Sunlight, Trees and Healthy Turf

Grass needs sunlight to produce food for growth. In the winter, when there is no growth, sunlight is perhaps more important. Without sun, snow and ice cannot melt and the risk of injury increases. When winter damage does occur, the absence of sunlight slows recovery.

On #8 green South, the two trees south of the green completely shade the green throughout the winter. This winter we sustained damage on the green that without sun, will take much longer to recover. In an effort to expedite recovery, we are removing the large Silver Maple at the back left of the green, almost doubling the amount of sun #8 green receives. The Elm at the front left of the green will remain.

The tree was inspected by the club's consulting Certified Arborist and the following is a portion of her report:

The 8^th green on the south course has had turf injury in recent winters. Contributing to the difficult environmental conditions is the obstruction of sunlight by the large (44” dbh) silver maple on the south edge of the green.  This tree prolongs the shade patterns in the fall, minimizing plant vigor going into the dormant season. During the winter, the large tree canopy combined with low sun angles prevents sun from reaching the green surface and interferes with snow melt.   Below is a discussion of the silver maples’ current condition.

Overall, this tree would be rated as a ‘fair-to-poor’ specimen.