Saturday, March 5, 2011

Ornamental Planting Maintenance

The end of February/early March is the time for our staff to begin some early spring clean up of our ornamental plantings.  Our initial focus is to begin removal of the dormant ornamental grasses that we allowed to flourish in the winter to provide contrast in our rather stark winter landscape.  Russ, Jason, Tom, Randy and myself have been removing grasses and raking leaves that always seem to gather around the bottom of clumps of dormant grass.  Ornamental beds that were not trimmed and cleaned before winter will be cleaned over the next few weeks before the new spring growth takes over.  Some plants will be divided, removed and or new plants will be incorporated to improve the look of some of our beds.  Pre-emergent, fertilizer, and new mulch will be added for weed control, energy and moisture retention.   

This season, I will be hiring a seasonal(April-October) horticulturist to assist our operation in managing the many ornamental beds/planters around our grounds and golf course.  I enjoy the ornamental part of a golf course but do not have the time to devote to the type of study and education required for the turf and ornamental areas on our great property.  I hope to begin interviews in the next few days and will have someone in place by the first of April.   Within the next 10-12 days, new plants will be arriving to start their life in our greenhouse and then be transferred to our various planting beds.

Jason and Tom removing dormant ornamental grass from the irrigation lake spillway.

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