Eric and I had a really excellent meeting this afternoon with Jenny from Dusty Flowerpot and Ellen, the Arts programmer at Brit about the damage that was done to the Greenway on the night of Oct 29th when 400 or so people crowded into the Greenway and trampled all the plants.
Christine and I went down earlier today and made a list of the plants we felt we needed to get started patching the holes and trampled bits.
I phoned both Gardenworks and Figaro's and got approximate costs for the largest specimens we can get at this time of year. The two stores' prices were very comparable.
The estimated total came to $412, and Jenny said they would pay whatever it cost.
I said we'd buy the plants and send them an invoice with the receipts.
The $412 is just a guess until we actually have the plants, but that's the ballpark.
They're very apologetic and gracious … and next year (1) they will meet with us before the event, (2) for the event itself, they will fence off the planted part of the Greenway so that no one can trample plants in the dark, and (3) they will have a couple of volunteers stationed in the Greenway wearing safety vests and ushering people through the Greenway with flashlights.
I'm very satisfied with the outcome. Hope you are too.
See you for a work party on Monday. I'll send a fresh announcement of that on Sunday or Monday a.m.
Penny
Replacement plants for those trampled during the Halloween party in the Greenway:
Estimated prices from having talked to Gardenworks & Conor at Figaro's
· 1 hydrangea (mature) — $50
· 3 decorative ferns — $25 each — $75
· 3 choisya sundance (to fill in newly created "paths") — $25 each — $75
· 3 skimmia with variegated foliage (mature) — $30 each — $90
· 4 hostas (squished and surrounding soil compacted) — $13 each — $52
· 2 hellebores — $35 each — $70
Total without tax $412
We also need, for the cement planters down in the Brit courtyard (but Dusty Flowerpot shouldn't have to pay for):
2 large mahonias (one from Eric?)
2 large pines (evergreens and with pointy pine needles to repel kids) to replace the two horrid-looking witch hazels
1 rugosa to add to the other one that is in the planter by the ginkgo
6 smallish prickly Oregon grapes to put in the planter with the ginkgo so kids will leave the ginkgo alone. (The baby tears in the ginkgo planter can be moved to another planter or to the Greenway.)
