Buffers

This is a picture of one of the greens at Swinley Forest Golf Club in England. The backdrop for this green is a huge thicket of Rhododendron.  This backdrop is not only attractive, it's also the most perfect vegetative buffer. It's perfect because it's dense, evergreen, and just the right height.  It's tall enough to hide or screen something in the background that you don't want to see, and not so tall that it will ever cause serious shade problems on the putting surface.  All too often vegetative buffers are designed using trees which ultimately grow to a height which cause serious shade problems. Such is the case at Tacoma where in the past the Douglas fir tree was planted extensively to screen the perimeter of the property.  The Douglas fir is an invasive native tree which grows rapidly and when it's planted in the wrong place it quickly can cause serious shade problems.  The trees planted between the freeway and the Club's boundary are starting to become a real problem in regard to shade.  The Club's Tree Management Plan is addressing this serious issue.  I thought I'd share some of what we've done so far.
This picture of 12 goes back to 2009.  In 2010, a sewer pipeline was installed along the east property line and that project involved removing hundreds of trees including those behind the 12th green.  This was great for improving growing conditions on the 12th green but it really exposed the view of the freeway and the fence-line.  Here's what it looked like after the trees were removed.  

You can imagine at the time there was a huge desire to quickly replant something to buffer the new unsightly backdrop.  We had to come up with a planting plan and in fact this exercise back in 2010 was the catalyst for creating the Club's Tree Management Plan.  You see at the time the Club didn't have a plan to deal with the growing problem of shade which was inevitably going to cause serious damage to the golf course playing surfaces.  When the sewer project came about, it was clear that we needed a plan, not only to restore the grounds impacted by the project, but to deal with the rapidly growing trees throughout the property.  We made some mistakes when we replanted after the sewer project, but we also got some things right.  Here's what 12 looks like today.  Good buffering of the fence-line with evergreen shrubs that will never cause a shade problem for the putting surface.  

Next case in point look at the work we did on #3 tee.  This was the first project following the approval of the current Tree Management Plan which clearly defines the Club's strategy in regard to buffer plantings.  Here's what it looked like before tree removal.  The goal here was to improve growing conditions for the teeing grounds and then buffering the view of the maintenance facility.  

Below is what this area looks like today.  Great buffering of the maintenance facility and lots of sunlight for the turf.  In fact the growing conditions are so good here that soon we will be removing this cart path as we've done with great success in other areas.  I should note that yes we are using trees in the new buffers, but we're only using species which when mature do not achieve a height that would cause a shade problem in the future.

Next case in point and in that same general area, check out this project we completed around #2 green.  Here's a look at the site before tree removal and buffer planting.  The project goal was to improve growing conditions for the putting green, and plant a buffer to screen the view of traffic on the road in the background.

There has been several tree removal projects for this particular putting surface and in this phase, 5 large firs were removed to capture a greater amount of morning light.  Here's what it looks like today.  Great buffering of the background and now the sward we have on this putting green is as good as any on the rest of the playing field.

Lastly, let's look at a very recent project near the south end of the property.  This is the 14th green before we performed any tree removal.  The goal with this project was to improve growing conditions on the putting surface and establish a buffer to screen the view of cars on Thorne Lane.

Here's the same view today.  Check out the obvious increase in sunlight, and the buffer planting is very effective which is cool considering it was just planted.  I can't wait to take this same picture in 5 years.

So this is pretty exciting stuff in my opinion.  The Tree Management Plan is not just about preserving the oak savanna or tree removal for improved growing conditions.  It specifically addresses the serious issue of the Club's perimeter where there is a need for an effective, sustainable privacy screen.  So you might be curious which area we're going to be working on next.  Click HERE for the Tree Management Strategic Plan which is a summary of the plan's upcoming projects.

The Tree Management Plan

If you've been on the golf course lately, you most likely noticed some trees marked with orange ribbon like this dying hemlock tree on the right side of #1 fairway.  Yes, these trees are marked because they are scheduled for removal.  Currently  there are over 100 trees on the golf course that are marked with ribbon and are scheduled for removal.  The Club's Board of Directors recently approved the revised Tree Management Plan (TMP) presented by the Green Committee and endorsed by the City of Lakewood.  The TMP has a 5 year schedule of projects aimed at managing the golf course trees.  The trees marked with ribbon today are those that are involved with the first year of the plan.  If you would like a copy of the TMP so that you can see the entire 5 year plan, click HERE and you can download it. 

A large majority of the trees scheduled for removal during year one reside in the area east of the driving range which looks like this and is obviously densely wooded.  This project will be a dramatic improvement as it will eliminate the under-story of blackberries and other undesirable shrubs. That means we will reduce the habitat that is desired by critters like rats, coyotes and other vermin.  In addition, by removing the under-story and many of  the fir trees, the area will be maintainable while releasing over 30 threatened oak trees.  Once this area is opened up and maintainable, we will no longer loose hundreds of golf balls coming off the range tee.  Releasing oak trees is the act of removing trees that are competing against the oak trees for light, water, nutrients, etc.  Why are we releasing oak trees??  Oak savannas like the land the Club sits on are now one of the most rare ecosystems on the planet.  All the plants and animals associated with oak savannas are now on the threatened or endangered list.  So really the basic answer to the question of "why?" is simply that it is the right thing to do.  Another reason to take care of the oak trees is pretty evident by looking at the above picture.  An area overgrown with Douglas fir doesn't look like a very fun place to golf.  When you favor the oak trees, you have to provide sunlight and air which is exactly what grass needs also.  The better the grass the better the golf.  Click HERE to read more on the process of oak release. 

Here is another picture of the area east of the range and here you can see some of the huge oak trees that will be released.   This really is an exciting project.  It's refreshing to be doing something that not only benefits the golf course but it actually benefits everyone.  The entire community benefits when you try and preserve a threatened ecosystem because it helps maintain species diversity.  Look up the term Biodiversity and you'll see just how important this concept is.  Nowadays you hear a lot about the public's perception that golf courses are bad and that they are polluting our environment.  Many of those people will never be convinced to the contrary, but they would have to admit that Tacoma C&GC is different.  They would have to say "Wow, those folks are actually choosing to make a positive impact on the environment".  What they also should know is that the Club has been doing this for quite a while.

Do any of you remember the project east of the 3rd green.  In 2009 several oaks were released between the 3rd green and the 4th tee.

This picture shows some of those oaks as we were restoring the area.  Now today go check out these oaks as your walking to the 4th tee.  They have really turned the corner and are putting on a lot of new growth.

Remember also in 2009 the project east of the first green.  Those two little oaks in the center of the picture above used to be surrounded by firs.  Of course the turf on the green is much happier also.

Maybe you remember the project near the 2nd tee.  It wasn't too long ago but the oaks released there have to be some of the nicest specimens on the property.

This is what they look liked right after being released.  It's going to be fun watching these trees flourish in the future.

 On 13 we were very proactive by releasing the oaks near 15 tee which had yet to be overtopped by the firs.  Because the Douglas fir grows so rapidly, it wouldn't have been long before these trees overtopped the nearby oaks.  Removing the firs now while they are small is much more financially responsible.

Here's an after picture and you can see on the left side of the photo those oaks near 15 tee are now in the open and loving life.  By far one of the most successful "release" projects was when the new 11th tee was constructed.  Check out these pictures.  The 11th tee is surrounded by oak trees which now have a chance to live for our future generations to enjoy.

I seriously feel blessed to have been involved with these projects and so excited to do more with the new TMP.  You can imagine most Golf Course Superintendents don't have a chance to do something that is not only good for the golf course, but also good for everyone.  The new Tree Management Plan is just that.....A Win Win all around.

The Punchbowl

Here is a really neat aerial from 1957 showing the 16th hole (4th hole at that time).  Notice the green complex back then had no trees around it, and the no bunkers.  The bunker you see behind the green in this photo is actually the fairway bunker for #11.  The original green complex on today's 16th hole was a classic example of a "punchbowl".  What is a punchbowl?  Well it is exactly what it sounds like.  A "punchbowl" green is a putting surface that sits in a depression, so that the putting green appears as a "bowl" with a relatively flat bottom and sides rising up from that bottom.  The bottom is the putting surface, the "sides" of the bowl typically consist of mounding around three sides of the putting surface.  The front of a punchbowl green is open to the fairway to allow golf balls to run onto the green.  The idea of a "punchbowl" is nothing new.  In fact it is one of the oldest golf course design concepts so it's really no surprise to see it at Tacoma which is one of America's first 100 clubs and one of the oldest golf courses.  Click HERE to read more about the origins of the "punchbowl".

Unfortunately sometime after 1957, misguided tree plantings were made around Tacoma's punchbowl green.  Even worse, roughs were allowed to encroach on the green so the opportunity to run the ball along the ground was taken away.  Above you see what #16 green looked like in 2011 before we started any renovations.  In 2012, Mother Nature helped us out by killing some of the trees behind the green in a freakish wind event.  Then we started renovations and began mowing the course with less roughs and more short grass around all the greens.  Now today in 2015 we have decided to further restore the punchbowl and this is the story of what we did.

First we dismantled the last remaining flowering cherry tree from behind the green. Ornamental trees like this are so inappropriate on a golf course, especially 10 feet from a putting surface like this one was planted.  Its shallow root system was undermining the green and the roots themselves were along the surface making it dangerous for anyone to strike a golf ball in that area.  Anyway we removed the tree and all of its root system.

Then we brought in some new trees.  Now these are not ordinary trees.  We brought in endangered Garry Oak trees as part of our oak savanna preservation plan.  This is a historic moment because for the first time we are actually taking steps to replace some of the treasured oak trees that have been lost over the past century. These trees came from a nursery that has made a serious commitment to preserve the Garry oak.  The folks at this nursery seek out oak trees that are scheduled for destruction and then move them to their preserve where they can be cared for while a new owner is found.  Thankfully, we found these people and have formed a friendship.  We now have a great resource for future plantings of native oaks in order to preserve and protect the oak savanna here at Tacoma C&GC.

 The trees we brought in were not small.  Each one weighed close to a ton.   I needed help getting them from the parking lot to the site behind the 16th green and my friend Micah had the perfect machine.  His skid steer has smooth tracks that allow him to carry heavy loads right across fairways leaving little to no damage.  It took Micah only about an hour to carry the trees out to the 16th green which will be their new home for the next several hundred years.

 Positioning them was more difficult than I thought it would be, but of course I have the most amazing staff and they got it done in typical, brilliant fashion.  The oak trees should be very happy here since they will be in full sun which is what they like.  If you're going to have trees on your golf course, a Garry oak would be a good choice.  Since they're deciduous, light and air passes through them in the winter allowing for good turf conditions in surrounding areas.  In addition, they do not have surface roots or even shallow roots.  You can grow grass right up to the base of them and play a golf shot from around them without fear of breaking your club or wrist.

Once the trees where planted, sand was brought in and used to grade the slope so that it was smooth and ready for sod.

 Today we are now mowing this area at fairway height and the punchbowl is almost fully restored.  In order to fully restore the punchbowl we would have to remove the bunker and take short grass all around the left side of the green.  I'm sure that would be really neat, but right now we do not have that as part of the plan.  I'll never forget the morning in May 2012 when we started our bunker renovation.  This bunker on 16 was where we decided to start so it was going to be our first attempt at building fescue bullnosed bunkers.  John Harbottle III got to the site before me since this bunker was only a few hundred feet from his house.  He called me on his cell from this spot at 16 green and said "Joel, I'm thinking we should just remove this bunker since it's only been here since 1989."  When I got out to the site we discussed it together.  John knew that it should be removed but eventually we decided to just build it.  If the bunker project would have ended here I think things would have turned out different.  No doubt we will be discussing the merits of this bunker over the next couple of seasons and who knows, maybe it will go and the punchbowl green will be fully restored.  

For now, the bunker John built here is really cool and the newly restored slope behind the green is very cool.  The introduction of 5 new endangered oak trees is honestly one of the most exciting things I've ever done.  The 16th hole at Tacoma is arguably one of the best holes on the course and now it is even so much better.  I can't wait to hear the stories of shots played on and around the restored slope.

The Oak

You might remember one of my recent blog posts where I reported that the golf course at Tacoma C&GC was built on what was once a prairie.  If you didn't read that post, you can do it right now by clicking HERE.  Many of you approached me after I posted that history lesson and praised the effort I was making to protect this important legacy.  In the same way I know that many are not interested in protecting this threatened ecosystem.  As with most things we do as a Committee, there will always be those on both sides of the debate.  Personally, I'm very excited about the work we're doing at this very moment to preserve what's left of the prairie and if you happen to be a Garry Oak Tree, you will be happy that the Club is taking steps to preserve you and propagate you.

Before I get into specifics of what that means, let's just take a moment to define "prairie".  I think most people think of prairie as the large grasslands in central North America known as the great plains.  That is only one type of prairie.  The picture above was taken on arguably the most famous prairie golf course in the country.  That is Prairie Dunes Country Club in Kansas and it's currently ranked 25th on the list of 100 greatest golf courses in America.  As you can see, the prairie that Prairie Dunes was built on is very similar to that type of prairie that Tacoma was built on.  These are not grassland prairies.  They are sparsely wooded prairies which are specifically referred to as oak savannas.  As you may know, the oak savannas that once covered our region are all but lost and as a result, the Garry Oak which is Washington's only native oak tree, is becoming one of the most threatened tree species. Why are the oak savannas disappearing?  Much of the land has been taken for farming or development but mostly the savannas are shrinking due to the lack of fire or periodic burning.  Without fires to keep them in check, fast growing conifers eventually overtop and ultimately kill the sun-loving oak trees.  In the mid 1800's, European settlers arrived and put a stop to the regular burning of the woodlands.  Click HERE to read more about oak savannas which are now considered one of the rarest plant communities on earth.   So what are we doing to protect and preserve the oak savanna here at Tacoma C&GC?  First of all we are trying to address the oaks that are most at risk.

Specimens like this one on 16 approach which have suffered serious damage are being closely monitored.








Here you can see that particular tree being cabled to the adjacent fir so as to prevent total failure.  Right now we have over a dozen Garry oaks on the course which have cables in them in order to strengthen their branch structure.  To date we have lost only one oak tree that has been cabled.  It is definitely a strategy that works.  It is also a strategy that is expensive so we cannot put cables in every oak tree.  So what steps do we take to protect the oak woodlands?  Right now we are taking a pro active roll in simply making sure each and every oak tree gets a fair chance to live out it's entire life.  In order to do this, we need to give these trees the growing conditions that they are adapted to.  Oak trees need full sun exposure and good air flow which is what they would get if they still lived on a native oak savanna.  So are we restoring the savanna?  Only in our dreams.  Restoring the savanna can only be done by reintroducing fire and periodically burning the woodlands.  This isn't going to happen since we are also interested in protecting the playing field for golf.  Thus, we need to manually work at sustaining the nature of the savanna as a sparsely wooded green space in order to favor the growing conditions that encourage the survival of the oak trees.  Simply stated, we need ensure that only native species occupy the golf course green space and control their numbers to mimic the typical density which would be found on a true oak savanna.  As good environmental stewards, the Club is already actively doing some of this work.  Check this out.

The image above is a 1979 aerial of the south end of the property.  Notice I added the hole numbers on the image, but of course in 1979 the holes we know today as 13-15 haven't been built yet.  Look at the parcel of land where those holes eventually were built.  It looks pretty much the same as the rest of the course.  At that time, it was a nice oak savanna with the same density of trees as the existing golf course.  Now look at an aerial of that part of the golf course today.

Specifically, look at the 13th hole.  Notice that there is a continuous tree canopy from tee to green bordering both sides of the hole.  Over planting of the hole began about 14 years ago and yes, I myself planted many of these trees.  Since then I have come to realize just how serious the subject of tree planting is.  I now know that planting trees on a golf course should be done very carefully.  In this particular case, if all these trees were allowed to grow to full maturity, the 13th hole would soon be one of the shadiest holes on the course and likely have some of the worst turf conditions.  Not only that, the oak trees would certainly decline and eventually be lost to overtopping by the fast growing Douglas firs.   I've always known about the oaks being threatened, but just recently I've come to understand the importance of the oak savanna ecosystem with which they came to be.  I am thrilled that today we are admitting our mistakes in regard to overplanting some areas on the course and taking steps to correct them. In fact, the following project was approved back in February but it wasn't until this recent cold snap that we had the time and conditions to carry it out.  The frozen ground allowed us the opportunity to get equipment out to some areas on the 13th hole with minimal damage.  Before things thawed out we were able to remove many of the juvenile trees in that area.  Here's a couple of before and after pics.

 Above you see the area between 12 and 13 near the 12th green before thinning the trees.  The picture below is how it looks now that the trees were thinned out and the open space has been restored.

 Above is a picture from 13 tee before thinning the trees.   Below is a picture from 13 tee after thinning the trees.

Notice we left all of the more mature trees which are properly spaced out allowing good sunlight and air flow.  The oak trees surrounding the 15th tee now have a good chance at surviving for many more generations.  I also expect we will immediately see turf conditions improve in these areas.  That's one of the best parts of this effort.  Turf requires good sunlight and air flow just like the threatened oak trees.  When we implement practices to favor the oaks, we also favor the turf.  Protecting the savanna is truly a "win win" for the golf course and it's future legacy.