Tree Selection and Management in Golf Courses

by

Russel @ Andy I. Mojiol
M. S. (Tropical Forest Resource Management)
1998

Supervisor: Dr. Nathan Ganapathi
Co-supervisor: Dr. M. N. B. Nair
Examiner: Dr. Faizah Abood Harris

Golf courses have been planting trees randomly without proper guidelines in the selection of trees. The present study has been conducted to streamline the selection of trees in golf courses., and for making an index for selection based on expediency, availability, growth rate, and diversity. Three golf courses, namely Glenmarie Golf Course, Palm Garden Golf Course, and UPM Golf Course were selected for this study. Five major criteria were used for evaluation of trees such as (i) tree features, (ii) management, (iii) susceptibility to pests and diseases, (iv) wind resistance, and (v) functional uses. In order to achieve these objectives, a survey of existing trees in these golf courses was conducted. The study has shown the presence of 35 species in Glenmarie Golf Course, 46 species in Palm Garden Golf Course, and 20 species in UPM Golf Course. Palms were considered as a separate group in this investigation. The majority of tree species observed from all these golf courses were from the family of Leguminosae. The most common tree species planted in these three different golf courses were Juniperus chinensis (Glenmarie Golf Course), Pinus caribaea (Palm Garden Golf Course), and Acacia auriculiformis (UPM Golf Course). It was observed that the planting was done randomly in each golf course as there is no similarity and pattern of tree species planted. Based on the evaluation, five most suitable tree species were listed according to their ranking, such as (i) Casuarina equisetifolia (43 points), (ii) Juniperus chinensis (42 points), (iii) Pinus caribaea (41 points), (iv) Fragraea fragrans (41 points), and (v) Cinnamomum iners (40 points). Common diseases such as leaf lesion, root rot, and shoot dieback were observed in all the three golf courses. A total of 8 fungi species were observed from the Glenmarie Golf Course. Soil samples obtained from the Glenmarie Golf Course were also been analyzed, which indicates acidic soil. This shows that the soil has to be amended so that the trees should live a healthy growth.

Citation:
Mojiol, A. I. 1998. Tree selection and management in golf courses. M. S. Thesis. Faculty of Forestry, Universiti Putra Malaysia. 118 leaves. (http://www.oocities.org/EnchantedForest/Palace/1170/abandy.html)