Every year after the winter flood comes off the bogs, our team begins cleaning ditches. Ditching is important for two reasons. First, it helps maintain the proper moisture level in the soil. Second, and most importantly, removing water from the bogs quickly is urgent in case of a big rain event. The process is simple–the machine moves along the water line, removing the debris that has accumulated over the winter and placing it along the dam–but in the past has been time-consuming.

We have, however, recently acquired some new equipment to help streamline the process. “We lost the engine in the excavator that had the big ditcher on it at kind of a critical time,” COO Bryan vonHahmann explains. “But just recently we bought another arm mower with a longer reach that can go down 25 feet rather than 20. So we were able to just purchase another attachment; now we just take the mower off and put the ditcher on that arm. That makes it a lot easier to get to everything.”

“Not only does it save us some time,” says Matt Giberson, “but since it’s narrower, it doesn’t tear up the vines as much. And that also means the operator can see obstacles such as irrigation lines and underdrain much more easily, which means it frees a team member to be elsewhere, since they don’t have to act as a guide.”

Long-time team member Rick Zapata is running the show again this year. “I’ve only been at it for about a week, but it moves fast,” he says. “It’s a little different this year; usually it goes in a particular order, but this year I’m skipping around to different sections.” He emphasizes the need to be careful of the irrigation systems. “You have to look at the pump house and figure out the layout. I know where most of them are by now, but a new guy will take a little longer. There’s a lot to keep track of: the pipes, the pole, the wires. But the machine works great. It gets a lot of the dirt and the obstruction and just keeps moving.”

“The only thing we have to do is come back around where the underdrain is and clear out those spots underneath,” Matt says. “We had to put off the project due to the weather, but now that we’re catching up, Rick is moving really fast.”