Horticulture and Grounds Management Internship

Summer 2022 marks our first official Horticulture and Grounds Management Internship. While we often have student employees working and learning on our grounds, I saw a need for a more formal arrangement. Something to attract college students in the horticulture or biology field. Something that would provide them with specific learning metrics so their time here could lead right into a job in the green industry. I also hoped for students who wanted to be here, not just had to be here for a paycheck. To get through a day in this tough job, you have to really love the outdoors! Work doesn’t feel like work if you are fascinated by bird calls, insect identification, and scat.

We have had interns in the past, but never through an official program of our own. Most of our interns came from universities that had an experiential learning requirement they needed to fulfill, or they needed volunteer hours or simply wanted to know more about this potential career. These ambitious folks approached us, and largely designed their own goals while here. Here are just a few of them:

A Unique Place, Unique Opportunity

In dreaming up this position, I thought about what I wish I had known before I was hired, and the skills I have learned along the way. These are the hands-on experiences I wanted to build into this internship. This includes proper tree trimming and felling, small engine basics and mower maintenance, planting and mulching, sustainable chemical use, sound greenhouse practices and so on. While there are lots of places to learn basic landscape care, our methods here at the Arboretum are different: we are ecosystem and sustainability focused. We use few chemicals, and always design gardens with a balance between aesthetics and function for wildlife.

Our Intern: Alex

Thanks to our creative staff, supportive board, and donors who made payment possible, the Dyck Arboretum HGM Internship was born! We had several applicants, but ultimately chose Alex Mendoza as the best fit this year.

Hello everyone!  My name is Alex Mendoza, and I am the 2022 Summer Horticulture and Grounds Management Intern at the Dyke Arboretum!  I am originally from a small town in Colorado called Parachute.  I have always enjoyed learning about nature, and I am excited to learn more about prairies as I have spent my whole life in the mountains.  

Besides being outdoors, I enjoy reading and trying new food.  A good taco is always appreciated.  I will be a sophomore at Bethel College this fall.  I am studying Biology, with a minor in English.  Feel free to stop and chat with me about any of these subjects if you see me working at the arboretum! 

Alex getting ready to do some string trimming!

Alex has been an incredible asset to the Arboretum this summer. And on a personal note, after a very tumultuous and busy season for me, it has been a dream come true to work with Alex and hand off some day to day tasks. She is a diligent waterer, a wizard with a shovel, and an eager learner. I am already dreading the day she will leave us!

We are already looking forward to next summer and seeing what wonderful student will come to us next. If someone you know would be a good fit for our internship program, please share this post with them and direct them to our internship page. The application season for 2023 will open in January. If you are passionate about hands-on education and the future of sustainable horticulture, consider donating to our next internship season. Contact our office for details or email arboretum@hesston.edu

Plant Profile: Kentucky Coffeetree (Gymnocladus dioicus)

When one thinks of the Great Plains, trees are often the last thing to cross one’s mind. Surprisingly this region is home to a number of species that have found their way into yards and parks throughout the United States. The honey locust, American elm, black walnut and silver maple are as common in front yards as they are along streams and patches of woodlands of the plains. One of the more beautiful native trees found in this region is the Kentucky coffeetree, a member of the legume family. Kentucky coffeetree can be found along the eastern portion of Kansas. The tree derives it name from a common practice among early Kentucky homesteaders of grinding the seeds to make a coffee-like drink.

Mature Kentucky Coffeetree (Wikipedia)

Though somewhat uncommon in landscape plantings, the coffeetree offers many ornamental attributes. A large tree, it can reach 60 feet in height with a 30 foot spread. As of March 2022, the Kansas Forest Service state champion Kentucky coffeetree, located at Fort Leavenworth, currently stands at 100 feet tall. As the tree matures, the bark forms scaly ridges with curled edges. In winter the ascending branches present a picturesque silhouette against the winter sky. Written descriptions have labeled the tree “clumsy” looking after the leaves drop. While young trees can appear awkward their first few years, mature specimens develop stout trunks and main branches, reminding one of their innate toughness and durability.

In spring the tree may be slow to leaf out, but the patient observer is soon rewarded with bipinnately compound, bright green leaves with dainty, ovate leaflets that give the tree a soft, fine textured appearance throughout the growing season.

The bipinnately compound leaflets

Kentucky coffeetrees are individual male and female trees. The botanical term for plants with male and female flowers on separate individuals is dioecious, a condition also found in Ginkgo, juniper, and Osage orange. Flowers appear in May and June as graceful racemes. The male flowers are somewhat inconspicuous and green-yellow, while the female flowers are somewhat larger and pale yellow-white. Both types of flowers are quite fragrant. Each of these flowers are favorites of pollinating insects.

Creamy white flowers in the spring (Wikipedia)

Fall color is often a subdued yellow and female plants will often produce a reddish brown pod filled with incredibly hard, round, slightly flattened seeds. The hard coats allow seeds to lay dormant in the ground for long periods of time until weathering and soil bacteria wear down the tough shell, allowing germination to occur if temperature and moisture are adequate. Professional growers often soak the seed in concentrated sulfuric acid to thin the coat enough for water and gas exchange (a dangerous practice for the average home gardener). Another option is to use fine sand paper to sand down the shells so several seeds will potentially sprout. Don’t sand too much.

Bean-like pods and seeds of Kentucky coffeetree

Due to the coffeetree’s large size and the sometimes “messy” pods from the female trees, it is often not the best selection for the average yard. However, it is well-suited to large open areas, along streams and in park settings. It is not particular about soil, but best growth occurs in deep moist ground. Drought tolerant, it experiences very few problems.

In the wild, small colonies of coffeetree can be found when new trees form from the root suckers. This is usually not a problem in the landscape if the tree is mulched and regular mowing occurs around the tree. Transplanting in most successful with small plants, because the tree develops a course fibrous root system that limits the transplanting success of larger trees.

In the Arboretum’s bird watch area, a small coffeetree is planted just below the big bridge.

I like good coffee. Lucky for us that our coffee supplies for drinking are more than adequate, but one should still consider this beautiful, tough native tree for your landscape.