Week 11: Animal Kingdom

Monday morning we were originally supposed to work with habitat crew but the planner did not know that we were to be working with them so he sent us with the other resident gardeners for the day and we were to work with habitat crew for the rest of the week. I was sent with Big Judy that morning. First, we looked for snails on the plants in dinoland. Then, I cut back croton to make the entire flowerbeds even in height. Then, I went and watered the pot in Asia that Bridgette had replanted the previous week since she was off which left Judy to take care of the area. After that I met back up with Judy and we pulled pumpkin vine on the front portion of the pollination bed where the guests can see. After that, we went to a meeting which was about the safety tip of the week celebrate safely. To conclude the day, I watered the yard.

Tuesday morning Vanvisa and I worked with the habitat crew. First, we followed them in the truck to the truck entrance of the Kilimanjaro jungle safari. We had to wait for awhile for them to open up the gates. Once inside, we drove through the safari and stopped in various places to trim back plants that were too close to where the ride cars drive through and thus hit people in the face. We also trimmed back some plants that were too tall. However, because it is the jungle safari we want to keep the area natural so plants are not cut back unless absolutely necessary. After trimming the safari, we went with Joel over to Animal Kingdom lodge. While at the lodge, we planted some ginger and watered it in. Then, we did some trimming around the smoking area. After that, we did some trimming in another part of the lodge.

Wednesday morning we were once again with the habitat crew. Again, we had to wait for the gate to be opened. The crew cut back some grass using weed whips and trimmed some low branches off of trees while Vanvisa and I helped to pick up the debris. After that we again went with Joel and did some trimming at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. We also looked at a bed by the parking garage that we would be replacing the following day and decided what plants we were going to put there. We had another short gardener meeting today which reviewed the safety tip of the week celebrate safely. Three of the interns (Mark, Austin, and Stephanie) from Epcot had the opportunity to work with the resident gardeners today. After break, we picked up the plants for the following day.


Thursday morning was another day working with the habitat crew. Again we went into the safari, but this time we were helping Rob and little Judi who were on the high reach above the hippo pool. The habitat crew was there to help spot them as well as took down some low branches. We also helped the crew to pick up the debris. After that, the crew did a quick drive through of the safari. Then, we went with Joel and did some planting of ginger root, some ornamental grass, and azalea by the parking garage. In doing this, we dug out and got rid of the old plants, leveled off the soil, and then planted the new plants. Then, Joel took us back to the yard as Vanvisa and I had to leave a little early to head off to the internship banquet, but first we said goodbye to Jeff our manager as he was going to be gone the following day which was the last day of the internship.

Friday morning I went with habitat crew. First, we planted lemon grass in the tiger exhibits. I helped load and unload the Toro and truck with the lemon grass as well as bring it into the exhibit. Then, we drove through the safari and did some trimming of Acacia which was near the lion exhibit that had been hitting guests. Then, the habitat crew dropped me off where Rob was working so that I could meet up with them to go on the jungle safari which they were doing with the three interns (Eric, Amanda, and Kyle) from Epcot who had the opportunity to work with the resident gardeners at Animal Kingdom today. I left an hour early from work to go to the nursery to get changed, turn in my clothes, turn in my belt, rain coat, and hat as well as turning in my main gate pass, guest passes, as well as my Disney ID. I also filled out a survey about the internship.

Plant of the week:
The plant of the week is lemon grass Cymbopogon citratus. It is a type of ornamental grass in the Poaceae family. The native range is Southern India, Sri Lanka. It grows in zones 10-11 but roots may be hardy to zone 8b. Lemon grass grows to be 2-3' tall and 2-3' wide. Lemon grass rarely flowers. It does best in average, medium, well-drained soils in full sun. Lemon grass tolerates light shade but prefers full sun and tolerates a wide range of soils but is best in organically rich loams with good drainage. Lemon grass can be used as an annual, herb, or in a rain garden. The leafs are fragrant, evergreen. Lemon grass tolerates black walnut and air pollution. While seed is difficult to obtain, nurseries and seed companies generally sell starts in small pots. Fresh stalks of lemongrass with the leaves and roots absent can also be purchased from grocery stores specially in Asian cuisine and can be rooted in a glass of water. Planting should occur in the spring after the last frost date. Stalks can be harvested (cut off top leaves and save 6" sections of the bulbous shoot bases) in fall just before the first frost and frozen for culinary use during the winter. Leaf sections with attached roots can be divided and potted up with top leaves removed for overwintering in a bright window which can be used as starts the following year. Lemon grass is used as a flavoring in Thai, Vietnamese, Laotian, and Cambodian cooking. Extracted plant oils have been used for many years in herbal medicines and perfumes. There are no known serious insect or disease problems however spider mites can be a serious pest on indoor plants. Typical garden uses for ornamental grass is for herb gardens, borders, along walkways or for tubs/containers. Bulbous lower leaf sections are harvested for cooking while tough and inedible sections of mature leaf blades may be used for fresh or dried for flavoring teas, soups, or stews.
Information from: http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?kempercode=a504

Overall this internship was a great experience. I enjoyed my time in Florida and look forward to the opportunities that my career in horticulture has in store for me.

Week 10: Animal Kingdom

Monday morning Vanvisa and I went into dinosaur land with Bridgette and big Judy (there are two Judy's one is tall and the other is short hence big Judy and little Judi) and looked for snails that were on the plants, picked them off, and threw them on the ground. Then, we helped Bridgette trim for a couple of mad calls in her area. She used the pole pruners while we picked up the debris and put it in in the Toro. After that, we did some trimming by rafiki's planet watch. Around 10am there was a safety meeting until break. After break, we watered the holding area

Tuesday morning we worked with Bridgette. While Bridgette watered, we planted liriope. Then, we went back to the yard to grab bags of cow manure which we then put down in some of the beds to raise the height. Next, we trimmed with Bridgette and once again picked up the debris. After that, Bridgette showed us around Asia pointing out plants such as Chinese top hat, golden dewdrop, crinum lily, and red silk floss tree. Bridgette and Judy came in early so they had break at 9 during which time we pulled pumpkin vine on the back area of the pollinator bed where visitors can't see us. Then, we walked the path behind the tiger exhibit which leads to a bird holding area to see if any trimming needed to be done. Following the walk through we had a short meeting to talk about the safety tip of the week. To end the day, we trimmed bamboo along the tiger path as well as some branches and weeds that were hanging over thus making the path smaller.

Wednesday morning Bridgette and Judy came in early and dug out a white crinum lily. Then, after meeting up with Vanvisa and I we helped them dig a hole and plant the crinum lily. After that, we went with Bridgette and cut back Bohenia over by the Yak and Yeti restaurant. After that, we put down pine nugget bagged mulch under the Bohenia tree and covered it with bamboo leaves to create a more natural look. After that we did some more cutting back of the path behind the tiger exhibit. To end the day Vanvisa and I watered in the holding area.

Thursday morning Bridgette, Vanvisa and I walked Kali River Rapids to see what we needed to trim the next day. Then, we continued working behind the tiger exhibit cutting off branches that were blocking the path and using an edger to cut the roots of Wedelia trilobata Wedelia. Then, we left as today was presentation day. Ten judges (some from Animal Kingdom region, some from the nursery, a landscape architect, a Disney imagineer, and guest judges one of which was from the horticulture department at Seaworld). We were judged on how good our projects were and the judges asked questions applicable to the project and how it might be integrated at Disney. Overall, I think all of the projects were well done and I look forward to getting our grades.

Friday morning the habitat crew trimmed Kali River Rapids below the huge drop using a hedge trimmer while Vanvisa, Bridgette, and I cleaned up the debris. Then, Vanvisa, Bridgette, big Judy and I finished trimming Wedelia trilobata behind the tiger exhibit. The picture to the left is Vanvisa, me, and Judy on the path we have cleared. The entire path was covered with weeds and branches hanging over the path, but is now clear so the bird keepers that need to walk along the path to get to the new building where the birds are housed can easily access it. Finally, we had the opportunity to go on the Kilimenjaro safari with Karen, Cindy, Rob, and a surprise visit from our fellow interns Jordan and Julia. While on the ride, the driver kept telling us about the grasses and trees that needed to be trimmed back for a better view of the animals however we saw no issue trying to see the animals and want to keep the area natural. To end the day, we had the opportunity to get a backstage tour of the elephant holding area as well as see them out on the safari from a backstage viewing area.

Plant of the week: 
The plant of the week is Crinum lily. It is a perennial bulb found in the Amaryllidaceae family. Crinum lily is native to zones 8-10 and grows to be 2-4' tall and 1-3' wide. The bloom time is from July-August with the flower up to 4" wide and long blooming in clusters of color that are white, pink, red and white/red bicolor. Flowers are showy and fragrant. Their light requirement is full sun to part shade. Bulbs like rich, moist, well-drained soils. For zones north of zone 8 crinum lilies can be grown in large containers and brought inside in the winter. When planted in pots/containers they should be at least 2" larger in diameter than the bulbs. The bulb should be planted with the neck exposed. Soil should be kept moist and fertilized regularly during the growing season. After bloom watering should be reduced so that soils dry out between waterings. Containers should be brought inside in the fall before the first frost for overwintering in a cool, dry, frost-free location. Crinum lily can be propagated by bulblets in the spring. Watering should be increased as the plant shows signs of new growth. When crinum lily is grown in the ground year-round as occurs in southern gardens it will spread by rhizomes to form large colonies. Common pests for crinum lilies include mealybugs, nematodes, and occasionally slugs and snails. Bulb rot and leaf scorch are common diseases that affect crinum lily. Typical garden uses for crinum lily includes borders, containers, houseplants, pond or water garden peripheries, as a good accent, and a good cut flower.
Information taken from: http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?kempercode=a443

Week 9: Animal Kingdom

Friday was my last day at the resorts. This week I begin my last rotation which is Animal Kingdom.

Monday morning Vanvisa and I trimmed Muhlenbergia dumosa which is the grass pictured to the left and some bamboo near the front entrance at Animal Kingdom with Rob. Then, we removed and replaced some bromeliads in the beds just inside the entrance to the park. After that, we walked around the oasis a little to get to know the area better. While walking through Oasis Rob pointed out some of the plants that were on our plant ID test as well as pointed out the Ling Ling Tree as well as the Shave Brush Tree. After that, we helped Karen clean up some debris. We also had a short gardener meeting to go over the safety tip of the week.

Tuesday morning I went with Karen and did some planting in the entrance area of discovery island to fill some empty spots. One of the things that we planted is Sasa bamboo which is a dwarf variety of bamboo. The shrub crew was in Karen's area so we had to show them what to trim which involved cutting back some bamboo and cutting shrubs in various flowerbeds down to waist height in order to open up the view. Then, we trimmed back Tecomaria as well as the other plants in the island bed. After that, Karen showed me around her area which is discovery island. She went through some of the plants which would be on our plant ID test as well as showed me some other plants including the Monkey Puzzle Tree and Musenda which is pictured above. Next, we planted some liriope near the large gift shop in discovery island. To end the day we cut some cat's claw vine which was growing up some of the palm trees. After work on Tuesday was our plant ID test.

Wednesday morning Vanvisa and I went with Cindy and did some mad calls which are calls that come in from the managers within different departments of the park requesting that a project gets taken care of. In this case the mad calls were about some bamboo which had bent over one was near the train station in Africa and the other was for the ice cream shop in Asia which we had the area gardener take care of. After that, we planted six lady palms in the fastpass queue line for the Jungle Safari. Next, we had the opportunity to feed the otters backstage with the keeper watching us while Karen weed whipped in the exhibit. After weed whipping was completed we went down to the pond by flame tree BBQ and measured the water temperature as well as the size of Victoria water lilies as this data will be plugged into a program to determine how much fertilizer is needed. We also used the pole saw to cut off a seloum branch which was yellow and hanging down. Then, I trimmed back some Thunbergia erecta plants which were getting leggy as well as some jasmine and Tecomaria which were too tall near flame tree BBQ and pizzafari. After that I went over by the Galapagos turtle exhibit and pulled some cats claw off of the rocks as well as trimming back some Tecomaria while Karen went back near the tree of life. I couldn't go back there as they were working with the high reach and I didn't have a hard hat. To end the day I went with Vanvisa and Cindy and picked up some plants that Cindy was going to use on Thursday. Also, we got an email saying how we did on the plant ID test. I am happy to announce that I got 100%.

Seaworld

Hanging baskets Seaworld

Thursday we had a class trip to seaworld and gaylord palms instead of our regular work. It was very cool to tour seaworld and see the different topiaries as well as the similarities and differences of the plant palette. We had the opportunity to see the dolphins and do a walk through of the nursery while we were there. Two people work at the nursery, but unlike Disney which buys in plugs for the topiaries and only grows the hanging baskets seaworld gets plugs in and re-pots them in larger pots until they are ready to be planted outside. Gaylord palms is a large hotel with a huge indoor Atrium. It was interesting to hear about how the larger trees were brought in before the roof was put on and now if any need to be replaced they have to be brought through the giant front door. They also talked about integrated pest management which is how they take care of any pest problems. While at gaylord palms we got to see some unique plants that they have in their collection specifically the Coco de Mer also known as the sea coconut. To end the day some of the interns worked on their projects, but I had mine finished so those of us who were finished worked on putting name plates on mickey statues which are to be given away to people who helped out with the flower and garden festival.

Coco de Mer

Friday morning Vanvisa and I trimmed jasmine while Karen watered. We also picked up the older brown branches which had fallen off of the monkey puzzle tree.  After that we went back by the tree of life with our hard hats since this is a construction area and picked up debris piles that Karen had left behind. After that we had a short meeting to review the safety topic of the week. To end the day Vanvisa and I dumped the Toro and watered in the yard.

Plant of the week: 

Branch of Monkey puzzle tree

The plant of the week is Tecomaria capensis also known as Cape Honeysuckle. It is found in the Bignoniaceae family. Cape honeysuckle is a sprawling, sometimes vine-like shrub with evergreen, opposite, pinnately compound leaves about 6" long. There are 5-7 diamond-shaped leaflets that are toothed and about 2" long. Cape honeysuckle produces clusters of red-orange to scarlet tubular flowers in the fall and winter, each about 2" long. As a shrub it can be maintained to 10' or more in height and half as wide, but if left alone without pruning it can cover 25' or more. Cape honeysuckle grows rapidly. Specific cultivars include 'Apricot' which is smaller and more compact with orange flowers and 'Aurea' which has yellow flowers. Cape honeysuckle originates from the Cape of Good Hope region of South Africa, where there are more endemic plant species (species that occur nowhere else) than any other area in the world. It has escaped from cultivation and become established in disturbed areas in Hawaii and Central Florida. Cape honeysuckle does best in full sun but tolerates light shade. It needs good drainage and does best with regular water, but is moderately drought tolerant once established. Tecomaria is for USDA hardiness zones 9-11 and is hardy to at least 26ºF. Propagation involves softwood cuttings at any time of the year and by seeds. It will take root anywhere branches touch the ground. Common uses of cape honeysuckle include as a climbing vine or barrier hedge/screen, trained as a specimen shrub or used as a ground cover on steep slopes or rocky banks. It can also be used as a cascading plant over walls and planters or trained as a garden arch. Tecomaria is salt tolerant and accepts acidic to alkaline soils. Cape honeysuckle is known to attract hummingbirds and orioles and flowers most of the winter. Information from: http://www.floridata.com/ref/t/teco_cap.cfm 

Week 8: All-Star Resort

Monday morning started with Karina and I driving through All-Star Sports which is Cathy's area. We were looking for palm boots and other debris. Then, we met up with Chic and trimmed Allamanda as well as helped plant Tibouchina lepidota around the ballerina at the fantasia building. After that, we trimmed Selloum which was dead or hanging over the sidewalk area around the calypso and piano pools in music. After break, we drove around looking for any noticeable debris or low hanging branches that needed to be removed.

Tuesday morning Karina and I went with Dan to water Rafiki's. Then, we watered the interior plants in sports, movies, and music. After that, we drove around and cut out dead saw palmetto fronds and those hanging over the sidewalks in the tree save area. We also helped unload a truck of plants which had come in.

Wednesday I went with Brian. First, we drove around looking for any palm boots and other debris. Then, we drove around looking for any low hanging branches which Brian cut using a pole saw and I helped him clean up the debris.

Thursday morning Chic and I drove around looking for debris. Then, with the help of Brian and Geraldo we planted Cereus sp. which is a type of cactus. An image of the planted Cereus can be found to the right along with a close-up of the flower. As you can see in the image to the right one of the arms broke off. This actually happened when unloading them from the delivery truck. The delivery person told us that we could plant the broken arms and they would grow so Chic and I planted the three arms which broke off and left them in the yard where they will hopefully grow. The cactus was in a 7 gallon container. First, Chic tied a rope around the arms of the cactus to make them more stable for transportation and planting. Then, the three guys carefully lifted them into the bed of the Toro. Upon getting to the planting site we moved the rocks to the side, dug two holes, and the guys lifted the cactus out of the Toro and moved them by the hole. Then, while one person held the pot the other two cut the pot off and then they slid the cactus into the holes and put soil around them. After that, we cut down dying stems and leaves in the area. Then for the rest of the day, Chic and I drove around cutting down limbs in the parking lot which were covering the signs.

Class on Thursday consisted of a tour of the central shops which is where the ride vehicles go for repairs, where the character  heads are put together, and where the printing is done. It was very cool to see this area but pictures are discouraged due to it being backstage.

Friday morning started off by replacing the huge pots in front of the sports, music, and movies lobbies containing Adonidia merrillii Adonidia Palm also known as Christmas Palm and the Epipremnum aureum also known as Pothos which surround them. First, everyone pitched in and took out the old Pothos and the three men Geraldo, Brian, and Chic took out the Adonidia palms. Then, they put in the new palm which had been tied to the Toro upon loading. After that, new soil was added if it was needed and then Karina, Cathy, and I planted the new Pothos. There are four large pots at sports, four at music, and two at movies. Between each resort, we had to go back to the yard to dump the Toro and grab more plants. I have a few pictures of the process as can be seen to the left. The final product is very similar to what the pots looked like at the beginning except that the new palms are taller and not as beat up as the old palms. This took a good portion of the morning. After planting, Karina and I went around to water the indoor plants in the check-in areas while Cathy went to water the newly planted outdoor pots using the water cart. Then, Karina and I drove around looking for debris. We found an area by the piano pool that looked particularly bad and raked that up. After that, we continued driving around looking for other debris.

Plant of the Week: 

Adonidia merrillii Adonidia Palm also known as Christmas palm is the plant of the week. Adonidias bloom with white flowers and then red berries (seeds) around Christmastime hence the nickname Christmas palm. It is a showy, highly ornamental palm that works well in small landscape areas. Dead palm fronds of adonidias fall off by themselves making it self-cleaning. Adonidia also typically is pest-free. Both of these things make it low-maintenance and good for home gardeners. Adonidias can be single or multi-trunk (the ones we used had three trunks. The palm has a green crown shaft, gray trunk, and long full fronds making it look like a miniature royal palm. Adonidia palm makes a good focal point as it is in the pots we replanted on Friday. Christmas palms work best in zone 10 however Orlando is zone 9b, but the palms are in a pot which won't freeze as easily and they are well protected by the buildings. Adonidias can grow to be 12-15 feet but they are slow growers. In the pots they will be changed out every 3-5 years so will not grow too tall for the space even though they were approximately 7 feet tall upon planting. The palm is moderately salt-tolerant. Christmas palm performs best in full-sun, but can tolerate partial shade however too much shade causes the trunks to grow skinny and fronds thin. The adonidias we planted are in partial shade, but they seem to grow well there. Palms should be fertilized with granular fertilizer three times a year (once in each season of spring, summer, and autumn. Allowing the fronds to fall naturally as they brown releases nutrients which go to the newly forming fronds. When planting in the landscape single trunk adonidias should be planed 5-6 feet away from the house. While multi-trunk adonidias need adequate room to spread out as the trunks naturally bow causing the fronds to extend a bit further. The trunks should be positioned so they won't be in the way once they gain some stature. The palms can easily grow in large containers as they do at all-star the pots just need to be large(the ones at all-star have a diameter of 46"). They can then be planted in a garden if it outgrows the pots or simply replaced. Some landscape uses for palms include using them by the main entry, as a corner accent, single yard specimen, focal point for small gardens and island beds, in tall pool cages, as the center of a circular drive, patio or pool container plant, accent for blank walls or privacy fences, or on each side of an entrance to a long driveway. Information from South Florida plant guide http://www.south-florida-plant-guide.com/adonidia-palm.html

Week 7: All-Star Resort

Monday morning Karina and I started out our morning by driving around music and looking for any debris from the weekend storm and pulling large weeds. Then, we went with Chic and planted some Princess Caroline Purple Fountain Grass. After that, we put down pine straw throughout the movies resort. To end off the day, we explored all of the resorts keeping an eye out for large weeds and branches that were hanging down.

Tuesday morning I went with Chic and we planted Ilex vomitoria 'Nana' Dwarf Yaupon Holly also known as schilling. We also dug out some sod that wasn't looking good and replaced it with fresh sod. Then, we got rid of some bad plants and old sod that were in the yard in preparation for the plants that are coming in this week. After that, we put down some fresh mulch to dress up the edges of the flowerbeds around the calypso pool in all-star music. After that, Chic used the chainsaw to cut out some saw palmetto's that were dead or dying while I cleaned up the debris. To end the day, we moved some barricades which are to be picked up by the place they were rented from in the next few days.

Wednesday morning Chic and I drove around looking for debris and watered. Then, we put mulch around the grasses and ended the day by putting down pine straw.

Thursday we drove around looking for debris and finished the day by putting down pine straw.

American Lotus

Class on Thursday was an adventure to wild florida to go on an airboat ride. While on the ride, we were able to see some invasive species. We also learned about how the temperature of incubation for the eggs of an alligator regulates whether it will be male or female. Temperature of 86 degrees Fahrenheit and below produce female alligators, 93 and above produce male alligators, and 86-93 produces both males and females. After the airboat, we had the opportunity to hold an alligator. I also learned that where you see a bald cypress forest you will probably see poison ivy, poison oak, and poison sumac. While on the boat we also had the opportunity to try seeds from the american lotus Nelumbo lutea. 

Friday morning I went out with Chic and we first drove around looking for palm boots and other debris. Then, we put in liriope in front of a sign to cover the open gap near the bottom by fantasia pool in movies. Then, we replaced some junipers over by country fair in music, put down mulch around the junipers and some of the other beds in music until the Toro was empty. After that, we cut down some allamanda near the fantasia pool. and pulled large weeds in the parking lot between movies and music.

Plant of the Week:
Ilex vomitoria 'Nana' Dwarf Yaupon Holly is the plant of the week. Its native habitat is Southern United States, Mexico, and Bermuda. The shrub grows to be 25 feet tall however within the landscape at Disney it is kept trimmed back much shorter than that. The shrub has gray-green twigs with bright red berries that are drupe-like and appear in clusters on the previous years growth. The foliage is alternate, dark green above, paler beneath, leathery, glossy, scalloped, unarmed very fine in texture. Flowers are inconspicuous. Maximum color is in the winter when fruit assumes full color. Information from Disney's Horticulture Plant Identification Manual given to all interns upon entering the program.

Week 6: Fantasia Gardens, All-Star Resorts, and Coronado Springs Resort

Monday started off by walking the gardens and fairways courses. I found a total of 36 balls today which is the most that an intern has found in one day according to the gardener Lance. Then, I was shown my new area as I will be rotating to the resorts (All-Star and Coronado) as of tomorrow. After break I had the opportunity to try out the auger and drill some holes which is a method used to speed up the planting process. Then, we spaced out the shrubs in the yard in order to prevent the plants from becoming leggy. To end the day, I weeded and trimmed back Selloum which was touching the ground.

Tuesday was my first day at All-Star Resorts. Three resorts make up All-Star they are All-Star Sports, All-Star Music, and All-Star Movies. Within each resort there are different themes by building, All-Star Sports for example has Touchdown, Surf's Up, Home-Run, and Hoops to represent different sports themes. All-Star Resorts is the third largest resort in the nation with 6,500 rooms. I started my day by going with Cathy and watering the interiors inside the lobby's of the three resorts within All-Star. These plants are what guests will see when waiting to check-in, check-out, or ask any questions that they might have therefore we want to create a good atmosphere with healthy looking plants. While watering the interiors, Jim the manager noticed that the pots outside of the buildings need to be changed out which we will be doing next week when the new plants come in. Then, we went over to Rafiki's Planet Watch located within Animal Kingdom and watered the interiors while removing any bad looking leaves. While working on the interiors at Rafiki's planet watch, one of the irrigation people came to fix the irrigation so we had to remove the plants in the area. Unfortunately, he thinks the line might be broke in another spot but could not figure out where. A lot of soil was lost so we were unable to plant new plants in the area so we ended up leaving them in the pots and decided to come back another day as we weren't sure when the area opens. After that, we drove around with a hose on the Toro to where new plants had recently been planted and watered the areas that could not be reached with the water truck. During watering there was a lost child that another family found wandering around. They called security who came to be with the child and a few minutes later the family came and were reunited with their child. I was happy to see how quickly the staff responded and that the child was reunited with his family quickly. We then took the water truck out and watered the areas it could reach. After that, we went to an area and trimmed back Loropetalum. After lunch we drove around through the different resorts seeing if anything needed attention and took a look at some pots outside of Broadway which is an area in movies. These pots are to be replanted but they wanted some ideas as to what tree to use. The current idea is Crape Myrtle or Italian Cypress. An image of the pots can be seen to the right. As you can see the pots are rather large so the plants need to fill the pots, but they also need to be short so that they don't block the marquee.

Wednesday morning started with Cathy driving the water truck while I helped water the outdoor pots by the entrances to each of the three resorts along with watering any dry areas in the outside beds. Then, we drove around for awhile in the Toro looking for anything that needed to be picked up. Then, we went over to Rafiki's planet watch with some soil and planted the plants which we had laid on top of the soil yesterday and watered them in. After that, we went over by the surf's up pool and did some pruning. While Cathy cut back Selloum, I cut back Allamanda bush to about waist height. In cutting back the Allamanda it was discovered that it had mealybugs which we mentioned to the pest management person who will spray them. We had to make a few trips to the dump with debris. Then, we drove around for awhile longer looking at different areas. Before lunch, Cathy went to go look something up on the computer so I went with her and took a few minutes to work on my project as she did not have anything for me to do. After lunch, we drove around looking for an area that Javier the pest management person said was full of weeds however we did not find any in this area and are guessing that the high school weed crew pulled them out. Then, we drove around and removed some junipers in the parking lot beds which had died. We filled the holes with surrounding soil.

Thursday morning Karina and I watered interiors by the check-in areas within All-Star. Then we explored All-Star by driving around. After that, we cut back saw palmetto. Then we dug out and replaced two Viburnum suspenpensum. After that Chic showed us how to put in St. Augustine sod.

Tower

Class today started early as we went on a field trip to Bok Tower Gardens so we left work early. Bok tower gardens was started by Edward Bok and opened in 1929. 30,000 annuals are planted here every year along with a number of endangered plants. We were given a tour by John Arnett who used to work for Disney. He told us that majority of their visitors come in the winter which is the opposite of what I'm used to being from the North gardens are visited primarily in the summer. Upon coming into the garden there were a bunch of orange groves.
Unfortunately a bacterial disease is spreading rapidly through the groves and unless a resistant rootstock is discovered it is likely that all citrus in Florida will be affected in the next 10 years. During the tour we also talked about ridge which is a native area in Florida that is now endangered due to the demand for building. To the left is the bells made up of 85% copper and 15% tin with the largest one weighing 11.7 ton.

While on the trip, we had the opportunity to go into the tower and see the bells which few people get to do (employees do after working at least 90 days, members who donate $1200, and VIPs). While in the tower we learned a lot about the history and maintenance. We also learned more about the history of the garden and how it has been affected by storms like hurricane Charlie. To the right is a picture of Victoria water lilies in the moat surrounding the tower.

 To the left is an image of air plants that were hung on a string and could be found near the cafe and gift shop.

The image to the right is from the highest point in Florida known as Iron mountain which is 290ft. above sea level. I really enjoyed the trip to Bok tower gardens.

Friday morning Karina and I went with Dan and watered pots outside the Animal Kingdom lodge. We used a sprayer that would normally be used for fertilizing or spraying pesticides but was used for just water in this case so that it could also be used to wash off the plants and because there is nowhere to hook up a hose and a watering can would be inefficient. Then, we went and watered Rafiki's planet watch and replaced some plants which had been damaged by visitors. After that we cut down some Hawaiian Ti which was getting to tall as it was blocking the window. We then dug small holes around them and stuck in the cuttings as we are going to try and get them to root. A picture of Hawaiian Ti is to the right. After that, we trimmed back some hanging baskets in an attempt to better expose the succulents at the top and those stuck in the sides of the baskets. The hanging baskets are pictured above.






Plant of the Week:
The plant of the week is Allamanda schottii Allamanda bush. Flowers are golden trumpet-shaped borne in clusters and appear for most of the year. These plants tend to become bare at the base as they become more mature. There is a dwarf variety available if the bush variety is too large for the desired area. They are evergreen and moderately salt-tolerant. Allamanda prefers full to partial sun and does best in zone 10. They can be trimmed at 3 feet while young and then 4 or 5 feet once mature. Trimming should be done in late March or early April. Watering should occur on a regular basis but allowing it to dry out between watering. Fertilizing should occur 3 times a year (spring, summer, and autumn). Plants should be spaced every 3 feet. Information from the South Florida Plant Guide http://www.south-florida-plant-guide.com/bush-allamanda.html

Week 5: Fantasia Gardens Miniature Golf

Monday morning started off by walking the two courses at Fantasia gardens miniature golf. While walking the course large weeds weeds were removed along with branches and other debris. Then, Lance showed us how to use some of the power equipment. First, we had the opportunity to try out the edger along  a flowerbed and along the sidewalk. Then, we were able to use the reciprocator pictured to the right to take down torpedo grass which had been killed with a weed killer. Next, we had the opportunity to use the tiller in an area. After break, we did some weeding around the tennis courts and watered plants in the holding area. 

Tuesday morning started off once again by walking the courses. First, I rode around the parking lot with Ira looking for any noticeable weeds or other debris. Then, we walked the gardens course backwards. I found 5 golf balls today in addition to the 7 that I picked up yesterday. After walking the course, I raked mulch out of a bed and we pulled the azaleas out. The pictures to the left show the bed after it had been raked and the azaleas were pulled but not yet tossed out they are in piles in the pictures. After removing the debris, we began to till the bed Ira did some of it while I also did a portion of it. Unfortunately by 10am we were only halfway done with tilling but the golf course opens at 10am so we had to stop. We cleaned up the mess on the sidewalk (sweeping/washing down) and put pine straw down 2 ft. wide where the bed and sidewalk meet so that if someone were to step on it they will not be tracking mud onto the sidewalk. After break, Ira showed me how to trim palm trees using the pole saw. First we trimmed off some fronds which had been damaged the last time the arborists were trimming them and had now started to droop down. Then, we removed a dead frond from the Queen palms. After that, we trimmed some fronds off of one of the Sabal palms which had been affected by skeletonizer. Finally, we went to dump the Toro and empty it of the tools.

Wednesday Lance and I first put out hoses and walked the courses while Ira finished tilling the bed. Then, after he was done I helped to rake the bed flat. Next, we grabbed the new azaleas which were a different cultivar that will hopefully survive better in the area. Ira then set them out as Lance and I drove the Toro to get more and some that were wider. Then, Ira started to plant while I walked ahead of him removing the pots so he could quickly plant them and then I followed with the rake to cover up the footprints. Then, we started to put down mulch but ran out of time. The picture to the right shows the bed after it had been planted and before it was mulched. After putting down the mulch we had to clean up. After break, I went out into the parking lot to pick up hoses and pulled some weeds and picked up branches. Today I found a total of 7 golf balls.

Class this week was on Wednesday instead of Thursday. We had the opportunity to meet with the landscape architects. Surprisingly there are only four landscape architects on the team and two seasonal interns. They do facilities projects including re-purposing existing locations, working on the integrated facilities plan, other projects when horticulture managers come to them and the flower and garden festival as well as community relations projects, ADA improvements, mapping of the irrigation zones on the entire property which can be found on the hub. Irrigation is run on a central computer system known as maxicom which can tell what area a leak or issue might be located. The landscape architects also work on playground design throughout the parks. The architects showed us simple demonstrations of the technology that they use including SketchUp, AutoCad, and Revit. We also had the opportunity to visit the sticks which is where the drawings are archived.

Thursday morning while Ira finished with putting down mulch Lance and I walked the two courses. Then, I went with Ira out front by the sign and helped to trim some hedges with the hedge trimmer. After that, I worked on helping with some weeding and picking up of branches in the shade. I ended up finding a total of 20 golf balls today.

Friday morning I helped Ira to fertilize the palms first and then the flowerbeds and some of the grass throughout the gardens and fairways garden courses. Then, I ended my day by pulling out Virginia creeper which was climbing around the viburnum. I only found one golf ball today.

Plant of the week:
The plant of the week is Azalea Rhododendron hybrids. It is native to the Mediterranean region to Japan and grows to be 2-12ft. The shrub is upright, vase shaped, well-branched to the ground, dense, wider than high, and covered with blooms in the spring. Foliage is alternate 1.5" long crowded toward the end of the branches and dull green beneath with both sides being hairy. Flowers are funnel form white, or pink to purple, usually alone, and 3" wide. Maximum color in Florida is from January through March. This information is from the Plant Identification Manual given to all horticulture and pest management interns here at Disney. In talking to Ira one day I mentioned that I knew what azaleas look like because we had some in Minnesota. I told him that there were in fact some cold hardy cultivars they just bloom a few months later in Minnesota as we still have snow on the ground when they would bloom here. For more information visit http://www.extension.umn.edu/garden/yard-garden/flowers/azaleas-rhododendrons-for-minnesota/.

Week 4: Hollywood Studios and the Nursery/Tree Farm

I'm back at Hollywood Studios due to illness with the gardener working at Fantasia gardens.

Monday I waited for the gardener at Fantasia gardens to show up but later found out that the gardener was sick and was brought over to Hollywood Studios. It was a busy morning starting off by removing plants which were in a pot near star tours which was used for pictures during star wars weekends which is now over. The area was then pine strawed. After that, two dead arborvitae trees were removed and replaced along with a hole from a tree that had previously been removed located in the beginning of the backlot tour. Then, shrubs were removed and replaced with Viburnum in a bed near the lights, camera, action stunt show. Finally, some bird-of-paradise was picked up from one of the resorts and a meeting was attended. Multiple trips to the dump were also made throughout the day. Overall, the day was busy.

Chair on left is pictured
http://www.waymarking.com/gallery/image.aspx?f=1&
guid=97ad23b8-6a1b-477f-b961-5e43b9176cc9

Tuesday I had the opportunity to work at the nursery/tree farm. First, I went out to help with the Alice in Wonderland topiaries by putting in new Ficus pumila Creeping Fig or Climbing Fig to replace any dead or missing areas. A dibble is used to create the holes I worked on the two chairs on the left and right sides of the Alice in Wonderland topiaries.

Image from: http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/LocationPhotoDirectLink-
g34515-d85986-i61061885-Disney_s_Contemporary_Resort-Orlando_Florida.html

Then, we headed over to Contemporary resort to replace Alternanthera located in the bottom front and back of the Mickey topiary as pictured to the right. Then. I went with Joe the foreman on the job to pick up some paint while the other workers repainted the hands of Mickey. After finishing the Mickey topiary we headed back to the nursery where I cut back Ficus pumila found on the Eeyore topiary used for the flower and garden festival. This topiary will not be used again until the festival so it was cut back rather drastically. After that, I had the opportunity to help Rosie with putting together hanging baskets. Baskets begin with a 16" spaghnum moss hanging basket liner which is then filled with pre-moistened soil. I was planning two different colors of Vinca Catharanthus roseus in the hanging baskets. There are three places for the hooks to attach the chains for hanging. Between these hooks three plants are planted along the edge of the basket by using index finger to make hole and angling the plant towards the outside of the basket to ensure that the plant grows outwards. Three plants are also planted in the middle of the basket making for a total of 12 plants per hanging basket. The baskets will then be grown out for 3 months at which time they will go to a designated area within the park. A tag is put on the chain designating the location where the hanging baskets are to be put and what day they will be ready. Chains are then clipped to the hanging baskets. I also helped with watering and clean-up. Overall, I would say that working in the nursery was very interesting and gave me a different perspective on horticulture at Disney. Just a quick note all of the plants that I used today were grown in plugs and purchased. Disney buys almost all of the plants used from growers in the area rather than producing them at the nursery.

I also had the opportunity to discuss my project today. Instead of creating a plant ID app I will be coming up with ideas to improve the butterfly garden at the Epcot Flower and Garden Festival and activities to engage people within the garden particularly children. The activities need to be easy to do as there is not a lot of people available to help out with activities.

Wednesday morning I helped Mariana to water her hanging baskets while she went off to get her annual hearing test. After I finished watering, I went with Todd and helped weed an area backstage as well as remove old mulch and put down new mulch which is a different color.

Thursday was a shorter day today because we went on a field trip for class so we had to be on the bus by 11am and thus left work when break is set to begin at 10am. I ended up weeding the entire time from 4:30 until 10am. We weeded one small area in the park and then around the parking garage backstage. There was a lot of wandering jew in the bushes which is what I was pulling in the picture to the right.

For class today we visited Leu gardens which is located just minutes from downtown Orlando. The city gives 1.5 million to the gardens every year to help with its operation. Within the garden we were able to go through the home demonstration gardens, walk through some of the trial gardens that various breeders use, the vegetable garden, rose garden, and the palm/cycad area.

 Some interesting facts I learned while there include that the garden opened in 1961. 60% of their visitors are from outside of Florida. They host over 300 weddings a year with sometimes 2-3 per day. 97% of caladiums found in the world are grown in Florida. They have rare plants including the stinking cedar which one of 123 genotypes that they learned how to propagate. A fungus has wiped out many of the plants but in their natural wiregrass habitat (so named as it easily ignites with lightning) smoke will wipe out the fungus. Within the vegetable garden, they have problems with the squash being aborted and not getting to a mature size due to it not being pollinated so they put agastache around it to attract bees. All produce is donated to local homeless shelters. Finally, the rose garden is the only garden in which preventative maintenance is done which occurs every 7-10 days depending upon the weather.

The image above and the one to the right are pictures of the benches for the enabling garden which is used in horticulture therapy. Recently, I have become interested in horticultural therapy especially after writing a research paper about it for one of my classes. This fall semester I will be taking a class on therapeutic horticulture taught by Jean Larson who is in charge of horticultural therapy at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. Horticulture Therapy at Leu Gardens started in 1992 to encourage motor skills related to individuals with disabilities.The program at Leu gardens allows assisted living facilities to bring in clients for a period of 6-8 weeks every Wednesday and do a variety of nature related activities. This program is free.  (http://www.leugardens.org/classes/horticulture_therapy.htm)

In walking through the enabling garden where horticulture the raised benches allow for people in wheelchairs to garden and as you can see in the image to the right above the benches allow for wheelchairs to get under the bench. They can fit one on each side of the bench. There is also an area of raised grass as can be seen in the image to the left which allows for people in wheelchairs to easily scoot out of the chair and read or lay in the grass which is something that would ordinarily take a lot of effort but is easier because of the height.



Leu gardens also does conifer trials to determine what conifers can handle the heat of Florida. One conifer that they know for sure can handle the heat is Podocarpus. The area pictured to the right is relatively new as it is located within the palm/cycad area where trees were damaged during hurricane Charlie. Our tour guide told us that on 9/13/04 (which was Friday the 13th) a tornado came through the garden and damaged over 200 trees that had to be removed and were mostly laurel oaks. This has opened up many areas that used to be heavily shaded and is causing damage to plants that were used to the shade.

To the left is a picture of the butterfly garden which we walked through while visiting the garden.

Here is a picture of the horticulture and pest management interns as we visited Leu gardens. I really enjoyed the trip and getting to see another public garden. As many of you know I am hoping to work at a public garden when I graduate.







Friday morning started the same as Thursday ended. Emmi and I were weeding for the first four and a half hours. Then, we helped one of the teams to remove mulch. After break, we watered the yard, Emmi watered the back and the greenhouse while I watered in front of the trailer where the shrubs are found. To end the day we helped cut back Catharanthus roseus found in the yard which was starting to get leggy.

Plant of the week:

podocarpus-macrophyllus-podocarpus-japanese-
Dino_Turf_Nursery_South_Florida_Miami
_Dade_Broward_Palm_Beach_8

Podocarpus macophyllus or Japanese Yew is the plant of the week. Its native habitat is central and southwest Japan. Japanese yew is a slow, upright grower that is narrow, columnar, compact and densely leaved. It can grow to be 50 feet in height. The fruit is a drupe-like green which is ovoid and 1/2" in diameter that grows above a purple edible aril. Foliage is flat, linear leaves that grow to be 2-3" long with a prominent mid-rib and are lighter green beneath. Flowers are inconspicuous. Podocarpus is used throughout the landscape at Disney as a hedge.

Week 3: Hollywood Studios, Fantasia Gardens and Fairways Miniature Golf, and Blizzard Beach

This week I finish my time at Disney's Hollywood Studios and begin in a new area waterparks/mini golf (the Animal Kingdom crew takes care of Blizzard Beach, Typhoon Lagoon, and Fantasia Mini Golf)

Monday was a really busy day. Because a few of the full time staff were off and the other intern was sick, I was in charge of watering the area of two people. While this seemed like a lot to water I managed to get everything but Indiana Jones done before the park opened and finished Indiana Jones shortly after the park had opened. After that, Paula had me change out some more pots. The pots were located as part of the backstage tour. Geraniums were removed and replaced with torenia, caladiums, and coleus. I was showed where the pots were located and was told to put whatever was available in them. Because this area is considered to be on-stage I was unable to take a picture of my work, but perhaps if I visit later in the summer I can see if they have been changed or not. My day ended by getting rid of some old hanging baskets that were in the greenhouse.

Tuesday was my last official day at Hollywood Studios. To begin the day I watered and removed old leaves inside of ABC Commissary. During this time, the palms inside were washed down with soapy water. I then helped with the cleanup. Then, I watered some of the hanging baskets. After that the Toro was dumped. One of the restaurants opened at 7:30 this morning for breakfast. Around 7:30 I took the Toro to a nearby gate and did weeding for about an hour and a half. One of the beds has a Redbud (Cercis canadensis) and a large number of seedlings were popping up throughout the bed. After weeding, Paula showed Michael and I where we would be moving to as of tomorrow. I will be at Fantasia mini golf as well as the waterparks (Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon) working with one of the other interns. To end the day Michael and I watered the containers and azaleas over by the bungalows.

Wednesday is my first day in my new area. Today I worked in Fantasia Gardens and Fairways Miniature Golf. There are two 18-hole mini golf courses one that is a putting course and one that resembles a traditional golf course on a miniature scale. The day began by walking the courses and pulling weeds such as Cyperus esculentus Yellow Nutsedge and Hydrocoyle umbellata Dollarweed, picking up any debris which may have fallen overnight such as branches, cutting back any limbs too low or shrubs over the sidewalk, and pruning shrubs that look bad. During the walk through Lance and Ira are also looking for larger projects such as replacement of plants or more in depth pruning that will take longer and cannot be done when guests are present for example there was some Plumbago auriculata Plumbago which needs to be replaced because the shrub crew pruned it back to far and the spacing is off. Then Ira showed us how to trim up the topiaries. There are four near the front entrance and four near the end of the putting course which the other intern and me helped trim. While doing the walk through, we kept an eye out for and picked up any golf balls, successfully identified and avoided poison ivy, and Ira pointed out many of the plants we needed to know such as Ilex cornuta 'Bufordii' Burford Holly, Loropetalum chinensis var rubrum Chinese Fringe-Bush, Rhapiolepis indica Indian Hawthorn, Viburnum odoratissimum Sweet Viburnum, Camellia japonica Camellia, Pittosporum tobira Pittosporum, Rhododendron hybrids Azalea, Rosa hybrids Rose, Quercus viginiana Live Oaks, Lagerstroemia indica Crape Myrtle, Dianella tasmaica 'Variegata' 'Variegated Flax Lily', Liriope muscari 'Evergreen Giant' 'Evergreen Giant Liriope'. Then Mike the manager for Fantasia gardens showed me again how to get to blizzard beach as that is where I will be working for the next week and a half. To end the day, I went with Lance to turn in the golf balls that had been collected (they bring them to the entrance staff about once a month) and pruned Philodendron selloum Selloum by removing any leaves which were on the ground and removing flower buds as they would take energy from the plant.

Thursday I started working at blizzard beach. The morning began by simply driving around and picking up any branches that had fallen. We found that the wash down crew had broken one of the stingers (where they hook up to the control valve for water) which created a leak near runoff rapids so we called that into the manager who then called it into irrigation. While riding around we saw a rat snake on the concrete. We also cut down branches that were low throughout the park and miniature golf course on site. Then we did a walk through and pulled weeds as well as picking up branches which we may not have seen in the morning.

Today was also class day. For class, we had the opportunity to do a backstage tour of The Land which is located within Epcot. The Land consists of greenhouses which exhibit technology for the future in food production. During our tour we had the opportunity to see the pest management lab and learn about the leaf miner fly and how parasitic wasps are used as a biological control. Then, we had the opportunity to see through a window the tissue culture lab and heard about a project they have for the USDA which is looking for plant tissue that is resistant to plum pox virus which affects stone fruit crops. After that we had the opportunity to see the greenhouses where they have different methods of hydroponics and aeroponics. In aeroponics water + nutrients is sprayed on the root as can be seen in the first two images. I thought this was a very interesting system.







We also heard about vertigrow and verticrop systems. A fun fact that I didn't know before is that as cucumbers develop they will take the shape of their container so when the cucumbers are first developing they put a plastic cover which is in the shape of mickey mouse.

Within the land they have a tomato tree growing as can be seen in the image to the left. Instead of taking the main stalk and pinching off any offshoots they tie up as many of the offshoots they can as possible. In the past, they have grown a tomato tree and set a record for the most square footage and most harvested from a single plant. They use an indeterminate plant which does not stop growing upon fruit set. They have also made a cucumber tree and have set the same records.



Another technique mentioned was the nutrient film technique. Other information about the greenhouses include that for every 200mL of water 1mL of nutrients is supplied. They use blue booties when walking in the sand because of nematodes which can be found on the bottom of your shoes. In The Land they have aquaculture with American eel, shrimp, American alligator, tilapia, bass, catfish, and sturgeon. All of the produce goes to local restaurants. The image to the right is of winter melon and the one below is part of the tropical garden.

Friday consisted of driving and walking around the waterpark looking for any down branches, weeds, or other landscape debris which needed to be removed. I also walked through the minigolf located at blizzard beach looking for debris and weeds that needed to be removed.








Featured plant:
The plant I am featuring this week is one that I was told about when working at fantasia gardens known as Liriope muscari 'Evergreen Giant'. Evergreen Giant Liriope is native to Japan and China. Foliage is dark green, flat, strap-like and arches to 24" long and 3/4" wide. Its habit is 18-24" tall with spreading, clump forming habit that is rhizomatus or stoloniferous. Flowers are a raceme, terminal, and dense. Some say the flowers are like that of a hyacinth and maximum color can be seen from June to November. All of the information about Liriope comes from the plant identification booklet that all of the professional interns received.