As you will be aware the surface at the back of the 17th green has been bad for quite a while.
A sub-surface investigation of the green has been carried out and the COM is advised that the roots of the Poplar trees that surround the back and side of the green have infested the green.
Included with this post are the survey photos of the damage caused to the green by the roots of these trees.
We were told that tree roots generally grow to the width of the crown of the tree but on Poplars they can spread 50 to 60 metres from the tree. Poplars are thirsty trees and the capillary type roots shown in the photos are part of the root system that have invaded the green, growing into pipes and drains, sucking away both the moisture and the nutrients from the fertiliser put on the green.
No amount of watering at night or hand watering during the day has helped the surface recover.
The COM has been advised that the Poplar is not a recommended species to have on a golf course for all of the above reasons. Unfortunately, we have 4 of these trees beside the 17th and they are destroying our green.
The Committee of Management has decided to address this issue in two ways.
Short Term (Early May)
Dig a trench at the back and right side of green. The purpose of this trench is to break as much as possible of the attacking roots which will give the green some much needed respite.
Long Term
Apply for a tree felling licence to remove the Poplars around the 17th Green. The Licence will also request permission to remove some if not all of the Poplars at the back of the 14th Green. The awarding of the licence can take up to 6 months to be granted. It is planned that when the licence is granted that the removal of the Poplars will be part of the winter programme late 2022/early 2023. All of this work will be done in house by our own staff who have been trained for this work.
The COM deeply regrets that it must stipulate the removal of these landmark trees but this has been deemed necessary to try and save the green. It is intended that any trees removed will be replaced by suitable native trees.
Committee of Management
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