A federal judge on Monday ordered the Trump administration to stop removing trees at East Potomac Golf Links in Washington, D.C., after a preservationist group said crews cut down more than 500 in a single day over the weekend.

The D.C. Preservation League and two golfers said the Trump administration removed 529 trees, including healthy, mature oaks and maples, in a single day over the weekend and planned to remove hundreds more once weather permitted, according to a request for a temporary restraining order filed Sunday.

U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes excoriated government lawyers in a court hearing Monday, telling them, “more than being upset and furious right now, I am just deeply disappointed in the government,” she said, according to Reuters , adding, “on what universe did anyone in your office think this was acceptable?”

Justice Department lawyer Marissa Piropato told Reyes during the hearing the government had done its best to provide details on the planned tree removal, to which she replied: “you did not do your best. You did your absolute worst.”

Reyes in May instructed the National Park Service to provide advance notice to government lawyers if it planned to cut down more than 10 trees shortly after the initial lawsuit was filed to block the project.

National Mall and Memorial Parks superintendent Kevin Griess said in a court filing Friday that the agency planned to begin work on Saturday to cut down up to 529 trees “that do not contribute to the historic landscape” as part of the “tree management and cultural landscape rehabilitation project.”

Reyes ordered the Trump administration to pause its tree-cutting operation for at least 24 hours while she determines next steps.

The Trump administration has also cleared mature trees along the North and South Lawns of the White House to make room for the White House ballroom and expand the security perimeter surrounding the White House.

Trump said over the summer after touring the golf course that his planned overhaul would begin Sept. 1. An avid golfer, the president said he planned to turn the public course into “one of the Greatest Golf Courses anywhere in the World” that would “have the ability to host Major Golf Tournaments, including the U.S. Open, The Ryder Cup, the PGA Championship, and other top PGA Tour events,” he wrote on social media.

Trump Is Cutting Down Trees In D.C.—Here’s Why (Forbes)