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Frequently Asked Questions
Although the staff at the BioPond answer questions all year round, there are some questions which are more popular than others. A few of the most frequently asked are listed below:
May anyone visit the gardens, or is it restricted to University of Pennsylvania staff and students? The gardens are open year round to anyone who wants to visit. There is no charge to enter. We do require that dogs are kept on a leash and of course, that the owner cleans up after them. Bicycles are welcome on the walkways - please ride slowly. Flowers are not available for picking, and we ask that you stay out of the plantings. When was the pond renovated and why is it so different from the old pond? The pond was renovated in 2001 with a generous donation from Mr. and Mrs. Richard Kaskey. The old pond had silted in so that the actual depth of water in the middle was not quite two feet, but the mud layer was more than four feet. The pond had spread out over the banks, making it impossible to walk on the paths. Although this arrangement was nice for the plants and animals, it didn't allow for visitors to enjoy the pond. In fact, by the middle of summer, the water, which had no filtration system, often had a bad odor. The renovated pond has a series of filters and the waterfall and two weeping walls both help aerate the water and allow drinking sites for birds and squirrels. The large rocks around the edge help to keep the water and paths defined. They can also be used as seating when the crowds visiting the pond swell on nice days. Although the structure is larger and not as natural as the original, it does serve the interests of the large number of visitors who enjoy sitting around the pond, something that was previously possible only for a very limited number of visitors at one time. Why is the water a muddy green? The fill that was used to give the pond a mud bottom so that animals might burrow into the mud to hibernate for the winter is yellow. When the sky is very blue, the blue and the yellow combine to make a sort of pea soup green. In addition the movement of ducks, turtles and fish disturb the fine silt on the bottom and the particles suspended in the water give it the opaque appearance. While the water color is unattractive, the animals appear healthy. We are working with our pond maintenance company to address the issues of clarity and color. What should I do if I see a problem in the garden, such as someone committing vandalism? Although the Garden welcomes visitors, children who are not under the supervision of a parent or guardian can be destructive. The Garden is a fragile environment, and playing tag or Frisbee or hide and seek can lead to snapped branches on shrubs and crushed plantings. In addition, children and adults alike have been seen trying to catch the animals in the pond, picking flowers and digging up plants. Please do not confront anyone who is causing trouble in the Garden. There are blue light phones located along the edges of the BioPond Garden, including two locations on the Goddard building, one on the Kaplan building and two along the east and western edges of the Garden. Simply pick up the receiver and it will connect to the Penn police who will respond to your concern. Why do some of the benches have plaques on them? People wishing to honor someone have donated benches to the Kaskey Garden. Our standard bench is concrete and wood, but we are also incorporating durable recycled plastic benches into the BioPond. In addition we offer the opportunity to donate whimsical furniture, such as this chess table:
or this hand chair:
or perhaps a pond sculpture: For further information on these small donations, please send an email to: biopond@sas.upenn.edu For larger donations, head here. Why do you tie up bulb foliage in the spring? Spring flowering blubs, such as tulips, daffodils, and crocus die back soon after flowering. Often the foliage can be seen to emerge as early as January, if there has been a warm spell, but at the onset of hot weather the foliage begins to yellow, and eventually dries up completely. The flower bulbs store energy, and next year’s flowers while they are growing, and as they die down. For this reason, it is important not to cut the foliage, but to let it die back naturally. Repeated cutting of bulb foliage can weaken the bulb, and reduce the floral display the following spring. Because some of our flower beds are thickly planted, we need to be able to fit annuals into the same garden where bulbs bloomed. For this reason, we tie up bulb foliage to get it out of the way, and yet, preserve it at the same time. It isn’t the best solution, since some of the vascular tissue gets broken, but it is a way to grow flowering perennial bulbs, and annuals in the same bed. Will my bulbs freeze during an early spring cold snap? Bulb foliage is amazingly resistant to damage by cold. The flowers are another matter. If only the foliage is above ground, even during a hard freeze, it is usually just fine afterwards, unlike some of the herbaceous perennials, or shrubs which have leafed out too early in response to a warm spell. If the bulb flowers are far enough along that they are nearly open, sometimes a hard freeze, (but not a light frost) will damage the appearance of the flowers, burning the edges, or blasting the entire blossom. The bulb itself, however, will be fine, but you will have to wait until the next year to see the flowers. Do I have to rent the BioPond if I want to have a picnic? The BioPond is available for groups for barbecues and picnics for a modest fee. All events must follow a few guidelines, and fill out a form to reserve the time and date. For very small, informal groups getting together for lunch, there is no fee and no reservation needed. If your group is larger than fifteen people, or if you will be barbecuing, then there is a fee. Do you provide grills for cooking? No, each group provides their own grills and tables. Many parties in the Garden are catered. There is one spot available for a caterer’s vehicle. There are no vehicles allowed anywhere inside the garden. What are the leaf piles scattered around the garden used for? Our leaf piles are used as compost, and mulch. Leaves are gathered in the autumn, piled, and amended throughout the winter. Stable manure is added, and the piles are turned frequently, so that by the middle of the next summer they are in a condition to add to established beds, or underneath shrubs. The leaves which fall from our trees, all except the ones from the black walnut, which contain a product toxic to some plants, are used in this way. Homeowners who bag their leaves for the trash are wasting a valuable resource for their gardens. Here at the BioPond, we use all of our leaves, from our many trees - a good supply indeed! What kind of birds visit the garden? For a list of birds which regulary visit the garden, please see this page:
How often do you fertilize your flowers? We fertilize our flower gardens twice a year. Once just before the bulbs flower, and once just after we’ve planted most of our annuals. We use a time release, all purpose fertilizer, but use also, liberal quantities of organic soil amendments when planting. For example, we add bonemeal to the soil when planting bulbs, and a combination of bonemeal, kelp, dried blood, and cottonseed meal when planting perennial plants. This regime seems to work well, and is the least labor intensive method we’ve found to fertilize our many gardens. It is a good idea not to fertilize shrubs or trees in your garden beds too late in the season, since they may put out too much tender growth which will be damaged with the first winter freeze. How much of the BioPond plantings are natural, and how much are planted here? The BioPond is entirely man made, including the pond. Although there may be a tree or two which planted itself in the past, for the most part, every plant was put here by someone. The Garden was begun just before the turn of this century, and was started as a companion to the then Botany Department of the University of Pennsylvania. For more on the history of BioPond, click here. What are the ducks looking for when they are poking their bills in the leaves and grass? Our compost and leaf piles are rich in worms and insects. We spread the compost on the ground in early spring and late fall and the ducks have discovered that they can get a pretty good meal here. From the time the ducklings are able to follow their mother she teaches them that underneath compost and rotting leaves the largest worms and insects are to be found. What kind of turtles are in the pond and where did they come from? The turtles, red-eared sliders were all donated. Most of them were put here without our knowledge, and it may not be the best idea to do this. Some turtle species look very similar, and yet they are a species that cannot survive our winters. For example, a yellow-eared slider looks similar to the red-eared slider, but it will die in the cold of the winter. Also, since the pond is so small often children are able to get to the turtles and remove them from their environment. Undoubtedly many of the turtles die without knowledgeable care. Are there other gardens in the area which I can visit? Yes. Bartram’s Gardens, a historic garden located in west Philadelphia is close by. Morris Arboretum of the University of Pennsylvania is under an hour away in the Chestnut Hill section of the city. And, in the surrounding suburbs there are a number of gardens and arboreta, all places to spend a quiet afternoon. I have a small pond in my backyard. Where can I find out more information about water gardening? Water gardens are becoming more and more popular. Although there are a variety of sources for information, we have listed a few here which we use from time to time. If you know of a site which has been particularly helpful to you, please let us know, by emailing us here . How can I contribute to the Botanical Garden financially? The Kaskey Garden is supported entirely by income from endowment and private donations. If you are interested in learning more about how to support the garden financially, please contact our External Affairs office at 215-898-5262. Where can I read more about gardening? Here is a list of suggested reading and reference:
Where do you buy your perennials, trees, shrubs, and other plants? Fairweather Gardens (Mail Order)
Meadowbrook Farm
Parks Seed Company
Redbud Native Plants Nursery
Rare Find Nursery
Russell Gardens Wholesale
Who are the members of the Greenhouse staff?
Tom McNichols, Gardener
Korben Perry, Greenhouse Technician
Who is responsible for the creation of this wonderful site? The following people were responsible for the creation of this site: Byron Azarm: Site design, QuicktimeVR panoramas, Macromedia Flash navigational system, PHP and Javascript programming, digital images and graphic design. Tracy Byford: Written content, botanical technical advisory. Alex Reynolds: General layout and design |
Last Modified July 20 2006 01:41:15 |
