Nurturing the ecosystem

Cordova Bay Golf Course superintendent Dean Piller believes it’s a superintendent’s job to work alongside Mother Nature, not against it. That’s why the 27-hole public facility has been insecticide-free since opening in 1991. 

“You get a lot of collateral damage when you spray an insecticide for a grub that might be on your turf or for caterpillars in your trees,” he says. “When you work with Mother Nature, your job becomes easier.”

Piller and his team have seen no insect-related turf damage or turf loss on the Bill Robinson-designed course in more than three decades. The course also only spot sprays with herbicides to protect the bird population. 

Located in southwestern Canada in Victoria, the course is less than 500 feet from the Pacific Ocean and features 60 acres of forest between the front and back nine of the main course, making it a safe haven for both land and water animals. Sixteen water features are found around the course — some home to rainbow trout and American Signal crayfish. The small, lobster-like prawn helps keep the ponds clean. “They spend their life eating organic matter,” Piller says. “Our philosophy was they would help keep our ponds clean by removing leaves that blow in, or the bird and duck poop. They would eat the vegetation and turn it into protein, therefore removing nutrients from the water.”

The course is no stranger to wildlife. At any time, deer, raccoons and rabbits can be spotted. Black bears make semi-frequent visits and, in rare cases, even a mountain lion may pass through. While some superintendents may make efforts to prevent rabbits from hopping by, Piller welcomes them. “They’re the food source for predators like bald eagles, owls and red-tailed hawks,” he says. 

A large portion of the course’s conservation efforts are aimed at birds. More than 75 species of birds reside on the property, but Piller is most proud of the purple martin presence. 

Piller and his team worked for 10 years to attract the species through setting up houses alongside water features and using bird calls. 

After a decade of trying, the course successfully discovered a mating pair. “The federal government was so excited they came in and actually banded the first clutch,” Piller says. Banding is the process of attaching a small tag to a bird’s feet, allowing for tracking and monitoring. The course now has nine nesting pairs this year and roughly 40 to 45 new bird residents. 

The facility is a certified Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary, a designation it first received in 1996.  “I’ll compliment Audubon International because they give you a blueprint that lays out ways for you to maintain your golf course in an environmentally responsible manner,” Piller says.

The course maintains buffer zones to prevent inputs from reaching the water, and roughly 10 acres of land have been naturalized to allow plants and wildflowers to grow in. The clubhouse also maintains three organic vegetable gardens on the course, and the facility purchases hundreds of thousands of ladybugs each year to work as a natural biopredator and to clean up aphids.

When Piller graduated college and took on the turfgrass world, he believed his most important role was to maintain playing conditions — well-raked bunkers, firm fairways and pretty flower beds. However, he says now: “The more I’ve been in the business, the more I realize it’s a privilege and a responsibility to nurture an ecosystem. Nurturing an ecosystem and maintaining an ecosystem is our largest responsibility.”