior to winter dormancy, is a great way to protect against winter injury and get turf on the right track for a successful season next year. Many golf courses are preparing to deep-tine aerate their putting greens in the coming weeks to encourage water infiltration and gas exchange, and to drive root growth deep into the putting green soil profile. Fracturing the soil to a depth of 10 inches or more helps to alleviate any hardpan that may have developed from repeatedly aerating to the same 3-inch depth earlier in the year. The deeper aeration channels also provide more space for water to move through the soil. Getting standing water off the turf surface, particularly on putting greens, helps reduce the risk of freezing damage that can occur during winter.
There are many contractors that can provide this service if you don’t have your own deep-tine aerator. For only a few cents per square foot, they will come to your course and aerate your greens. All you have to do is flag your sprinkler heads and they will do the rest. A popular setup is 0.5-inch solid tines as it causes negligible disruption to the surface and requires no cleanup, making it feasible for even those operations that have reduced staffing at this point in the year.
Northeast Region Agronomists:
Adam Moeller, director, Green Section Education – amoeller@usga.org
Darin Bevard, director, Championship Agronomy – dbevard@usga.org
Elliott Dowling, agronomist – edowling@usga.org
John Daniels, agronomist – jdaniels@usga.org