Auburn Shade Garden!

     It's been very busy in Funchess lately, as we begin to wrap up the semester and continue our research! This semester all of the public horticulture students are taking Practicum. Over the past few months, Dr. Williams has lead us in developing a Shade Garden for Auburn's campus. We've pruned trees, removed stumps, weeded, and worked together as a class to design the garden. The Shade Garden's plant collections will be used for horticulture classes and appreciated by students walking to campus from nearby parking lots.

     March 31st was a major work day for the Shade Garden. We had the daunting task of preparing the soil, planting the first phase of the garden, and spreading mulch. When we arrived Heath had already placed mounds of pine bark all around the site. We began leveling the bark out with rakes first. I never could have imagined what we accomplished in only a few short hours; it was hard work! Luckily I was able to catch some pictures of the progress!

Plants and mounds of pine bark on our empty canvas.

We were lucky to have Heath and the skid steer (left) help with the labor. He pulled a tree stump out of the ground with no problem! The skid steer couldn't reach every area, so we did some leg work to fill in gaps of pine bark. Hanna and Leah (right) took a break from loading wheelbarrows to pose glamorously with their shovels.

The pine bark was spread to a depth of about 3 inches, to be mixed in as a soil amendment. Jay (left), Jayne (middle), and Hanna (right) all pitched in on the work!

Monte helped Kira (left) and several of us mix in the soil amendment using a rototiller. It was a quite learning experience! After a little while, Brent (right) stepped in to finish tilling the rest of the space. His landscaping experience really sped up the process!

Once the soil was tilled and weeded, we began the fun part: planting! Leah and Kira (left) planted a bush while John and Michael (right) dug holes for perennials. We were only able to install a portion of all the plants in the design. But don't worry! The garden will grow over the years, as more specimens are added to the collection!

Monte showed off his mastery of drip irrigation systems by installing hoses through the entire garden in less than an hour. Drip irrigation systems are much more efficient than traditional sprinklers. While traditional sprinklers lose a lot of water to evaporation, drip irrigation systems apply water directly to the soil through perforated hoses, minimizing evaporative water loss.

 Our next step was to spread pine straw mulch. A decent layer of mulch can make all the difference in a garden: fewer weeds, better water retention in the soil (great for hot summer days!), and less soil erosion during heavy rains. Not to mention that nice, clean look it gives a garden!

Dr. Williams and Seth admiring all the work we accomplished; the Shade Garden finally looks like a garden!

     After the long day, I couldn't wait to go home and relax! Instead, I had to study and grade papers. Being a part of Auburn's Department of Horticulture is never dull. Through projects like this we are able to leave our mark on campus for people to enjoy for years to come. The work never ends, but I love it!

War Eagle!
-Jeremiah DeVore