Drainage Project 7/26/18

Work continues on the drainage project and the contractor recently finished working on Orchard 4, 5, and upper 8.  After finishing Orchard 4 fairway, we had the contractor install a drain line in the left rough near the cart path that is always wet.  A significant amount of water comes from the 5 tee area and funnels down across the path into the rough.  The new drain line runs parallel to the path and will catch all of the water so it can't reach the rough.  Once that area dries out enough we will strip the worn turf, add soil and raise the grade to the level of the path, and install new fescue sod.  On Orchard 5, earlier this year the maintenance staff installed two new drain lines, but there was a small area at the very beginning of the fairway we couldn't get to.  Well, the contractor took care of that for us and you may have noticed the end of the pipe runs through the rough almost to the cart path.  This new line will also catch a significant amount of water that comes through the swale before the fairway.  On upper Orchard 8, the left (lower) fairway always seemed to stay wet and required close to 400 feet of drain line.  Our goal is to catch the water in the rough and keep it from running down the fairway.  I wasn't surprised to see all the rock, hard clay, and tree roots that came up while trenching.  Those items are not conducive to good draining soil.

In addition to the contractor performing drainage work, the maintenance staff spent a couple days finishing up the "big dig" next to the silver tee on Lakes 1.  All the old, non-functioning drainage was removed and replaced with a new catch basin and pipe.  Then the cavity was backfilled with gravel and a sand/soil mix was spread on top to allow for better surface drainage.  Turf-type tall fescue sod was again used due to it's quick rooting and other desired attributes, and should be ready for foot traffic in a couple weeks.  So far the area is dry and the drainage is working as it should given our recent rain events.

Trenching along the cart path on Orchard 4

Backfilling the trench on Orchard 5

Trenching on Orchard 8 upper fairway.  The thin turf at the edge of the fairway is a clear indication of turf that remains saturated for extended periods

Backfilled trench on Orchard 8

Installed a lateral line on Orchard 8 to catch water coming from the fairway bunker and left side of the hole

The "swamp" on Lakes 1 prior to excavation

Numerous drain lines were installed over the years but nothing was working

Almost finished removing the mucky soil

The finished product that should be ready for foot and mower traffic in 10-14 days

Course Update 7/19/18

Greens:  The dry weather has allowed us to keep the putting surfaces in excellent condition and the turf is very healthy.  You've probably seen us spot watering to cool the turf and replenish soil moisture.  Expect the greens to get a little quicker as we "tune them up" for the Women's and Men's Invitationals.

Tees:  Most of the tees are holding up well given the amount of play and recent weather.  A few have more thatch than we'd like, but we have a plan to address that this fall.  In the meantime, we're spot watering every day and rotating the markers to other tees to vary the wear patterns.

Fairways:  I've been most impressed with the condition of the fairways this year.  Spring aerification provided much-needed decompaction and improved surface drainage, while some minor tweaks to our agronomic program greatly improved turf health.  In recent years with similar weather, the fairways would have significant dry areas and be visually un-appealing.  This year it's the complete opposite!

Drainage Project:  New drain lines have been installed on Orchard 1 fairway and rough, and Orchard 4 fairway.  The contractor is getting ready to install drainage in Orchard 4 rough, left of the fairway near 5 tees that always stays wet.  In addition to the drainage project, the maintenance staff has been raising and sodding the low areas void of turf so surface water will be diverted to the new drain lines.

Trenching on Orchard 4 fairway

A laser-level is needed when trenching to ensure that water will flow where we want it to

One of the collection basins on Orchard 4 that wasn't working.  Sometimes it's easier to remove the old material and start over

Raising a low area (bird bath) on Orchard 1 fairway

The finished product.  Please do not hit from any area marked with green/white stakes.  These areas have been recently sodded 

Drainage Project

The drainage project started this week on Orchard 1.  The project addresses the areas in the fairways and rough that hold water and as a result, experienced turf loss last summer.  The process begins by cutting a trench 15" deep by 4" wide to remove the hard clay and any old drainage pipe that is not working.  Once the trench is cleaned out, 3" perforated pipe is installed and small, pea-size gravel is backfilled around the pipe.  We use 3" pipe because it keeps the trench width narrow, but still carries a large amount of water.  The gravel will fill the trench to within 2" from the surface, then a blend of sand/soil will be occupy the remaining space.  The sand/soil mix holds just the right amount of water for healthy turf growth, compared to straight sand that dries out too quickly.

We plan to install drainage on the following holes:
Lakes 1, 7, 8, 9
Orchard 1, 4, 5, 8 (both upper & lower)
Grove 1, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9

The trencher removes the material and conveys it into a trailer

Filling the trench with pea-size gravel

Backfilled trench prior to adding sand/soil blend

The gravel gets dumped into this custom made hopper that rides over the trench and backfills as it moves forward

Using the material handler and conveyor to place sand/soil blend on top of the gravel

Installed a 12" basin at the beginning of Orchard 1 fairway on the left side where water usually collects and kills the turf

Needed an excavator to dig through the tree roots and install an outflow pipe from the basin to the creek that runs between Orchard 1 & 5

Bees in the Bunkers

Some concerns have been mentioned about the "bees" that invade our bunkers every year. They are actually Sand Wasps (Bembix species) and surprisingly pose no threat to humans.  Keep in mind that our staff maintains the bunkers daily and we are constantly disturbing them. NOT ONE STING!

Sand Wasp (Bembix species) burrowing in the sand

For a few weeks every summer we have little friends make homes in our sand traps. These fast fliers are officially known as the Bembix Sand Wasp. They dig numerous burrows in cool, moist sand (ie- bunkers) to lay their eggs. Juvenile wasps, known as larvae, emerge from the eggs where they remain in the sand and grow into adults. Adult females congregate together in large numbers when making nests to bait their prey. The higher populations of larvae in nesting sites attract flies, beetles, caterpillars and grasshoppers. These insects are captured by the female wasp and taken back to the burrows to be fed to the growing larvae.

The existence of these insects in the bunkers is a nuisance to golfers, but beneficial to the course as they help to control the population of flies and detrimental turf beetles by preying on them.

The greatest concern for golfers is that they will get stung by these wasps when entering a bunker to play a shot.  Studies have proven that this particular wasp is not aggressive and of no harm to humans.  Both male and female wasps will not sting humans unless they are stepped on or smashed between your hands.  When approached by a human the sand wasp will initially swarm, looking for food, and then go back to their burrows to protect their larvae.