Outdoor Gardener's finished projects!

The Gardeners have been busy with some big projects. Over at the Zoo Gardeners, along with Maintenance Staff, have been working in the Birdyard to create two new spaces for the Galapagos Tortoises. Currently they are putting in a boulder fence to keep the Tortoises from getting into the other half of the Birdyard, where they could potentially harm themselves. Above are before-and-after pictures of the Birdyard with the boulder fence and without.

Located at the Como Lakeside Pavilion is the Gates Ajar which has just been planted for the year. The picture above shows the finished planting and some of the Gardeners and Interns that worked on planting the Gates Ajar.

Azalea Pruning

Pruning the potted Azalea crop is one of the large projects during late May and early June. Over the next 2 weeks the ~500 plants will be pinched and thinned to improve their shape, structure and prevent premature flowering in the fall. Pruning the larger plants keeps them at a manageable size for yearly display. The Azaleas will regrow during the summer, receive a cool temperature treatment in the Fall and then be forced to flower during the Winter flower show in late January thru mid March.

Como Shuttle Ready For Action!

The new Como Shuttle kicks into gear THIS WEEKEND! Stop circling the parking lot looking for that elusive spot and hop aboard the super comfortable, super convenient shuttle. It will drop you off at the front door! It is wheelchair and stroll assessable. Pick up location is at the State Fair Grounds Parking Lot at 1736 Como Ave. It starts at 9:30am and the last run is at 6:30pm.

GET CLOSER WITH THE COMO SHUTTLE!

Gates Ajar Preparations

Preparation for Summer continues with work on the Gates Ajar near the Lakeside Pavillion. On May 1st 20 volunteers joined the Horticulture staff to take cuttings from 'Alternanthera ' stock plants. The 1" to 2" cuttings were stuck into small plug trays and put in the propagation house to root. The vertical Gates are being prepared for planting by mudding the gates with moist sifted soil to fill in the wire mesh surface. Starting May 15th the Gates will be planted with 'Alternanthera' and 'Echevaria', with plans to finish by May 25th. During mudding and planting the Gates need to be watered twice a day to keep the soil wet and until the small plants root into the wall

This morning on FOX-9!

Sunken Garden Summer Show

This week the Sunken Garden has been closed to remove the Spring Show and install the Summer Show. The Summer Show opens May 2nd and runs thorough to October 4th. This year's Summer Show will be mostly shades of pink and peach. The pictures above show some of the plants that will be in this show. The top picture has 'Escargot' Rex Begonias, Dianthus, and Pentas. The second from the top shows Geraniums, Gerbera Daisies and Stargazer lilies. The third picture is a Hibiscus and the fourth picture shows our Horticulture Staff bringing down the Starlights for their bi-annual cleaning! This our longest running Sunken Garden show, but it continually changes throughout the summer with different plant material.

Spring Clean Up

The outdoor Gardeners have been very busy preparing the outdoor planters and beds through out the Zoo and Conservatory grounds.The planters outside the Historic entrance are planted with Pansies which thrive in the cooler spring temperatures. The Gardeners have been raking, removing and composting plant debris from the Perennial beds and preparing them for planting in early May. Pine bark mulch is being added to some areas for weed control, moisture conservation and aesthetics

More challenging vent maintenance!!

The Hortuculture staff had another vent to be fixed, this time it was in Tropical Encounters! Tropical Encounters has screened in vents in the ceiling to allow for hot air to escape and fresh air to come in. Some of the vent components had to be fixed, but the point in the ceiling where the vents are located is 25 feet up. We didn't have a lift or a ladder that would reach that high up, so we had to get an articulated lift in that would reach. It was a challenging job for the Horticulture staff and the Trades workers because Tropical Encounters has free roaming birds in its exhibit. The pictures at top are of the Tradesman lifted up to the vent to fix it. The other picture is of the lift coming in through the door which had to be covered with plastic so that the birds didn't escape. Tropical Encounters has been partially closed due the vent maintenance, but the work should be finished by the end of this week.

North Garden Pool Cleaning

One project this week is the annual cleaning and maintenance of the North Garden Pool. The pool was drained Sunday night and cleaned Monday. The cracks were repaired (some caused by pressure from plant roots). The edges of the pool were sealed and the sides painted black. The fish are temporarily being kept in large tanks in our garage. The pool will be refilled on Saturday morning and the koi returned to their home when the water is suitable.

Plugs and Seedlings galore!!

This week the Horticulture staff and volunteers are busy with planting lots of plugs and seedlings. The plants are grown for the outdoor gardens and the summer Sunken Garden show. Some of the plants we grow from seed at the conservatory, others are ordered as plugs. Plugs are already established plants in a very small cell of soil. We order more plugs than we grow seedlings. We have limited space and not enough labor for growing plants from seed. The picture above are some of the plugs that we have already potted up to a 4 inch pot. As of April 1st the Como Zoo and Conservatory will be open 10 am to 6 pm!!!