Perhaps more
than any other benefit they provide, trees around a golf course delight the golfer with
the experience of being in the natural environment separate from the fast pace of city
life. Trees around a golf course also shape the fairways, add color, texture, and variety
to the wide open spaces that characterize golf courses, and all too often provide the
obstacles which make going from the tee to the green so interesting.
But trees are living objects too. They require constant care and attention in the same way
that the greens and the fairways do. Just as important to the game of golf as are green
putting surfaces and neatly mowed fairways, so too are the healthy trees around the
fairways that attract golfers to the course and keep them coming back again and again. And
that is why it is important to pay attention to the health of individual trees that
comprise the "fairway forest." Unfortunately, a tree's decline in health
sometimes goes unseen to the untrained eye. But DuBois Forestry and Land
Management Professionals can help.
As trained professionals we can spot the decline of individual trees in the fairway
forest, and we can recommend corrective measures to improve the health and vigor of trees
in decline. The first step is to identify the unhealthy component of the fairway forest
with a Fairway Forest Diagnostic Analysis (FFDA). A FFDA will provide the
course manager with an overall picture of the relative health of the trees that comprise
the fairway forest. With the data we collect in a Fairway Forest Diagnostic
Analysis we can then prepare a written Fairway Forest Management Plan
in which we can identify the problem trees and in which we can make specific
recommendations to improve conditions among trees in the forest. But sometimes treating
the symptoms is not enough. Sometimes getting to the root of the problem involves the
selective removal of individual trees while we promote the growth of others.
We might recommend that certain trees in the fairway forest be removed for one of two
reasons: trees with infectious diseases, caused by living pathogens, which can lead to
infection among other trees in the fairway forest, or; trees with noninfectious diseases,
caused by nonliving pathogens, which are stress factors that cause injury and death to the
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Infectious
diseases are caused by microorganisms such as fungi, bacteria, nematodes, viruses, and
mycoplasmas. Noninfectious diseases are caused by environmental stresses such as moisture,
temperature, sunlight, and animal and human injuries.
People pressure affects trees around a golf course in many ways. Mowers cause damage to
roots and bark. Artificial lighting can alter a trees physiology. The wrongful application
of herbicides, insecticides, and fertilizers can weaken trees or even kill them. Soil
compaction along cart paths can lead to tree root mortality. The examples are many and are
not always easily identified as the cause of tree decline.
A Fairway Forest Management Plan provides the course manager with all the
information he or she needs to maintain or improve the quality of the fairway forest. To
implement the Fairway Forest Management Plan, the professionals at DuBois
Forestry and Land Management provide the necessary services to help you get the
job done.
Treating diseased trees may involve the surgical removal of infected branches and other
tree parts, or it may involve the application of an insecticide or repellent. Sometimes
the problem with trees in a fairway forest is simply one of nutrient deficiency, in which
case an application of fertilizer would be in order.
Whatever the case may be, DuBois Forestry and Land Management Professionals are
available to help. Let trained eyes inspect your fairway forest today to insure that the
trip from the tee to the green tomorrow will be an enjoyable one.
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