Hannah Stutzman
October 4, 2000

Campus Environmental Issues: Grounds Goes Organic

The impetus for Bryn Mawr's grounds department to make the final move to being 100% organic was a two-day course on environmental horticulture, which Robert Burton, Director of Grounds, attended at the Lyceum School on Long Island. Environmental horticulture represents a paradigm shift in grounds keeping. Rather than battling to keep weeds and other undesirables at bay, this approach emphasizes that, "we are not at war with nature." It is this framework that guides all grounds decisions. Burton's goal is to create a landscape where buildings and grounds blend together smoothly, rather than to have a lot of "cute frills" or golf course turf.
For several years Bryn Mawr has limited the amount of inorganic chemicals in use. Now even these will be eliminated, the strongest herbicide used is a solution of vinegar and lemon juice used to treat weeds on sidewalks. Athletic fields, high maintaince areas which sometimes discourage campuses from going organic, will be treated with organic corn gluten that prevents crabgrass. As in the past, waste is composted. Not enough compost is created to mulch the whole campus, so grounds uses compost pellets made of recycled mushroom soil and liquid compost which are enriched with minerals and organic fertilizers.
The campus is divided into three management zones: natural habitat (areas around the edges of campus such as Rhoads Beach and the acres surrounding Glenmede and the School of Social Work), ornamental zones (lawns on the main part of campus), and specialty gardens (i.e., Taft Garden, Guild Courtyard and the sunken garden behind Haffner). Each zone has different management plan, all of which are based on the same principle of cooperation with nature.
Natural habitat areas, which are refuges for the non-human species on campus, are generally dense with native tree, shrub, and groundcover varieties. Ornamental areas are intended to remain true to the original design of the campus as a pastoral landscape. Specialty gardens are areas to "have fun", with more room to be creative with the plantings. Some effort is made to plant native species in these zones, but that is not the primary concern. The goal in these areas is to create a range of color and fragrance throughout the seasons, with an emphasis on spring and fall since that is when students are on campus to enjoy it.
New plantings, especially in the wild and ornamental areas, are generally native species such as - linden, sumac, azaleas, witchhazel, and native oak, maple, spruce and pine species. When grounds makes plans to enter an area and change the plantings, they remove nonnatives, such as Norway maple, devils walking stick, plantain and ground ivy. Due to the time and expense required, this is not done in areas not scheduled to be replanted anyway.
At some point this winter, the stream behind Rhoads, currently almost entirely nonnative Norway maples, will be converted into a pond. This is planned to help with area drainage problems, to provide wildlife habitat and to create an attractive area. After the pond is dug, nonnatives will be removed and replaced with native trees. In an area like Morris woods, for example, where no landscaping is planned, nonnatives will be replaced.
Weeds, generally the enemy of grounds crews everywhere, are viewed differently in the environmental horticulture approach. Weeds are "messenger plants" which relay information about the state of the soil: for example, dandelions indicate low Calcium, while clover indicates low Nitrogen. When an abundance of messenger plants are found, soils samples are sent to be analyzed and recommendations are made about what should be added to the soil to correct the imbalance. Maintaining healthy soil, which helps plantings to thrive, is the emphasis of this system, rather than weed removal.
Burton works with consultants to deal with specific problems. Currently, they are looking into the best methods to protect oak trees from a moth species that has been problematic throughout the region. Rather than spray pesticides, they are designing plantings around the trees would create an optimal habitat for other insects, such as ladybugs, which would discourage moths.
Grounds hired a consultant to help decide which species to plant in the area next to the athletic fields. The goal was to create a habitat for butterfly eggs and caterpillars. Generally, when grounds keepers want to attract butterflies they focus on flowers which attract adults. Burton wanted to create a habitat to support the whole life cycle of the butterfly.
To create interest in environmental horticulture among the staff, Burton invited the presenters from the Lyceum give their seminar on campus. Other area campuses are experimenting with environmental horticulture, but Bryn Mawr is one of the first to commit to being entirely organic. Bryn Mawr's administration has been supportive of the initiative. Costwise being organic is approximately the same as using chemicals, however, costs will increase when grounds adds another full time worker and more summer positions. These are necessary because the organic system is much more labor intensive.
Several books have shaped Burton's philosophy: The Findhorn Garden, Perelandra Garden Workbook, CoCreative Science, and The Enlivened Rock Powders. They deal with a spiritual connection with the earth and all living things. Burton takes this connection very seriously and considers it part of his job to be in communication with the plants and soil. Through dousing and kneisiology, Burton "talks" with the trees and soil. In this way, he determines the soil and tree health, whether or not an unhealthy tree "wants to be here", and what can be done to improve the situation. Radionics, a technique which uses a computer program to measure energy in a plant or soil, is used for similar purposes. Burton believes that these approaches are fundamental to maintaining a healthy beautiful campus.