On your next trip to the golf course you will notice a number of trees with orange tape around the base. These are ash trees and many are infected by the Emerald Ash Borer, an insect that has done devastating damage to ash trees across the Midwest. I will have a number of professional tree contractors visit NCC and provide me with a proposal for the removal of the ash trees.
Golfer safety, aesthetics and strategic location of the individual trees will be evaluated. We have treated several of the more strategically located ash trees without much success. While some of the ash trees are currently dead and void of any leaves, there are others that still have a decent canopy. Based on all accounts across the Midwest, once the borer is in an area, there is little or no hope for any of the ash trees to survive long term. All the ash trees have been identified for bidding purposes.
Once a proposal is in hand, I will submit the information and scheduling options to the club officials. Dr. Hurdzan, our Golf Course Architect, will be included in any replanting of trees on the course to insure they are in line with the desired playability and design of the course.
