With its 43-acre, park-like campus that attracts residents and visitors alike, spring at Springmoor is truly something special. From well-kept lawns and gardens to unique courtyards and nature trails, any location on campus provides a great view of springtime blooms.
To better understand how the campus remains so beautiful, Springmoor’s landscaping manager, Thom Morgan, shared some behind-the-scenes details. With more than 20 years of experience at Springmoor and a background in landscape architecture, Thom has the knowledge, team and tools to keep Springmoor looking its best all year – and the spring season is a great one to highlight.
Spring cleaning with the residents in mind
With so much greenery throughout the large campus, this time of year brings with it a lot of upkeep – spring cleaning, if you will.
“We just started mowing lawns for the season, because we finally got a break from the rain,” Thom shared. “With all the rain we’ve had, I’ll walk through and look for weather damage and clean up any plants that haven’t handled the rain well.”
Thom also explained what a typical workday looks like for him and his crew: “We have to put down some pre-emergent weed control to protect the tree beds, and we like to trim the trees and cull out a few to open up the campus a bit.”
That last point is especially important to Thom, because he knows that it has a direct benefit to the residents.
“We know that the residents here enjoy having plenty of natural light in their homes, so we make sure to trim back the trees and plants in the springtime to make sure that a lot of sunlight can brighten their homes and also the community buildings throughout the spring and summer,” he shared.
For the popular gardening spaces available to Springmoor residents, Thom went on to explain that he and his crew will go through all of the shared garden plots and make sure the plots are ready for spring planting, “so the residents can just drop their plants right in and watch them grow.”
The way that the landscaping team plans its work also considers the comfort and convenience of Springmoor residents.
“We divide the community into four zones, and we work on one zone per week,” Thom explained. “We do this not only due to the size of Springmoor, but so we only really go to any one resident’s home for landscaping work about once per month. We also like the zoned approach so we can be thorough and do a really good job on each zone.”
More than just gardens and grass
“Right now, we’re working on a lot of hardscaping,” Thom explained. “The look of the campus goes beyond just the plants and includes elements like roads, paths and concrete features. The 43 acres get used a lot, so for example, we’re repaving the asphalt path in the memorial garden.”
The size and amount of natural beauty at Springmoor also requires an extensive irrigation system, and Thom and his crew perform routine checks on the system to make sure it’s watering where it’s supposed to, which keeps the plants healthy and prevents any wasting of water. “We don’t want to be watering the pavement!” Thom laughed.
Thom and his team also helped realize one of Springmoor’s wellness initiatives, the Heart Smart Trail, which is a paved trail through the naturally wooded central part of campus. The trail includes distance markers in each direction so walkers or joggers can track their mileage as they enjoy the spring blooms or fall foliage. Along with the distance markers, Thom installed benches every couple hundred feet along the picturesque pathway for residents to take a break and enjoy the serene scenery.
Staying fresh
“We always like to add new plants, and we like to add them at different times of the year based on when they will look best,” Thom added. “The climate here lets us plant for four-season appeal.”
Finally, Thom shared how he is continually seeking new approaches to his craft and maintains his landscape architecture license through continuing education courses: “I just took one [landscape architecture] course on residential senior housing, which is what we have here. Anything I can take to benefit the community, I’ll do.”
The Springmoor campus is an amenity in itself, and Thom takes pride in making it shine, especially in the springtime. We would be glad to welcome you to our campus to show you not only the surroundings in full bloom, but also how you can enjoy a beautiful lifestyle here, inside and out. To get in touch, simply click here or call us at 919-651-4844!
