by Layne Knoche, Project Landscape Designer While Tony Heath was out of town Friday, Layne Knoche managed the construction site. Layne is also making preparations for Phase II (plant installation). This blog post covers August 15th and 16th. THU, AUG 15: This was the first day I had been to the Rain Garden since construction started.Continue reading “Week 3 Progress”
Category Archives: Uncategorized
The soil mix is here!
by Tony Heath, Project Engineer This post covers Thursday, August 15. Howdy! Today was a big day at the garden: the soil mix is here! The Landscape Recycling Center (LRC) delivered the bioretention soil mix backfill for the south cell. LRC started delivering the soil mix slightly before 8:00 a.m. while Facilities & Services’ Josh andContinue reading “The soil mix is here!”
Mixing the soil and moving the lamp
By Tony Heath, Project Engineer This post covers the garden’s Phase I: demo/prep progress for the past two days, August 13th and 14th. Howdy! TUE, AUG 13: Yesterday, work progressed in the garden along two fronts. While Josh and Stephanie continued their soil excavation of the south cell, the Facilities and Services Electrical Shop (ShopContinue reading “Mixing the soil and moving the lamp”
Week 2 Progress
by Tony Heath, Project Engineer Howdy! Friday was a busy day, capping off a very busy week at the rain garden. With rock removal finally complete, the Facilities and Services crew could begin excavating the south cell in earnest. There was quite the mix of soils in there with a layer of black topsoil sittingContinue reading “Week 2 Progress”
Rocks, rocks, and more rocks (and also filter fabric)
By Tony Heath, Project Engineer Today was another productive day at the garden. When I arrived this morning, the Facilities & Services crew was continuing with rock removal in the north cell. I noticed that they were using a smooth-bladed bucket for the excavator. It was more effective at pulling the rock out without bringingContinue reading “Rocks, rocks, and more rocks (and also filter fabric)”
Week 1 Progress
By Tony Heath, Project Engineer Howdy! It’s been an exciting week here at the Red Oak Rain Garden. We’ve seen some rapid changes to our landscape, which include removing the berm, making preparations for the new sidewalk, starting to remove the old bike path, saying goodbye to our shrubs, and starting to remove rock. TheContinue reading “Week 1 Progress”
A Ground-Breaking Day!!
by Eric Green, Construction Manager It’s official – the Red Oak Rain Garden project broke ground yesterday. Facilities and Services began Phase I, which is demolition and preparation. They excavated a portion of the ground, where a new sidewalk will be and removed a large portion of the berm. Tree protection has been upContinue reading “A Ground-Breaking Day!!”
Species of the week – Pale Purple Coneflower
By Reshmina William, PhD in Civil Engineering at UIUC, RORG Volunteer Digging deep… In late spring and early summer, the vibrant blooms of pale purple coneflower will bring a dash of showy color to our rain garden. However, this particular species is more than just a pretty face. Together with its other coneflower cousins, EchinaceaContinue reading “Species of the week – Pale Purple Coneflower”
Species of the Week – Northern Red Oak
By Reshmina William, PhD in Civil Engineering at UIUC, RORG Volunteer Mystified by the new plants you’re seeing in our campus rain garden? Want to know more about that elusive bird you spotted flitting among its trees? In this blog series, I’ll be spotlighting some of the many species of plants and animals that youContinue reading “Species of the Week – Northern Red Oak”
What do you see here?
by C. Eliana Brown, Extension Water Quality Specialist and RORG Team Leader “As we read what is written on the land, finding accounts of the past, predictions for the future, and comments on the present, we discover that there are many interwoven strands to each story…” – May Theilgaard Watts, Reading the Landscape of America ImagineContinue reading “What do you see here?”
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