The Tree Mission Getting back to Roots
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| Many golf courses are returning to their roots… courses with fewer trees. In the beginning, trees on the golf course were hardly an issue because often there weren’t any, or very many on many courses. |
| Nowadays, trees are one of the most beautiful features on many golf courses around the country serving many functions. They’re challenging obstacles, a safety buffer between holes, they’re often visual and provide sound barriers for surrounding communities. They promote wildlife habitat and add aesthetic value to a golf course. And while they can assist golfers with shot selections, direction and execution, trees can be a hazard…a most difficult three-dimensional hazard for golfers. |
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Today however, many courses are getting rid of trees. Why? What are the issues? What’s wrong with trees on the golf course. Why is removing trees such an emotional issue? |
| The impact of trees on course is much greater than many golfers realize. Trees and turf just can’t get along and despite the many seemingly advantages, trees cause excessive shade with roots are all over the place. They block air movement that promotes healthy turf, continually interfering with watering. |
| Trees are another one of the major predicaments golf course superintendents face every year. If it isn’t a matter of providing the memberships with championship tournament conditions every day, it’s golfers promoting faster green speeds that kill. Mostly no-win situations for superintendents. |
| Is it a matter of golf course keepers hating trees…? Not on your life! But like many other aspects of a golf course, tree selection and placement require planning, something that often hasn’t happened. |
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“Trees obviously have their pluses and minuses, but if they are planted with some thought, they are an addition to the course. The problem lies when they are planted randomly with no plan in mind,” says Dave Fearis, CGCS, 30 years a golf course superintendent and now a turf and ornamental product specialist with PBI/Gordon. |
| “This includes putting them too close to greens and tees when the shade interferes with the growth of the turf, leaves falling on the putting surfaces and air movement is impeded to the green. Also, if they are planted too close together in the rough, mowers can’t get in between them, thus creating a lot of hand labor.” |
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Fearis suggests “they are planted in too great numbers and start competing with the turf for nutrients, light and/or water. I have seen tree roots 30 yards from a tree seeking water. |
| “A good tree program should be established at a club with the help of a qualified golf course architect, an arborist, the green committee and the golf course superintendent. A plan like this could be included in the overall master plan of a golf course. If you don’t have a good tree plan, you end up with situations like those I’ve talked about. |
| “Everyone likes trees but forget what they will look like 20-25 years from now. With the constant change in our environmental conditions, you need an expert that knows what species of trees will survive in what climate under what conditions,” Fearis contends. |
| “My guess is that superintendents probably plant a great deal more trees than they remove during their careers,” says Jim Moore, USGA director of green construction education. “However, superintendents are understandably concerned about anything that makes it difficult, and sometimes impossible to maintain good turf. Tree competition for light is the single largest factor that causes weak turf on most courses.” |
| “There is an old adage than makes a lot of sense when it comes to this issue. Sod farms don’t raise trees, and tree farms don’t raise sod. Since grass has such a high light demand, and is unable to vertically outgrow the trees to get to the light, the trees win every time,” he asserted. |
| “It should also be noted that it is often not necessary to completely remove trees. Pruning to allow light to reach the turf (often beneath the tree canopy) can make all the difference in many cases. Selective tree removal (in a stand of trees) can often be performed to allow enough light in to support the grass. |
| “Finally,” he said “remember that over the past 20 years cutting heights on greens have been significantly lowered. Greens that used to be cut at 3/16 of an inch are now cut at 1/8 of an inch or less. Another way to look at this is that the length of the leaf has been cut in half or even greater. The ability of the grass plant to gather light has been greatly reduced - even without tree competition. Also remember that most courses are experiencing heavier play than they did years ago. For the turf to recover from traffic, it has to grow rapidly. |
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“Rapid growth is fueled by photosynthesis. It is that simple,” Moore stressed. |
| P. Stan George CGCS, of Prairie Dunes Country Club, Hutchinson, KS says, “superintendents realize what most golfers do not. When trees are coveted at any expense, turf suffers. No way around it, no ifs ands or buts, just fact. |
| “The necessity of removing trees (or thinning the canopy or thinning the number of trees in close proximity to each other) is directly related to maintaining the health of the turf, if the particular turf is deemed more of a priority than the tree or trees in question,” George maintains. |
| “Morning sunlight, air circulation, reduced competition from tree roots, especially when too near a putting green surface, are only a few reasons that trees should be evaluated on a regular basis and should be considered for trimming or removal. Services are available now that can accurately determine the exact tree or even the limb or limbs of a tree that, if removed, would provide significant benefit to the turf below. Such compromises, although they do not remove all of the concerns regarding trees too close to putting surfaces, seem to be a reasonable alternative in many cases.” |
| In Fearis’ opinion, many don’t give thought to just how trees will look 20-30 years down the road. Trees sneak up on you! Over time they affect the way golfers will play a course, even though the original design for a course did not take into account the effect trees might have on playability. In fact, many classic course designers did not believe the game needed trees. |
| “How many times have you seen a fairway that has narrowed over the years because the trees have matured? Have you played a course where you hit into a bunker only to be further penalized by a tree in close proximity to your next shot? In probably both cases, there was no foresight of how those trees would affect the future playability of the course,” he asserted. |
| “I remember taking a GCSAA seminar from Geoff Cornish and Brian Silva in the late 70’s on golf course design. A comment was made in that seminar that most renovation work on a golf course involves bunkers and trees. They went on to… say that it didn’t involve tree planting but tree removal.” |
| So why is tree removal such an emotional issue, why is there such a brouhaha when a tree topples? Why are trees downed in the dead of night? |
| “Is there anyone that does not love a beautiful tree? I doubt that anyone wants to remove a tree just for the sake of doing so,” Moore says. “However, there are times when members must make a choice between the tree and healthy turf. I have been on visits to courses where I explained…that their only real option on a particularly shaded tee, for example, was to remove the tree or have a thin tee. |
| “I have also occasionally recommended they live with the thin turf since the tree was so beautiful. I have even recommended artificial turf in some circumstances. With the improvement in the artificial surfaces over the past couple of years, I would rather have good plastic than really bad grass - assuming tree removal is not possible. |
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“There is also the fear that removing the tree won’t really solve the turf problem. Fortunately, there are new technologies now that allow us to much more accurately predict the amount of light that will result from the tree’s removal,” Moore suggested. |
| “Some people understandably associate such longevity with their emotions and feel emotional attachment to such trees,” George explained. “I have planted almost 1,000 trees over the span of my career, all of them in western Kansas where trees are a valuable commodity for providing shade and blocking the wind. In such instances, unless planted too near greens or other playing surfaces to impede sunlight or cause root competition, the wind is so prominent that blocking too much wind is almost impossible. However, after visiting these two golf courses 20 years later, I wish I had planted about half as many trees.” |
| “When a decision has been made to remove some trees, some times it is best done when the golf course is closed. Often times, players will never notice that a tree has been removed (especially one or two in a large grouping), but if they see the removal being completed, controversy often arises. |
| “It is difficult to determine which trees are important to some members,” he argued. “I have seen members fight to save gnarly, volunteer trees completely in the wrong location, with severely broken limbs from ice damage, a real eyesore and a safety issue that is not likely to live much longer anyway. Conversely, some nice specimen trees may get knocked down by high wind or lightning and the reaction may be ‘oh well, Mother Nature has her way.’” |
| Fearis believes it’s such an emotional issue because “tree removal becomes a personal thing with the members, especially the older ones. |
| “They have seen the course mature, and the trees that were small twigs grow into beautiful, towering specimens. The trees become part of their memories of the course. To cut those trees down is like taking away a part of their memory and history of the course.” |
| So why so much secrecy? “Because you eliminate all the complaints and personal issues involved, “ Fearis contends. “Given a choice of removing a diseased tree or one that interferes with play or leaving it, many members would choose the latter. |
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“So, golf course superintendents remove them when the course is closed or even at night. A recent article in one of the trade magazines about tree removal talked about a course that removed all their trees at night. They cut the tree down, chipped up the branches, ground up the stump and sodded over where the tree was all in a night. Obviously, in that situation, you couldn’t have too many homes close by because of the noise factor.” |
| And he has another solution. |
| “I also remember seeing the cover of an old USGA Greens Section “Record” when there were two chain saws laying on a table. One had “thunder” stenciled on its cutting blade; the other one labeled “lightning.” When the superintendent was asked what happened to such and such tree on hole No. 6, he just said that thunder and lightning got it. So, it might be good to cut down trees after a storm.” |
| Where does all this leave us with golfers’ expectations and what they can realistically get at private clubs around the country? The objective of this three-part series has given us an opportunity to let superintendents speaks their piece…to maybe find peace in meeting the ever-rising demands of their members. |
| Why is Augusta so great? Why doesn’t our course look like that? Is the grass really greener on the other side of the fence? |
| Golf course superintendents hear these questions with surprising regularity because golfers who watch events such as the U.S. Open, or the Masters want to know why their own courses just don’t look as good, or why someone else’s course “appears” to be better. It’s like comparison shopping! |
| These meticulously manicured courses are spectacular aesthetically, and for playing professionals. But they are courses, so far as golf course superintendents are concerned, that often raise unrealistic expectations. |
| Clubs hosting these major events have months, if not years, to prepare. And in the end, the championship conditions are temporary. So what’s realistic, and what do golf course superintendents think? |
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“Golfers’ expectations are often not realistic, but they are understandable given the examples seen weekly on tour or during other televised events,” says George. All this of course, leads to intense competition among clubs for members. It’s a golfer’s market. |
| Then there’s green speed! A speedy green for many golfers is the name of the game. Never mind that equipment today allows golfers to hit the ball farther, more often and with greater accuracy, golfers want more speed when their ball hits the green. |
| Often it’s club members sitting around watching the regular weekend professional tournament and then telling their course superintendent “they want greens that putt like that.” It’s a dilemma for superintendents and their staffs with one club “out-Stimping” one another in the push for faster greens. |
| “The quest for speed is not something new,” says Fearis. “However I would say there are three factors that have contributed to or accelerated the issue: 1) Stimpmeter 2) television and 3) the increased number of golf courses.” As well, many golfers equate green speed with quality. The faster the green speed, the better the putting quality. |
| At the same time some players feel faster greens give them “an advantage over others who are not as skilled,” asserted Ken Mangum, CGCS, director of golf courses and grounds, Atlanta Athletic Club. “Most of the time I think it is purely bragging rights over who has the fastest greens. Members like to impress their guest with fast greens. |
| Obviously, TV golf has a huge impact on everyone. They see long drives and fast greens so they go buy new drivers and come to the club expecting to have fast greens like the ‘pros’ play each week.” |
| So speed greens create many of the same challenges heightened maintenance creates. Faster greens slow the pace of play and at the same time require more maintenance, place more stress on the plant and increase the labor required to maintain not only the greens but also the machinery that is used on the greens. |
| It’s all part of wanting that “perfect” golf course. So in all this give and take, what is “perfect?” Moore has an interesting definition. |
| “Many times over my career I have heard players on the same course on the same day voice exactly opposite opinions on issues such as greens speed, playability of the bunkers, and the quality of the food in the snack bar. To me, perfect is meeting the needs of as much of your clientele as you can,” he asserted. |
| “I play a municipal course that will not make the cover of anyone’s magazine. However, I hear very few complaints from the many players I encounter. Players are treated well in the pro shop, the snack bar, by the cart boys, and the course maintenance staff they encounter during their round. The facility is always clean and in good repair. There is a good junior golfer program in place and an excellent practice facility. |
| “The course itself can’t compete with the local country club but overall it is always in good condition with a great deal of emphasis on playing quality. The design of the course is such that expensive hand labor is kept to a minimum. Environmentally, the course uses effluent water, is planted to grasses well suited to the climate, and has excellent growing conditions resulting in limited pesticide needs. |
| “The maintenance and pro shop staffs play regularly with a lot of different players. The design of the course is such that both the once a month player and the single digit enthusiast enjoy it. And green fees are reasonable. Pretty darn close to perfect in my eyes,” he declared. |
| Publisher's final thoughts |
| These issues of enhanced maintenance, green speed and tree removal along with environmental quality and requirements, dwindling budgets, finding quality staff, equipment needs and course architecture mitigate against the “perfect course. These issues are not going to disappear. But it’s incumbent on boards of directors to listen to their golf course superintendents…to hear what they have to say, and heed their message about the fragile ecosystems called golf courses to ensure the survival of what is now part of our great heritage. BR |
| At least, that's the way I see it! |
| What's your opinion. If you wish to respond to the Publisher's Perspective, or other BoardRoom articles, contact Publisher John G. Fornaro by email at john@apcd.com. |
| John Fornaro Publisher |