Maintenance Weekend Duty

By: Felix and Rob

Thursday April 11th 2018

As the sound of birds chirping and the refreshing smell of the rain drifts by our noses. We begin to admire and realize that our plants on Fanshawe College require our attention. It is mid-spring, and as we prepare for a new season of prosperous growth, we start to notice our campus blooms and shrubs need the utmost care to provide the beautiful flowers for the

season. To keep the plants flourishing for the upcoming seasons regular maintenance such as pruning is essential. Plants that generally require pruning are perennials, small trees, shrubs, and certain specimens. That may require pruning of non-living branches and twigs to the point of origin.

 Also the ability to identify some of the plants that one may have in their garden can play a significant role on the time of year to prune. Certain plants require different seasons for optimal pruning times. For example, here on campus we have Euonymus, viburnum, hydrangeas that need to be pruned back in order to exhibit new healthy growth and to ensure that we don't kill the buds at the wrong time. 

Aside from plant health care, we also have to take in consideration the location of the plant and if it is becoming a hazard or obstructing a desired view from a window. Some important things to keep in mind when pruning is to be confident in the cuts you make and respect the growing habit and form of the plant. The best way to determine if a branch or twig need to be removed or cut out is if the stem or bark is dying or diseased. Peeling back the bark with secateurs or hand pruners can also reveal whether the part still has green growth or  is hollowed out.

With many plants and tasks, breaking it down into steps can help us efficiently manage  time to thin out and remove interfering branches from the Hydrangeas and Viburnums to allow air movement and light towards the center of the crown. For the hydrangeas looking down the tips of the stems you can see where the old wood has stopped spreading. This is where you will make your cut above the node where new growth or buds have begun to form.

Saturday April 13^th 2019

The day greeted us with much more favourable weather relative to Thursday with its winter-like temperatures and strong winds. After performing a circle check on the RTV, and gathering the required tools and equipment; we set to continue the task of pruning the ornamental plants around Merlin house. We continued where we left off from the previous day; starting with thinning out the juniper shrubs on the south side of the residence. Those particular shrubs were crowded to a great degree which may have developed into a potential issue with air circulation through the plant as well as significantly reduced light reaching the lower foliage. We continued moving along the south side of the building removing dead wood and interfering branches from the Hydrangea paniculata shrubs as well as cutting them back to promote new flower growth. 

Once this was accomplished Felix and I focused on pruning the specific plants assigned to us. The plant I was charged with was: Physocarpus opulifolius 'Diablo' or Diablo Ninebark which is a moderately sized deciduous shrub. This hearty shrub was in want of pruning due to many dead and interfering branches, and was cleared of many basal shoots that sprouted from the center of the plant. The warming weather and task of pruning reminded us that we were in the middle of spring; one of the great examples of change and rejuvenation. This ancient cycle greatly precedes us and may outlast us; we can only currently be stewards of nature’s transitory change.

Sunday April 14th 2019

Cool rainy winds continue to sweep across our gardens in Fanshawe College providing our plants with water, which is an essential component for life and new growth. Our third day of maintenance was coming to an end, but there was plenty left to prune around the perimeter of our gardens and the rainy weather was not going to deter us from our mission. By making sure that our pruners were sanitized and in good working condition we prevent the tear of branches and ensure swift and accurate cuts. Today we decided to take another approach on a different set of shrubs located on the side of E building. 

There were a few Dwarf Korean Lilacs that needed a fair amount of pruning on dead wood and many suckers that were growing at the base of the plant. With these specific shrubs we found the best way to prune the stems thoroughly and to avoid confusion with all the scrambling branches was to start at the base and work on individual segments of branches. Starting at the bottom helped us find suckers that were becoming huge stems causing congestion and lack of air movement throughout the center of the plant. Cutting back to the point of origin on some of these interfering branches and suckers insures that the plants focus their energy towards growth on the desired structure of branches and stems. Finally, as all the shrubs assigned were successfully pruned of dead wood we finished the day by reviewing all our work and paying close attention to detail. We were able to spot many more twigs and branches to prune out and we continued removing anything that seemed like it would obstruct maintenance workers when performing maintenance on the lawn. Following these simple guidelines and educating yourselves  on the plant you are  pruning will benefit you significantly when deciding what should and needs to be pruned. Your gardens will also need the maintenance care they deserve to provide you with magnificent and stunning new growth.

Greenhouse weekend duty blog

Thursday, April 11, 2019

On Thursday we started our day in the bustling greenhouse spot watering and monitoring the crop, as right now we are filled wall to wall with plants already sold to contract customers. After our morning walk through and watering we began potting up the last of the Coleus and Begonia plugs into 4 inch pots that were left from the day prior. We than went about organizing these new potted up plugs onto bench 2 and 3 to keep the plants together and organized, as space is very limited. After this we began preparing more 4 inch pot trays and storing them on the metal storage racks to allow for easy use for the herbs we planned on transplanting on Saturday. After this we went about watering the Western Fair baskets as they were beginning to show signs for need of water. I also pulled a few down to allow for spot watering as a couple were very dry due to the drippers not being placed in the pot properly. Next we tackled the stock baskets ensuring we had two of each stock basket and changing the stock inventory online to ensure it was correct, we than went about moving the 4 inch tray pots of the plants we were using for stock baskets to the upper bench and condensed them to allow for maximum space on the benches. We finished the day with some spot watering of the apprentice plant bench and some of the Proven Winners plants throughout the greenhouse. We finished up washing the floors and the tables in our work area and ensured we cleaned up the greenhouse floor as well of any debris that may have fallen on the floor.

Saturday, April 13, 2019

On Saturday we started our day much like Thursday with some spot watering and monitoring the crops. Mostly we spot watered the succulents and cacti as I planned to water the full crop with the 200 PPM mix fertilizer later, and the 350 PPM for the Banana plant and the elephant ear crops. After we went about putting up our sticky cards for our pest report but we had already noticed a fair bit of whitefly Thursday and into the weekend so we knew what the sticky cards might hold. We also noticed the stock baskets were looking very dry so we also watered them with the 200 PPM fertilizer mix until the pots were well saturated. From there we started potting up herbs like Basil, Thyme, Parsley and Chives. 

We started by using the pots we had prepared on Thursday but they quickly ran out as we had so many wonderful smelling herbs to pot so we ended up making a lot more during the process. During this whole process we continued to organize the benches to ensure maximum space for the plants allowing us to keep as many of the herbs together as possible. We had lots of sun throughout the day and we noticed a lot of the crop was beginning to dry out so we went about watering the whole crop with the 200 PPM Fertilizer mix except the Banana Plant, Elephant ears and the seedling trays. This took more time than expected as we were ensuring the pots were well saturated with the fertilizer mix and we didn’t get all the way through the crop to the Banana Plant, Elephant ears, Apprentice bench and the rolling carts full of the Proven Winners so we planned to wrap up the watering Sunday morning.

Sunday, April 14, 2019

On Sunday we started our day by watering the remainder of the crop we had missed Saturday due to time. We noticed near the end that we were just about out of fertilizer of the 200 PPM mix so we decided to mix up another 10 litres. After this we thought it be best to wash down the floors and clean out the drains in the greenhouse to allow for ample time for the floors to dry throughout the day as to not have excess levels of moisture buildup. From there we went about potting up all the succulent into the succulent and cacti media mix which allow for proper drainage for the plants as compared to our normal pro mix soil. We than organized them on the bench in the walkway next to the Christmas cactus cuttings planted by the first year students. 

 We then walked the crop and took down the sticky cards so we could write up our pest report for the weekend. After all that we finished our day by cleaning up the work area and washing down the tables and also cleaning out the floor drains to allow for proper drainage and to ensure a clean working environment free of spores and mold.

Weekend Duty Blog for weekend of April 5-7, 2019

Claire and Tobias

Spring has finally arrived to the greenhouse at Fanshawe College, and with it came many flats of annual plugs to be grown out for our contract customers. With the great success of our hydrangea sale, we finally had some free space in the greenhouse and our main goal over the weekend was to fill as much of this space with the new annuals as possible. We began by consolidating space on the greenhouse benches and setting up an assembly line of filling trays of four-inch pots, watering in, transplanting plugs, and printing labels/labelling. For customers like Clintar and the Western Fair, we raise many varieties of colourful and intriguing annuals - this year, some of the stars of the lineup include vining Sweet Potato Vine and Dichondra, flowering Petunias, and many kinds of colourful Coleus.   After several hundred of these plants were potted, greenhouse bench space was really starting to be filled up!

Over Saturday morning, humidity levels dropped sharply and the greenhouse temperature steadily rose. By noon, the temperature had reached nearly twenty-nine degrees, which is over the maximum set temperature by five whole degrees. Upon investigation we found that while the greenhouse top vents were open and the side vents were set to ‘Auto,’ the side vents were failing to open and allow adequate airflow to cool the greenhouse. After setting the vents to ‘Open’ to no avail and alerting the maintenance team, we decided to increase humidity levels in the greenhouse by dousing the floors with water. Theoretically, as the water evaporates into the air and raises the moisture concentration, plants will transpire (lose water) less in an effort to maintain moisture homeostasis and will therefore retain more moisture and be less stressed in the higher temperatures. Sure enough, by twelve-thirty the humidity levels had already increased significantly and the greenhouse temperature had lowered to below its maximum threshold of twenty four degrees! Another watering at approximately two-thirty was able to replicate these results and keep the greenhouse temperature within the appropriate range for the day.

On our final weekend duty day on Sunday, we carried on planting out the trays of annuals. We ended up with over three or four hundred plants for some varieties, such as our Marigolds and purple Petunias. With space dwindling on the benches, we were just able to pot up and squeeze in a few trays of Jade Plant and various succulents along the side wall. Finally, with four rows of hanging baskets along each of two walls and benches that are almost completely filled, the greenhouse is nearly as full as it’s ever been!

Fanshawe College Weekend Maintenance Duty 

March 29-31, 2019

Lisa, Emily and Adam

The first maintenance duty of the New Year was under way this past weekend at Fanshawe College. Our objective was to complete a large portion of corrective pruning and remove dead wood from shrubs, sub shrubs and trees around M and H buildings. Earlier in the week, Tim and Jeff discussed proper pruning techniques with us and focused on following the ‘dead, dying and diseased’ rule as well as the 1/3rd rule, i.e. not removing more than 1/3rd of the plant. Tim gave us an extensive list of items that needed attention, thus we focused on those for the weekend. Each student was also assigned a specific shrub that only they were to prune.

Weekend duty began early Friday morning where we met with Jeff to discuss procedures for the three days. After parting ways, the three of us devised a plan on how we should accomplish our given tasks. We decided that the three of us would work together in a section and thoroughly complete each section before moving onto the next. We were lucky to experience some incredible Spring weather on Friday, allowing us to complete our tasks with ease. However, it would later turn out that were fortunate enough to experience not one, but all four seasons in three days. 

The first section contained Adam’s given plant, Forsythia ovata ‘Ottawa.’ He was instructed to remove 3 – 5 canes from these shrubs. This shrub proved difficult to prune as it had many interfering, dead/dying canes. This shrub is also known for its blooms thus it was imperative that flower buds were not pruned off. However, he tackled the task and cleaned the Forsythia up nicely, allowing the shrub to soon exhibit its golden yellow blooms in the Spring.

While Adam worked on his assigned shrubs, Emily and I focussed on cleaning up leaf debris by using the back pack blower and rakes. Once we were satisfied with general cleanup we shifted our focus to the pruning of the Pyrus calleryana ‘Chanticleer.’ Pruning on these trees was minimal, we simply removed a few interfering branches. We moved further alongside M building and focused on pruning the Berberis thungergii ‘Monry.’ This task was tricky due to the thorns on the plant. We took our time but were able to remove much of the dead wood and keep the new growth. We continued pruning all of Friday and focused on plants such as the Hydrangea quercifolia, Cotoneaster apiculatus and Amorpha canescens.

Saturday proved to be a very challenging day both physically and mentally as we were met with large amounts of rain all day long. Rain coupled with cooler temperatures made it difficult to get our to do list for the day complete. However, with quick breaks to warm up and dry out we managed to get quite a bit of work done. We began the day again with collecting leaf debris and pruning some Viburnum that had many epicormic shoots growing throughout the plants. Adam focused on cutting down all of the grasses, trying his best to make sure there were all equal heights and dome shaped. In this section was Emily’s plant, Callicarpa dichotoma ‘Early Amethyst’ also known as a Beautyberry. This sub shrub is known for its beautiful fall berries that typically overwinter, adding winter interest to the landscape. The many beautyberry’s that were in this section needed to have all dead wood removed but the flower stalks needed to remain in case an early frost occurred. While Emily diligently worked away, I focused my attention to pruning back the Fallopia japonica, Exochorda micrantha ‘The Bride,’ and helped with general cleanup of this area, removing leaf debris and some cut grass debris. Unfortunately, we did not have any pictures of our Saturday tasks due to the rainy weather.

Working in a Winter Wonderland

Sunday March 31st, 2019

Winters one last kick arrived this Sunday when all the precipitation left over from Saturday’s rain storm froze and turned everything into ice. Unfortunately for Lisa who had to continue to prune back deadwood around the H Building Loop, she was forced to manually prune each frozen branch. When done properly Pruning can be very time consuming, due to precise determination on which plants are viable and which are dead, dying or diseased.

Callicarpa dichotoma, commonly known as Beauty Berry is a sub-bush from the Lamiaceae family. Sub-bush means that it is a hardy woody perennial, with multiple shared traits. The berries are left for winter interest and are meant to stay on during the Spring until first bud break. My duties involved removing any dead wood and old shoots, in order to stimulate new development. There was so much snow I had to use a snow blower to get close to the ground shoots. It was difficult to collect all the brush and dead branches due to all the snow, but with thorough dedication the Beauty Bushes were looking fresh and ready for a new season of growth.


Ironically Adam’s job for the day included “de-winterizing” the Conifer garden in preparation for the warmer weather. Throughout the winter sensitive shrubs and trees are wrapped with burlap to protect themselves from frost damage and prevailing winds. Most of the trees are stakes and tied up, keeping the branches together to preserve natural thermal heat. If necessary, they can be wrapped in wire cages and layers of burlap. Once removed these were hung up to dry, tightly rolled up, and placed in rodent repellent bags.



                                             

                                                 


The Wisteria in the woodland garden was pruned back in order to create a safe walkway. This involved pruning the buds back from the parent branch to about three to five buds. Final weekend cleanup involved sweeping and organizing to tool room and tractor bay. With a new busy season around the corner it is important to remove leaf litter and leftover summer damages. The tools were organized and cleaned correctly and wheelbarrows removed to do a detailed job. The stakes, wire and burlap were neatly placed in the tool room to defrost until the outer storage area is ready to be opening and regularly used.





                                                


                                       

Weekend Garden Maintenance Duty Blog for March 22-24, 2019

Claire & Lauren

Our first task was to prune the wisteria atop one of the garden’s pergolas. Since Wisteria produces its blooms on old growth, we removed all of the unnecessary old ‘whips’ from last year while still leaving a few buds for this season’s growth. As Wisteria is a voracious grower and requires pruning twice per season., Jeff taught us a neat way to remember when and how much to prune back Wisteria - in the third month (March) prune whips back to 3-5 buds, and in the seventh month (July) prune back to 7-9 buds. This will ensure that the plant produces many blooms but then stays at a manageable size. After pruning, we tied down any wisteria vine that was sticking up so that when it blooms, the panicles will fall across the pergola beautifully.

Our next task was to groom the Cotoneaster bed. We started by removing waste which had collected over winter, and used a backpack blower to further free it from leaves and branches. We used power shears to remove tall parts which had been burned by icy winter winds, and despite our warm coats we couldn’t help but feel some very icy winds ourselves! Things were a little warmer the next day when we pulled overwintered plant debris from  a selection of planters around the school, but the warmth unfortunately meant we ran into a little mud with our tractor, too!

Our final large undertaking for the weekend was to shear back all the dry ornamental grasses. We found that tying the grass into bundles prior to shearing it allowed us to collect the grass easily and more efficiently. The grass bases that are left were then shaped into attractive hill-shapes. In the end we took nearly two trailer loads plus an RTV load’s worth of grass out of the garden in total!  And rather than simply composting them, the canes of the Giant Reed Grass (Arundo donax) were lopped and set aside to be used for cool projects later on.