Week 13

Monday morning I watered out front. I watered the intern bed, palm lot entry bed, double sidewalk, visitor center pots, beds on sides of excedra, bed behind excedra, gates ajar, and a few trees in the front. Then, I went up to the rooftop and watered. After that, I read a book on edible landscaping for about 25 minutes before lunch. After lunch, I helped Scott rake and sweep the mulch around the lindens out front which ended up on the grass, sidewalk, and curb on Sunday when people were walking through to get to the Japanese lantern lighting festival. Then, we deadheaded the geraniums in the urns around the historic entrance to the conservatory. After that, we turned off the sprinklers, rolled up the hoses, and I went and deadheaded the daylilies along the frog pond.

Tuesday morning I went out front with Scott. We started off by setting up sprinklers out front. Then, I cut down some plants in the enchanted butterfly garden that had died back for the season. After that, I deadheaded the visitor center pots, double sidewalk, and welcome sign bed. Next, I helped Scott plant Clethra alnifolia Summersweet Clethra which is the featured plant of the week. After that, I watered and mulched around these plants. After lunch break, the outdoor staff had a meeting which I was able to sit in on. Then, we planted some ornamental grass called 'Karl Foerester' which is a reed grass in one of the beds near the shuttle and put some mulch in the bed. After that we turned off the sprinklers, rolled up the hoses, and picked up the other tools we had out.

Wednesday morning I helped Scott water out front. I watered the intern bed, palm lot entrance bed, double sidewalk, visitor center pots, welcome sign, and part of the enchanted garden. I also helped with making sure the sign was straight when Tina, the horticulture manager, was out taking pictures of the welcome bed which are going to be submitted with the other required information for an All American Selections design contest. I also pulled some weeds and deadheaded a little while watering. Then, all of the outdoor horticulture staff helped to unload a plant order which arrived and placed the plants along the greenhouse. After that, Scott and I went down to gates ajar. I watered gates while Scott did some trimming. Next, we turned off the sprinklers out front and rolled up the hoses. Then, most of the outdoor horticulture staff went to the MN Landscape Arboretum for a speaker, but Mindy and I stayed behind. First, Mindy and I put away the tools from the rooftop beds which the volunteers had been working with. Then, we put up some short metal fencing near the gift shop cart by gorilla forest because visitors were going into the flowerbeds in this area. Next, we moved a sprinkler. After lunch, I helped the indoor greenhouse staff by power washing algae and spilled soil off of the floor.

On Thursday Kerrick was back. First, we went with Scott to help with some watering. I watered the flowerbed with azaleas. Then, I helped Scott set up sprinklers. After that, I watered some of the daylily bed by the frog pond because we were moving the daylilies that were too close to the dogwoods in that bed. After that, Kerrick and I went over to the welcome sign flowerbed to take pictures of people working on the bed as that is a part of the contest so we did some weeding and deadheading while a volunteer took pictures. Next, Kerrick and I moved hoses, watering tools, and shovels to the shuttle bed which is where we were putting the daylilies. Then, we moved the daylilies from the frog pond bed to the shuttle bed using the mule. Once the daylilies were moved, I cut them down to only about 5" before they were planted so that the plants would focus more on establishing the roots amidst the drought we are experiencing here in Minnesota and the shock from transplanting. I then went to the enchanted flowerbed and watered the clethra as well as cut a few inches off of  the top to force the plants to focus more on establishing the roots. One of the volunteers also cut off the flowers so that the plants put more energy in the roots. Afterwards, I worked on weeding the shuttle bed and then the daylilies were planted. After the daylilies were planted, Kerrick worked with one of the volunteers to put down mulch while Scott and I spread it around the plants and watered in the newly planted daylilies. After lunch, the horticulture staff had a meeting so Kerrick and I turned off sprinklers, rolled up hoses, picked up the debris by enchanted, and picked up the weeds that one of the volunteers had left under the trees by Schiller. We then got the opportunity to feed some lettuce to the giraffes. After that, the horticulture staff had a going away party since it was my last day, Amanda is leaving tomorrow, and Kerrick leaves on Tuesday. Finally, I had an end of summer review with my boss, Mindy.

http://gardening.about.com/od/treesshrubs/ig/Top-Shrubs-for-the-Home-Garden/Summersweet-Clethra-alnifolia.htm

The plant of the week is Clethra alnifolia Summersweet Clethra. The leaves are alternate, simple, 1.5-4" long and .75-2" wide, sharply serrate, usually entire toward base, and often woolly tomentose below. They leaf out late in the spring and leaves turn a pale yellow to rich golden brown in the fall which develops around mid-October and can persist 3-4 weeks. The buds are small, loosely scaled, ovoid, and pubescent. The stem is brown and pubescent. Summersweet Clethra grow to be 4-8' high and 4-6' wide and are larger in moist soil. Plants are often wider than high at maturity because they have a suckering nature. Clethra are hardy to zones 4-9. Flowers are perfect, white, 5-petaled, delightfully fragrant, appear July into August while lasting 4-6 weeks, are borne on the current season's growth in 2-6" long upright racemes with the flowers opening from the base to the apex. A dry 1/8" diameter capsule fruit that persists through the winter offers a good identification characteristic. The plants like acid soil which has been supplemented with organic matter, grows naturally in wet places, partial shade or full sun, salty conditions. Clethra is virtually pest free except for mite damage which occurs in dry seasons. This shrub is excellent for summer flower and fragrance, works as a shrub border, a good plant for shade and wet areas, the overall winter habit is clean, and the fall color is a worthwhile attribute. (Information from Manual of Woody Landscape Plants by Michael A Dirr)

This is my last blog post of the summer as I am a leader for welcome week and training starts this Friday. After training, I will be leading a group of about twenty freshman and getting them familiar with campus in order to help prepare them for their first year of college. Thank you to everyone who took the time to read my blog each week to find out more about what was going on at Como Park Zoo & Conservatory and what goes into managing a public garden. I want to once again thank my friends and family who have supported me through my summer internship. I have learned a lot this summer and look forward to continuing my education at the University of Minnesota and delving deeper into the world of Horticulture and what it has to offer.