Bob's areas include the Gateway garden which is free and open to the public and exists outside of the fenced in area. It's very colorful and plantings are done in waves so the colors are easily visible as people drive by. He is also in charge of the Terrace garden which features seasonal plantings, a lot of which are in containers. This season tropicals are showcased in a yellow and purple color scheme featuring plants like hibiscus, citrus trees, banana trees, etc. The terrace is also home to the Conway Reflecting Pool filled with tropical and hardy water lilies along with other aquatic plants.
I also received tours from Larry and Mark. Larry is in charge of the topiary, woodland, and Japanese gardens. I enjoyed his tour and hearing his ideas towards the use of native plants in landscapes, such as in the woodland garden. Mark looks after the sunken and theme gardens, as well as the turf areas throughout the gardens. His favorite, and probably mine too, is the kitchen garden. Not only the garden filled with a variety of fruits and vegetables to make it fabulous, but there is a great outdoor pizza oven, grill, and bar. I hope to spend some time in this area in the future.
So far this week, I have been working with Bob in a couple of his areas. On Monday morning, I was working in the Conway Reflecting Pool. The water lilies were infected with "The Sandwich Man" caterpillars, which eat through the leaves then cocoon themselves in the leaf debris and float to the next plant. So, it was my job to remove infected leaves, ones that were chewed up and had lots of holes, and squish any caterpillars that I came across. Later that afternoon, Bob applied Bt (Bacillus thurigensis), a naturally occurring bacterium to control the caterpillar problem. He used a spray application to each of the lilies in the pool.
 |
| Working in the Conway Reflecting Pool |
Next, I was able to work in some of the Gateway garden areas. There are four newly planted beds, three of which are meant for the Potager Garden and the fourth is an exhibit of flowers for the American Garden Awards. I have never heard of a Potager garden before, but I learned that it is a French term for an ornamental vegetable or kitchen garden. The three beds include plants like blackberries, chard, grapes, lavender, etc. It is a display of functionality, not only are the gardens beautiful but they produce, too!
 |
| Potager Garden |
 |
| Fresh mulch |
All four of the gardens needed to be mulched. The mulch protects the soil from intense sun, evaporation and pounding raindrops, plus it works well to cover up the irrigation tubing. I enjoyed the smell of the mulch, the cedar reminded me of summer evenings in the sauna followed by a cold jump in the lake. This is one of the things that I will miss most about not being in Minnesota for the summer! I also learned that Clevelanders refer to the sauna (sow-na) as a sauna (saw-na), so I was happy to teach them something new with the proper Finnish pronunciation! Mulching the flower bed was a bit finicky, because I had to work around each plant and be careful not to bury the flowers. These flowers are on display for passer-byers to look at, choose their favorite, and vote!
 |
| The finished product! |
 |
| Begonia Boliviensis |
I sent my vote in and chose the Begonia. I think that are the most unique out of the bunch. I'll have to keep an eye out to see who the big winner is, and I'll keep everyone posted! I didn't mind working with the mulch, especially because I got to drive the Kubota! More exciting things to come as I begin to start preparation for my first tour on Sunday.
No comments:
Post a Comment