Tree Work...Lakes 4 & 6, Grove 6

Last week we finished up on Lakes 6 with some removals near the tees, and got rid of the brush piles that had accumulated in the woods on the 7 tee side of the pond.  We then moved to the fairway bunkers on Lakes 4 to remove four trees that cast heavy shade onto the turf, which created a muddy mess in the fall due to the lower angle of the sun.  Once the trees were on the ground we observed varying stages of trunk decay, most likely caused by their proximity to the cart path.  We also spent some time removing the volunteer growth in the left hazard at the beginning of the fairway.  The brush was blocking the view down the left side of the fairway, especially from the silver tee.

Next, we turned our attention to the overgrown area on Grove 6 before the pond on the left side of the fairway.  It's a tangled mess of black cherries, native elms, dead ash trees, honeysuckle and jagger bushes.  All the vegetation is native to western pennsylvania, and grows quickly in areas that are not maintained.  The trees appear to be around 25 years old, which dates back to the time of course construction.  In case you're wondering, we're working in this area to remove the dead trees, but also to allow more sunlight and airflow to reach the fairway and left rough.  Anyone who has played from the left rough will attest how wet it always is, and the fairway isn't much better.  The turf only receives a couple hours of sunlight each day, which isn't nearly enough for healthy growth.  The first step in an area such as this, is to remove the brush and have a clear path of access to the trees.  It required five hours to clear the brush with five employees and our usual mix of equipment.  Once the brush was gone, we started removing trees by the pond and working our way back up the hill.  We're removing trees on the left side of the drainage ditch first, then we'll move to the trees near the fairway and have them fall into the clearing.  This helps keep the branches and debris concentrated in one area and it takes less time to do a final cleanup.  We anticipate three or four days to complete everything.

Trees removed on Lakes 4 near the fairway bunkers.  Notice the thin turf  between the bunker and cart path.

Thin turf in the drive-off area on Lakes 4 before the fairway bunkers.  Notice the shade from the trees even without leaves.  This area usually turns to mud in the fall from lack of sunlight.

This black cherry tree was dead and we believe the holes are from woodpeckers.

Lakes 4 fairway from the silver tee...before

Lakes 4 fairway from the silver tee...after

Making progress on Grove 6

Starting to remove trees near the pond on Grove 6.  The green enclosure on the left is the control panel for the three aerators in the pond.

One of many dead trees on Grove 6 that need to be removed

Wood decay in a black cherry stump

Course Update 3/1/18

Even though the calendar says it's March 1st, the recent weather feels more like May.  Grass is breaking dormancy and starting to green up.  Sap is flowing in the Maple trees and the leaf buds are turning red.  All signs point to an early spring, but I anticipate a few more snow/cold weather events.  With that in mind, we're finishing up our tree work in the next two weeks so we can start getting the courses ready for the season.  Tuesday and Wednesday of this week were rain-free, so we took the opportunity to roll greens and change cups.  Greens are traditionally rolled two or three times before the first mowing to smooth imperfections created during winter freeze/thaw cycles.  If we didn't roll, the bumpy putting surface would cause the mowers to scalp the plants and possibly lead to turf loss.  While the rollers were out, the staff smoothed tire tracks in several fairways created during our snow mold fungicide application in December.

As for the tree work this week, we removed two more large cherry trees overhanging the back of the gold/blue tee on Lakes 7.  Both trees had a significant amount of dead wood high in the canopies that were safety concerns should the dead limbs break off.  We then moved to the wooded area right of the green on Lakes 6 to remove several trees that were blocking full view of the green.  A large area of brush was removed in this same area last year during the tee renovation to improve sightlines, but more work was needed.  With the trees and brush removed, players on the blue and gold tees can now see the right side of the putting surface along with the short-grass collection area.

Blue tee renovation on Lakes 6.  Notice the cleared area on the far side of the pond
that used to be thick brush.

 

Current view of 6 green from the gold tee

Tree Work...Lakes 7 & 8

We started out this week by continuing our assault on the thick brush and trees near the green on Lakes 8.  This is our second year working in this area due to the number and size of the trees that are creating problems from too much shade and limited airflow.  A couple of the trees are 80 feet or taller, and because of the shadows they create we're having to go further into the woods to remove them.  While on Lakes 8, we also cleaned up a large oak tree that separated from it's stump and fell late last year.  This particular tree had two main trunks growing out of the same stump.  After cleaning up the fallen trunk it was determined that the other trunk still standing had significant decay and had to be removed for safety reasons.  It was hanging over the cart path at such a severe angle that it was only a matter of when, not if, it was going to fall and anyone passing underneath was in harm's way.

After finishing up on #8 we moved the operation to #7 and started removing trees that were casting heavy shade on the silver and blue/gold tees.  If you recall from an earlier post, the staff began removing brush and smaller trees in these areas several weeks ago to speed up the removal process once the excavator was there.  We also removed a maple tree that had up-rooted in a recent storm and was hung up in another tree across the cart path.  It would have taken a tree company all day to perform the removal and cleanup, and cost around $2,000 just for that one tree.  We had it down and cleaned up in an hour, and for a fraction of the cost thanks to the right equipment and exceptional staff members.

One half of a double-trunk oak tree down to the right of Lakes 8 fairway

Significant decay inside the base of the other trunk still standing on Lakes 8

Here you can see the other part of the oak tree on the right side of the picture leaning over the cart path towards the fairway on Lakes 8

A large maple tree too close to the blue/gold tee on Lakes 7

Thin, unhealthy rough along the blue/gold tee on Lakes 7 from too much shade

Even a highly maintained bentgrass tee can't compete with big trees

Up-rooted maple hung up in an adjacent tree safely removed by the maintenance staff

Tree Work...Orchard 6 & Lakes 9

Last week we finished up on Orchard 6 by removing the dead trees in the left hazard at the beginning of the fairway.  They had been dead for many years and were an eyesore from the tee.  I was also able to get a better picture on Orchard 6 after all the snow melted.

So far this week we finished removing the pine trees along the tennis courts and started cleaning up around the green on Lakes 9.  The trees and brush along the right greenside bunker had become so thick that grass wouldn't grow along the outer edge and roots were visible in the bunker sand.  As an added benefit, the back portion of the green will now receive full sun and stay drier in the spring and fall.  While on Lakes 9, the staff also spent a good deal of time cleaning up the overgrown area to the right of the cart path just past the green.  The tangled mess of honeysuckle, jaggers, locust and sumac was very unappealing and didn't fit the manicured look of the course and surrounding homes.

Orchard 6...before

Orchard 6...after

Dead trees left of Orchard 6 fairway

30" diameter stump from a dead poplar tree removed on Orchard 6.
You can stick your entire arm down into the cavity.

Dense trees and brush right of Lakes 9 green

No chance of getting turf to grow in these conditions

Overgrown area just past Lakes 9 green...before

Overgrown area...after

Tree Work...Orchard 6

In between all the snow and ice events this week, we were still able to find some time to work on Orchard 6 between the tees and the fairway.  The big tree in the pictures below was a half-dead poplar that had a 30" diameter at the base.  We only have a 25" bar on our largest chainsaw, so it took some time to get the tree on the ground and cleaned up.  We anticipate another day to remove the last few trees in order to have a full view of the fairway.

White tee view...before

White tee view...after

 

Blue tee view...before

Blue tee view...after

Tree Work...Orchard 6

With the ground being thawed the available areas to work in are limited, but that hasn't stopped our progress.  We started clearing vegetation between the fairway and tees on Orchard 6 where significant growth has occurred over the years.   The entire right side of the fairway was blocked from view along with the Out-of-Bounds stakes.  Approximately 25 trees have been removed so far, and we anticipate another couple days to finish removing the vegetation and restore the work area.

Orchard 6 fairway prior to removing trees

Work in progress viewed from the Gold tee

Work in progress viewed from the Blue tee

End of day 1 viewed from the Blue tee

Tree Work...Orchard 5 Green & Lakes 7 Tees

Late last week we started removing trees to the left of Orchard 5 green.  Some work had been done there last year, but more trees needed to come out that continued to cast heavy shade on a majority of the green.  The shade created weak turf that struggled to survive during the summer, which resulted in bare spots on the putting surface.  As the removals progressed, we also discovered that most of the trees had some form of structural damage which led to internal decay.

We had planned to finish the work near 5 green at the beginning of this week, but all the snow melt and heavy rain over the weekend put that on hold.  The turf was too soft to drive the equipment over, so we started thinning out some areas adjacent to the tees on Lakes 7.  The staff was able to keep the equipment on the cart path and have been focused on brush and small trees.  The end result is amazing, just with the brush gone, and we plan to work our way back towards 6 green.  The next step will be to remove a few bigger trees hanging over the path near the tees that are blocking sunlight and airflow.

Big trees create big shadows

Work in progress between Orchard 1 fairway and 5 green

5 green from the approach

Main trunk logs showing signs of decay

Brush removed left of Lakes 7 silver tees

Staff removing brush left of Lakes 7 blue/gold tee

Tree Work...Grove 8 Fairway

This week we've been removing trees on Grove 8 in the hazard left of the fairway approximately 120 yards from the green.  This area had grown up so much that anyone hitting their ball down the left side of the fairway would not have a clear shot to the green.  Removing the trees also addressed a safety issue where players in the fairway could not always see the group ahead of them on the green.  Approximately 30 trees were removed ranging in size from 2" to 15", and plans are to keep the area a hazard and maintained as such.

Before...no view of the green or bunkers

After...green and bunkers in full view

Looking back from the green

Tree Work...Update

With the recent mild temps and snow melt, the conditions are too wet to continue work on the course.  We were able to finish on Orchard 8 early in the week, and then started removing pine trees along the pool and tennis courts.  We'll also be removing pine trees as you drive into the club along the hillside that overlooks the putting green and Orchard 9 green.  Unfortunately, these trees are being killed by a variety of factors and are past the point of saving.

The main cause of death for the trees planted on the hillsides are girdling roots.  Girdling roots are lateral roots that grow around (encircle) the base of the tree.  As the tree matures, the roots become tighter and will cut into the bark and inner cambium.  Over time the girdling roots will cut off the natural flow of water and nutrients throughout the tree, which leads to death.  The main cause of girdling roots is that they develop as a result of trees being planted too deeply.  When roots are covered by too much soil, less oxygen and water is available.  The roots will grow up towards the surface of the soil and encircle the trunk.  All the trees removed so far had girdling roots evident at the soil surface, some worse than others.  The problem with planting trees on hillsides is that for the tree to be straight, one side of the root ball will be covered by too much soil and the other side typically doesn't receive enough soil.  The steeper the slope the worse the problem becomes.

A handful of the pine trees are also being killed by Diplodia Tip Blight.  It's a naturally-occurring fungus that easily spreads by wind and water movement.  The fungus will attack new growth at the tips of the branches and form cankers that will restrict the flow of water and nutrients.  As the infection progresses, the lowest branches will die off and the disease moves upward in the tree.

Pine tree being killed by girdling roots

Girdling roots caused by planting on a hillside

One of several dead pine trees along hillside overlooking practice green

Pine tree near tennis courts showing signs of Diplodia Tip Blight

Tree Work...Update

This week the staff finished clearing the unwanted brush and downed trees near the short fairway on the right of Grove 9.  There was a considerable amount of debris that had accumulated over the years, but the end result is amazing.  We can't wait to see it this spring when everything starts to green up!  The next area on the list is to clean up/remove a few trees and the remaining brush along the lake edge on lower Orchard 8.  The beginning of the fairway still had considerable shade from a handful of trees, so we are getting them out while the ground is frozen.  The next location for targeted removals is to the left of Orchard 5 green.  We did some work in there last winter, but realized this summer that more trees need to come out that are casting heavy shade on the green.

Hazard area before right fwy on Grove 9 all cleaned up

View from Grove 9 tees prior to tree work (Spring 2016)

View from Grove 9 tees after tree work (Winter 2018)

Bryan Morgan (Assistant Superintendent) flush cutting a stump

Maintenance staff thinning out trees along Orchard 8 lake edge 

 

Having the right equipment makes the job safer and more efficient