Tree Trimming Treatise

One of our big projects for the summer is the tree trimming that is currently underway. We try to do this trimming every 2-3 years. We started the project last week, and hope to be finished with the approximately 1200 trees by the end of next week.

It is a good idea to trim trees regularly to keep them in good health. Our goals for this project are to open sight-lines under trees to provide a shot, increase air movement through the tree canopy, and normal maintenance of the trees. Concentrating on the lower limbs allows for better playability for balls that come to rest near a tree. Improving air movement under the tree allows the turf, as well as leaves of the tree to dry quicker after wetting. Prolonged leaf wetness on the turf or the tree leaves can cause problems with diseases in both locations. The normal maintenance of the tree involves shaping the tree through removal of unwanted limbs.

After cutting the limbs, we salvage the larger pieces for firewood, and the smaller pieces get chipped into mulch and reused in several locations around the course.

When trimming a tree, it is important to do it correctly to give the tree the best opportunity to heal itself. Each limb on a tree has a collar. It is a raised area at the base of the limb.

Trimming the limb along this collar will allow it to heal more easily. Making a cut outside the collar will take it longer to heal. The portion outside the collar that is left will be aborted my the tree at the collar. The remaining piece will eventually die, rot and weather off. This process may take years. If a proper cut is made at the collar, the tree can immediately begin to heal.

And after a few more years...

The best time to trim a tree is in the late fall, or the early spring while the leaves are absent from the tree. We are not able to do tree trimming at these times due to other necessary projects. Our trees are mature enough, and we are removing only a small percentage of the foliage. So, this allows us to trim the trees in the summer, while avoiding any injury to the overall tree health.