The Gardens of Fanshawe College
March 22-24, 2013 Blog entry by Phyllis Parkins and Mark Cleminson
We began the weekend with the knowledge that the 23rd was a special day, the College's open house. Due to this event we were informed everything had to be in tip top shape! Throughout the last couple weeks of our maintenance practical classes we have created a large collection of shrub debris just waiting to be picked up. Lucky us - we got to spend a full day on Friday running it to the compound in the trailer attached to the Kubota tractor. Sadly this became fairly difficult seeing as some of the debris had frozen to the ground but with sheer determination we faced completion in time to do a cleanup of our touring areas for the following day.
As we all arrived Saturday morning we began to ready our areas for tours at 10am but nothing stops work! Our task for the next 2 days was to do various cut backs on perennials, grasses and Euonymus in the woodland garden. To begin, we started with the grasses by tying them with jute and proceeded to use the gas powered head shears to cut them back to 6-8”. Afterwards we began to cut back the Rudbeckia, Echinacea and other perennials as close to the ground as possible, sadly now that the snow has melted what’s left is much taller than planned. The Arundo donax proved to be especially difficult due to its reed-like structure, the gas powered head shears just didn’t want to cut it down so we resorted to using a pruning saw which proved much more effective and efficient. Since these were fairly tedious tasks and we helped with a few tours of our program that’s all we could finish that day.
Last but not least Sunday has arrived; we began our day by cutting back 4 Euonymus and one Taxus making sure to leave no stubs behind! Also we climbed a ladder to prune the vigorously growing wisteria on our pergolas. Now that all or most of the snow has melted we are able to do a final clean-up of the woodland garden although it is fairly muddy. While picking up various debris I came across a few plants that are already producing new growth! Our cleanup took the majority of the day to complete but afterwards we filled our machines with fuel, washed them down and now they’re ready to begin a new week!
Research Question: Arundo donax, invasive?
Since this plant is not native to this area and it spreads rapidly I would definitely agree that it can be listed as invasive. Although it is considered invasive it is used thoroughly throughout various landscapes as a specimen and a fast screen for how tall it grows for the warmer months. It is also used for the reeds of woodwind instruments and is a large candidate for the use of biofuels which is a great debate for our time. Due to its reed-like structure, this plant is very durable and sustainable in a windy environment and regardless of being invasive I personally admire this plant. To me it is like the cousin of bamboo.
