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Towering evergreen trees are a common sight around golf courses in the northwest. They delineate holes, hide undesirable views, and provide strategic and visual interest to the golf course. While these can all be good things, the well-documented challenges of tree shade and root competition certainly apply when trees are too close together or too close to playing areas.

Many courses have begun tree removal programs to improve turf growing conditions; however, some courses do not have this option. For any number of reasons, a course may not be allowed or able to remove trees. In these situations, the next best thing could be pruning many of the lower limbs on certain trees. Removing lower branches can make a dramatic improvement in at least five key areas:

Ease of maintenance - When large mowers can easily fit underneath the lowest branches, speed and ease of maintenance increases exponentially. Operators can work more efficiently and less string trimming and hand work is necessary.

Better irrigation coverage - Eliminating low-hanging branches that are blocking irrigation heads will improve water distribution. This means less wet and dry areas around trees.

Longer sunlight windows - Removing lower limbs allows more low-angle sunlight to reach the turf, which can help dissipate dew and frost in the mornings and extend the amount of time sun reaches the grass throughout the day. Some extra low-angle sunlight proves especially valuable during the winter and shoulder seasons.

View improvement - Some tree-lined courses can feel claustrophobic. By limbing-up trees, you’ll create view corridors that were previously blocked. Views to other parts of the property and beyond can be enhanced with strategic pruning of lower limbs.

Better playability - If golfers can find their ball and advance it easier, pace of play should improve, and overall golfer satisfaction will be higher. Getting stuck behind low branches all day does not make for an enjoyable round of golf.

Tree removal and pruning can be challenging issues for any course. If removal is out of the question, try a trunk show.

West Region Agronomists:

Brian  Whitlark, senior consulting agronomist – bwhitlark@usga.org

Cory Isom, agronomist – cisom@usga.org

Information on the USGA’s Course Consulting Service

Contact the Green Section Staff