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HILLBURN –
What goes in, must go out, right? But then what?
For 15 years, the Rockland County Solid Waste Management Authority has been providing a clever—and valuable—answer: biosolids-based compost. Sludge from the county’s six wastewater treatment plants is mixed with wood chips to produce nutrient-rich compost. The compost is then sold to landscapers and others looking to improve the quality of their soil. It is not offered directly to the general public.
Profiting from waste: “We create this product that can be sold to offset the costs of what the residents of Rockland County flush down their toilets,” John Klos, the authority’s operations manager, said. “Most people don’t think of that. When you flush it, you don’t care, you don’t know where it goes and don’t care, but eventually a product is made that can be sold.” Klos calls it “black gold.” He said more than $100,000 worth of the stuff is sold per year.
Veggies a no-go: The product — dark, loamy stuff that carries none of the odor of its source material — can be used in the building of athletic fields, roadside berms and yards. New York does not permit its use in vegetable gardens, but 49 other states do. Charles Duprey, sales manager for WeCare Organics, the contractor that runs the biosolid composting program in Rockland and elsewhere, said, “It’s an archaic holdover in New York State.”
Tested and approved: After a 50-day process in which the material is mixed and cured, it is tested weekly for anything that could pose a health risk. “There’s nothing in there that’s any different than what’s in your back yard,” Brian Fleury, senior vice president at WeCare Organics, said.
Locally unique: Typically, wastewater sludge—the solids remaining at the end of the sewage-treatment process—is either buried in a landfill or incinerated. Neither Putnam nor Westchester has a similar county-wide policy for the disposal of biosolids. Yonkers’ sludge, for example, is dried and trucked to Pennsylvania, where it is composted. Mamaroneck and New Rochelle send their sludge to Connecticut, where it is burned to make electricity.
Saving space: All of Rockland County’s sludge is trucked to the authority’s facility in Hillburn. There’s no shortage of it: 100 tons a day, five days a week. “There is an absolute need for more organic matter in our soils,” Fleury said, “and an absolute need to bury less material in our landfills.”
Gone, baby, gone: In the parlance of sustainability, reusing the sludge helps “close the loop.” And it’s popular. Fleury said they produce about 25,000 cubic yards of biosolid compost a year, and every year they sell out.
Twitter: @NPRauch
The Henry | McGalliard nursery will focus on plants and other elements used specifically in urban gardens.
Caitlin Bowling
Reporter- Business First
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Henry | McGalliard Design Associates LLC, a landscape design business, is growing.
The Louisville company already offers landscape design, site construction, garden installation and maintenance services. On Thursday, April 3, Henry | McGalliard Landscape will open a nursery. The Henry | McGalliard Gardens will be located at 711 Brent St., near the Louisville Stoneware factory, according to a news release.
The Henry | McGalliard nursery will focus on plants and other elements used specifically in urban gardens. The store will have both large and small trees as well as a selection of perennials, herbs and native plants.
“This unique nursery will provide everyone with the same high-end plants, great plant material and interesting garden elements that we offer to our design clients. We also envision this as a space for events, gatherings and workshops.” partner and designer Patrick Henry said in the release.
Hours of operation will be 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday.
Caitlin Bowling covers these beats: Restaurants, retail, human resources, and women minority affairs.
ST. PETERSBURG
Evergreens, regal statues and multicolored roses will embellish Snell Isle’s parks just in time for summer weddings.
The city of St. Petersburg recently approved a landscape redesign for Snell Isle’s four gardens, which had been in decline for some time, said parks manager Chandrahasa Srinivasa. The first phase of renovation began in March on Snell Isle Boulevard NE, bordering the Vinoy golf course.
In a meeting with the city in February, the Snell Isle Property Owners Association suggested that the parks should resemble knot gardens, manicured, formal gardens in square frames, a concept originating from England, to pay homage to the history of Snell Isle and its developer, C. Perry Snell. Snell had knot gardens in his original plans.
To bring back the Old Florida ambience, developers studied aerial photos of the park taken as far back as 1927. The landscape will resemble a knot garden, with well-kept shrubbery, symmetry, coats of arms, stone pavements and a central small fountain.
“Basically we’re bringing it back to how the park used to look,” Srinivasa said.
A few statues that were vandalized in June will be restored. A gazebo with historic significance will also be refurbished. The landscaping will cost the city $20,000, but the statues and gazebo are separate, part of a capital improvements plan, Srinivasa said. All renovations are expected to be completed this month.
The renovations are timely, Srinivasa said, because many couples choose Snell Isle for weddings, and reservations are booked months in advance.
Snell Isle Property Owners Association president Scott Youngblood, a resident of eight years, welcomed the plans.
“This has been in the budget for a while, and nothing on Snell Isle has been done by the city in a while,” he said.
Colleen Wright can be reached at cwright@tampabay.com or (727) 893-8913. Follow her on Twitter @Colleen_Wright.
BALLAST POINT – Ken Jewett calls the hidden home he shares with his partner, Tom Hall, a “controlled jungle.”
Jewett constantly is trimming bamboo, bougainvillea, jasmine and other plants as well as separating and giving away hundreds of bromeliads that grow on the property near the Tampa Yacht Club.
“If you let everything grow, they will kill each other,” said Jewett, whose gardens will be one of the six private gardens featured on the April 13 Earthly Paradise Garden Tour.
Thus the bougainvillea grows along the side of the house and the jasmine covers a trellis above one entrance to the house. And never shall they be allowed to overlap.
The home, on four lots, appears as two houses combined but it is an original house and an addition. The original house was built about 25 years ago and the expansion made about 10 years ago. The home is filled with original art, collectibles, antiques, vintage furniture and pieces from around the world.
Hall, of Tucker-Hall Public Relations and Strategic Communications as well as a Broadway producer, is from Lakeland. The house is named Miromar, which was his family’s home. Jewett, who grew up in the Bay Crest area of Tampa, owns a real estate company and works for a federal benefits processing firm.
“We needed the house for all the art and the yard for my plants,” Jewett said. “We just designed all this. We like the oak arms; they hide the house.”
Twelve oaks are on the property, which also includes an Australian tree fern, gardenias and more. A single croton bush is all that remains from the landscaping on the part of the property they purchased in 2002 for the expansion.
One can walk completely around the property on a walkway, much of it made of crushed granite. Outdoor LED lighting is throughout, highlighting the pool area, statues and other pieces in the gardens. They bring in as many as 300 new plants each year – some of which are annuals – to change with the seasons.
“I love doing the plants – and Tom likes doing the fertilizing and the lights,” Jewett said. When in town, Jewett works about 30 a week on the garden.
A neighbor, who is a member of Rose Circle, the tour’s sponsors, asked them to participate.
“I took it as a compliment. I don’t think of it as anything special,” Jewett said.
Tour chairwoman Laura Gauthier disagrees.
“What I love is he has taken every part of this yard and turned it into something special,” she said. “You wouldn’t know it (the house) is even here.”
Other sites on the self-guided tour include homes in Bayshore Beautiful, Golfview and Beach Park. The tour also includes a musical tea party in Fred Ball Park on Bayshore Boulevard.
“There are so many different types of gardens – tiny, traditional, tropical and one with a family,” Gauthier said.
Tour proceeds will assist with the upkeep of Tampa Garden Club and Fred Ball Park and the circle’s community projects. Tickets are available by clicking here.
“You’ve just gotta get to Grieders”
1804 N Towanda Barnes Rd , Bloomington, IL 61705
309-662-8527
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Grieder Sod and Landscaping offers the very best in landscape materials, installation, and maintenance. We are extremely skilled landscape architects, designers, and horticulturists. We have professionally been serving the Bloomington/Normal area for over 30 years.
We invite you to browse our website, contact us at 309-662-8527, or stop by our location at 1804 Towanda Barnes Road in Bloomington, IL.
Special hours:
Design Center Hours: Mon-Fri 9am-5pm
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As Central Illinois residents dig out their homes and gardens from an unusually cold winter, enjoying the warmth and comfort of the outdoors is on everyone’s mind. We are excited to announce the expansion of our Garden Center. Grieder Sod and Landscaping is now offering a full-service Outdoor Lifestyle Design Center to showcase landscape displays and much more for this highly anticipated spring season.
The new Outdoor Lifestyle Design Center provides visitors the unique opportunity to see several examples of exterior landscape design inside the showroom all year long. The center features the season’s most popular option, including patio displays complete with outdoor LED lighting, fire pits, water features and outdoor entertaining areas. Guests also can sample specialty pavers, including TruStone Premium Travertine, Unilock and Romanstone displays as well as Versa-Lok planters and Brussels and Euroblock mailboxes. In addition, the showroom houses the 2014 collection of Summer Classics Furniture, as well as a diverse selection of annual potting options and decorative accents.
Overseeing the initiative is Grieder’s new Outdoor Lifestyle Design Center Manager, Melissa Haas. With over 15 years of experience as a store manager and specific knowledge in visual merchandising, Haas will bring her sales experience and inventory management skills to the Grieder team while enhancing the overall customer experience in the process.
“We are excited to introduce an outdoor showroom indoors for our customers,” stated Dale Palmer, registered landscape architect. “We are happy to welcome Melissa to the Grieder team, as her experience will certainly help grow the new center.”
Grieder focuses on providing quality work and quality service. For more information on the services Grieder offers, visit www.grieders.com or call (309) 662-8527.
Posted: Monday, March 31, 2014 6:00 am
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Updated: 12:39 pm, Mon Mar 31, 2014.
dailycommercial.com
From master gardeners to children, Lake County’s 3rd Annual Central Florida Landscape Garden Fair has something for everyone. The fair will be May 3-4 at Discovery Gardens, at the Lake County Agricultural Center, 1951 Woodlea Rd.
The fair will be open from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. on May 3 and from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. on May 4, Elisha Pappacoda, the county’s public information officer, said in a press release.
Saturday’s presenters include Teresa Watkins on Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Steve Earls on Square-Foot Gardening, Tom MacCubbin on Edible Landscapes, Anne Keller on Geocaching and Jonathan Squires on No-Turf Landscapes. On Sunday, presentations include Native Plants by Karina Veaudry and Hot Plants, Cool Looks by residential horticulture agent Brooke Moffis with the UF/IFAS Extension in Lake County.
The free event will provide visitors an opportunity to browse and purchase goods from dozens of exhibitors specializing in landscaping, gardening, irrigation, fertilizer, composting, hardscapes and more.
This year’s fair brings back the popular Children’s Passport, which children can fill in by visiting designated locations on the map.
Exhibitor booths ranging from 10 feet by 10 feet to 10 feet by 20 feet and food vendor spaces are available, as well as sponsorships ranging in cost from $250 for silver level to $750 for platinum level. Vendors and sponsors may register at www.lakecountyfl.gov/gardenfair. The deadline to register is Thursday. For information, call Tina Chavez at 352-343-9647 or email tchavez@lakecountyfl.gov.
Discovery Gardens is nestled on over 4 acres behind the Lake County Agricultural Center and features 20 themed gardens, including a string of lush courtyards and six specially designed children’s gardens.
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Monday, March 31, 2014 6:00 am.
Updated: 12:39 pm.
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QIUJI TOWN XUYI COUNTY, JIANGSU PROVINCE, CHINA, March 29, 2014 /EINPresswire.com/ — The Bleaching Earth or Bleaching Clay can be used in many important industries, like the refinning of the vegetable and animal oil, the Mineral Oil, and the chemical …
Ajax News Advertiser
AJAX — Three rain gardens along the waterfront will filter runoff water before it’s recharged into the ground.
The gardens are going to be installed in the fall, with one of the gardens at the foot of Anstead Crescent between a walking trail and Lake Driveway West. The other two will be on either side of the same trail next to a parking lot at the foot of Clover Ridge Drive West.
Chris Denich, a consultant with Aquafor Beech Ltd., told Ajax council’s general government committee that the gardens will improve water quality and add beauty to the waterfront.
“It’s a planted garden, much like a garden you would plant,” Mr. Denich said. “They’re highly engineered.”
As the water filters through the gardens, phosphorous in rain water will be removed, he noted.
Other benefits of water going through the gardens is it will be cooled, cleaned and infiltrate the runoff, he added.
Sean James, president of Fern Ridge Landscaping and Eco-Consulting, said different species and textures will be throughout the gardens, adding no trees will be planted near them.
“We’ll focus on perennials and shrubbery. There are no trees to maintain,” Mr. Denich said.
By not planting trees, the sightlines from the street to the lake will be maintained, he added.
“There will even be roses in the gardens. They will be beautiful all the time,” Mr. James said. “Everyone should have a reason to love the gardens. They’ll be filled with birds and butterflies.”
Mr. James said the gardens will bloom from mid-April to October.
“There will be spectacular blooms all summer.” Kevin Tryon, manager of engineering, development services for Ajax, said the designs are about three-quarters complete.
“A very specific skill set is needed to install these,” Mr. Tryon added.
Each garden is about one-metre deep, with materials that will filter out pollutants, and a channel for the water to flow to the gardens.
The tender contract will be awarded in June or July, with the work slated to be done in the fall, Mr. Tryon said.
The gardens are set back from the road, so snow clearing won’t affect them, Mr. Denich said.
“We have the ability to close the facilities in the winter for salt issues,” he added.
There’s a small gate that will prevent melting snow, with salt, from getting in the gardens, Mr. Denich noted.
The gardens will cost about $375,000 to install.
Revived Impatiens
Downy mildew has claimed many an impatiens plant in the Fort Wayne area, as well as around the nation, in the last couple of years. Last year, some garden centers didnt sell impatiens, although others did.
This year, expect to see more sun-tolerant species and new varieties billed as less susceptible to mildew.
Home Depot, for example, will have Viva! SunPatiens in its garden centers this year, according to its website. A hybrid of New Guinea impatiens and wild impatiens, these plants, while not a substitute for impatiens that grow in full shade, will do well in full sun and part shade and tolerate heat.
Your impatiens eye will likely be caught by new Patchwork hybrids with large, tri-color blooms, says Galbraith. Look for Cosmic Burgundy, with 2-inch flowers in deep red with white-starred centers tipped in pinkish purple, and Cosmic Orange, with orange flowers with violet-and-white starred centers.
The hybrids still have susceptibility to mildew, according to the breeder, but Galbraith says hes never had a problem.
