I have worked at M.J. for just short of two years—and I recently was finally able to spend a day in the field with both Molly and Joel. I’ll admit, I did NOT know what all I was getting myself into.
To be completely honest, I am not the type of person who knows a whole lot about landscaping—though yes, over the past two years I have learned a lot! (You know… don’t kill the boxwood with the hedge trimmers; don’t walk on grass that has frost; and that using the standard hose sprayer and creating a rain effect is not the proper way to water plants.) However, I was excited to learn more about the proper planting process.
I arrived at the office extra early so we could leave for our planting sites by 5:45am! And, just my luck, the forecast was rain! (Luckily, the rain held off till we were done planting.) Throughout the day, I helped plant over 830 plants!! That is way more progress in a day than I expected, but my body sure felt the effects of that hard work.
Some new things I learned:
Molly and John have some serious stamina. I’ve always known that they are very dedicated individuals, but their capability of hard, physical work was impressive.
Don’t concentrate on having plants perfectly spaced and lined. “Mother Nature” only knows how they will grow. ie: Will they get taller or will they spread out?
After planting, water, water, and water some more. Then, give the plants some fertilizer to help them love their new home.
And most importantly, a whole day in the field for me requires having plenty of Aleve on hand for muscles that get a good workout! (And for some abuse on my knees.)
This may be my first and last day out in the field…whew. I didn’t even make it one day without getting injured. “It’s just a little scrape,” I said. But not everyone else thought that. – Sue
