• Asian Journal of Turfgrass Science
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.133-137
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• 2011

Winterkill can be defined as any injury including freeze stress kill, winter desiccation, and low temperature disease to turfgrass plants that occurs during the winter period. The major damages from winterkill were low temperature kill, crown hydration, and winter desiccation. Low temperature kill is caused by air and soil temperature. Soil temperature affect more severe to turfgrass than air temperature because low soil temperature cause fetal damage to turfgrass crown. Crown hydration is a form of winter injury in which intercellular water within the plant freezes and causes physical injury to the cell membrane and wall. This is eventually resulted in dehydration of cell. Winter desiccation is the death of leaves or whole plants due to drought during the winter period. To reduce winterkill damage, cultivar selection is very important. If changing cultivar is not allowed, cold temperature hardiness needs to be increased by providing nutrients especially phosphorus and potassium in the late fall. Turf cover is effective way to reduce winterkill damage. Remaining snow is positive process to reduce winterkill damage by insulating soil temperature. The previous researches reported many materials as turf cover such as straw, polypropylene, polyester, and wood mat. Aeration and topdressing is one of the process against winterkill. Both methods are mainly conducted to reduce thickness of thatch layer. In recent, relatively new materials called black or winter topdressing sand are used to protect soil temperature from low air temperature and thaw ice crystal that may remain in soil.