Tree Management
by Craig Brisley MBPR FQA
I always find visits this time of year very revealing as many of the issues that affect consistent playing surfaces are highlighted; whether it be drainage, irrigation, traffic management or in this case the issue of shade, light, and air movement on and around surfaces.
With playing surfaces, the difference between the quality of non-affected surfaces and ones affected by one or a mixture of the above is very stark.
The ones affected can show typical signs: thin, weak, lack of wear tolerance, algae, moss, disease, poor rooting. An example being the green in the picture on the right which gets none to minimal light and air flow during the winter months.
Grass - like us - grass needs light and air (in addition to balanced nutrient and moisture) to be healthy, anything missing will affect its health.
In terms of management/improvement, below is a summary of the desired tree species you should aim to retain:
Deep rooting
Minimum shade
Absence of litter
Strong branching
Open canopy
Good pest resistance
While few trees will fulfil all these requirements, tree species with as many desirable features should be chosen/retained, anything else should be removed and reduced either in height or in number.
In the post-war years, various schemes were implemented in many courses - with financial incentives - to encourage tree planting. Due to the cheapness and speed of establishment, species that offer none of above were planted: willows, elm, maple, poplar and the additional scrub they encourage. These also self-seed and overcrowd preferred species - in summary they should not be near the playing surface!
In addition to light, open avenues should be created by removal of selected trees and scrub to allow good air circulation through the area. Note the prevailing wind direction to avoid blocking wind movement into or out of the green.
I look forward to seeing the chainsaw in action and the improvement this makes.
For more information or advice:
Contact your local Collier Turf Care Sales Development Executive or our office on 01328 700600