In July 2022, a powerful storm that swept across the university caused widespread damage to trees, buildings, and infrastructure. At the University of Maryland’s Golf Course, the area between the 15th and 16th fairway was heavily damaged, leaving about 285 trees “twisted” and “uprooted,” according to Laura Russell, who handles the UMD Golf Course’s special projects.
Russell interviewed professors and other people within the Environmental Science and Technology program for ideas as to how to address the wreckage that the storm left behind.
“It left us with an abandoned, empty area that seemed to present an opportunity for us to do something more creative,” Russell said.
Part of the proposed restoration plan, the pollinator meadow, was suggested by a landscape architecture student. Russell says she had to “put that plan in a drawer” due to a lack of funding, until she had multiple colleagues encourage her to apply to the Sustainability Fund.
After submitting an application to the Sustainability Fund in 2023, the golf course was awarded funding to convert an area of the course into an outdoor classroom featuring native and pollinator friendly plants. Additional restoration efforts include goals of increasing biodiversity, creating new habitats, reducing stormwater runoff and fostering other beneficial environmental impacts.
The four main components of the project involve adding native plant species to increase biodiversity and provide habitats, improving stormwater management to reduce runoff, implementing educational opportunities and using climate friendly equipment, according to the Sustainability Fund proposal submitted by the Golf Course.
With the help of the Sustainability Fund, 50 pounds of native seeds and 45 different species of trees, shrubs and plants were planted. Nearly 4,000 plugs, which are small seedlings, were also planted.
Extreme high temperatures over the summer of 2024 resulted in the loss of some plants, but the deadline for the project was extended as a result. The golf course plans to replace the plants that did not make it through the heat wave.
Russell believes that many of the plants at the course will be in full bloom by spring 2025.
A walking path has been mowed through the center of the meadow, with the intent of using it for students to walk through the meadow to observe and identify plants, Russell said. The path can easily be altered by mowing a different route.
Russell worked with UMD’s Student Audubon Society to determine the placement of bird houses and assist her with installation. The students suggested monitoring the bird houses for research purposes. The bird houses are made from either recycled plastic or wood, and have baffles to protect them from predators, such as snakes or squirrels. One side of the bird house has a clear panel that allows researchers and onlookers to view and monitor the birdhouse without disturbing them, and the other side panel opens to allow for cleaning and maintenance.
“We’re hoping to do our part in creating a green space that is safe for animals,” Russell said.
The restored area of the golf course is also being used as an outdoor classroom for students in programs such as Environmental Science and Technology and First Year Innovation and Research. Benches at the outdoor classroom were built from fallen logs, said Russell.
There will also be educational signage that provides viewers with information about plants, animals and habitats within the golf course.
Russell ensured that the landscape company they chose for the restoration practiced sustainable habits and used “little disruptive techniques.”
The first company they found suggested plowing the area and ripping up the topsoil to flatten the area, which would release large amounts of carbon into the atmosphere and leave the soil less receptive to seeds.
The company the golf course decided to use minimized their disruption to the environment, and did not plow the restored area’s land. Leaving the land as it was, uneven and with ruts, was better for growth and helped to catch stormwater runoff.
The restored area of the golf course will also be used to test out electric landscaping equipment, which results in reduced reliance on gas powered equipment that emits greenhouse gas emissions, according to the proposal.
Additionally, the golf course is taking precautions to leave naturalized areas untouched to create habitats for birds, small mammals, and insects. The grassy margins on the edge of small rivers and streams that run through the golf course act as natural buffers to filter water and keep out sediment, resulting in cleaner water on the golf course, said Russell.
Director of Golf Jeff Maynor wants this restoration project to show that golf courses can be environmentally friendly, and university golf courses can benefit from partnering with the university to achieve campus wide sustainability goals.
The UMD Golf Course is excited to host community and university groups at the outdoor classroom to provide hands-on education about the diverse species that inhabit the course, especially as newly installed plants begin to flourish. The impact of using climate friendly equipment and improved stormwater management techniques can serve as a model for nearby or other university courses as well. The golf course hopes to be a starting point for new student research projects to further the sustainable education they are fostering.