Intersection Planters

 

WOLLASTON GARDEN CLUB: PROPOSAL TO THE CITY OF QUINCY

PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT

 

on February 28, 2012

 

The Civic Beautification Committee of the Wollaston Garden Club (WGC) proposes that we design, purchase, and plant with the help of the Quincy Parks Department, the intersection planters throughout the city, with drought tolerant shrubs and plants, including evergreens, perennials and annuals, continuing with the single planters at Sea Street and Palmer Street (originally planted  in 2010).                                                                                  

 

Background:

 

We applaud the City for installing the planters and planting colorful annuals during the growing season, and for watering and maintaining them. All summer long our intersections are ablaze in color, but when late fall and winter approach, the planters are barren and remain that way for four to five months. The WGC Civic Beautification Committee has been studying the use of hardy plants/shrubs for containers that will enhance the planters with winter interest. We are committed to continue working with the City to beautify its civic places, and improve the quality and aesthetics of its intersections. We are particularly proud of our previous collaborations (13 planters) with the Parks Department with the seven intersection planters at Quincy Avenue/Southern Artery; the four planters at Newport Avenue/Furnace Brook Parkway; the one planter at Beale Street/Newport Ave and the one at the Adams Street Bridge..

 

Details:

 

We are committed to working on one intersection area of the city at a time. We intend to use a variety of designs and plants in the intersections planters throughout the city, but each area would maintain a harmonious design. The focal point (thriller) of each planter would be an evergreen or perennial with winter interest. Around the focal point would be perennials and annuals for color, to fill and to spill. The object would be to include a variety of plants with color, form, and texture that will avoid a repetitious design. We will choose plants that are drought tolerant, to minimize watering.

 

The Civic Beautification Committee will be ready to plant early in the spring of 2012. The evergreens will need to be planted as early as possible in the spring to ensure establishing the root systems before the summer’s heat. We will design the planters. We have a list of perennial shrubs/plants that we will use. The Wollaston Garden Club has a budget of $200 for the purchase of plants for the project at Sea/Palmer Street. Our plan is to design the planter with two thirds perennials, leaving one third for annuals.

 

We would need help from the Park Department in actually planting the shrubs and other plants. We expect the Park Department would commit to watering well the first 4-5 weeks after the planting, and continue to maintain and water as usual, the intersections being placed on the Parks Department weekly water schedule. We lost two shrubs at Quincy Ave/Southern Artery a few years back and eight shrubs in 2010 due to lack of watering by the City water truck at the Newport Ave/Furnace Brook site, that we will need to replace and re-plant at a cost of approximately $$300 - $350. We spoke with Mayor Koch about the problem of not being scheduled for the water truck on a weekly or bi-weekly basis at a meeting in the mayor’s office on Feb 7, 2012. He assured us that he would work on “the problem”.

 

We would be committed to general over-sight and trouble-shooting for plant care, and for winterizing the planters. We expect that the Parks Department will take over the planting of at least one variety of annual in the intersection planters. We are willing to work with Mike on this and think the City has done a good job with the planting of annuals particularly, the wave petunias. We hope that in your absence this year we will be able to strengthen our working relationship with Mike and have some access to communicating with him more easily.

 

            We still worry about salting, sanding, and plowing around the intersection planters during the winter. We have a great concern that the perennial plants not be thrown away by City Department employees, mistaking them for annuals needing to be removed, or dead plants. In this respect we will work with the Parks Department in the removal of annuals and winter interest greens..

 

            This past fall/winter with the permission again of the Parks Department we pruned at designated City areas with unsightly evergreens (Marsh Street, Thomas Crane Main Branch Parking lot). We still have noticed serious pruning that needs to be done next fall at the police station and with the white pines along the Veteran’s Memorial Stadium wall); we use these pruned branches to create ‘winter interest’ in the intersection planters that are part of the garden club/city collaboration.

 

Contact Persons:

 

Jo Costello, Civic Beautification Chair of the Wollaston Garden Club

 

Pat Artis, President, Wollaston Garden Club (until June 31, 2012)

 

Jan Clifford, President, Wollaston Garden Club (beginning July 1, 2012)

 

 

 

(9/24/12)