An Update on Changes to Trolley Portal Gardens

You may have noticed recent changes to our wildflower mounds at Trolley Portal Gardens. We unfortunately had to cut them back because they were causing safety concerns for the trolley operators moving through the space, as their sightlines were being impacted by the height of the plants, and the mounds were attracting vermin. No harmful chemicals were used during this process, and the remaining seeds and weeds will be mitigated using a natural and environmentally safe herbicide that uses citrus oil to strip away waxy plant cuticles, causing weeds to dehydrate and die. 

With so many people seeing those Apron planting areas from trolleys each day, we know how important high-quality, well-maintained landscapes are to the riding public. We have reevaluated the planting scheme and will be replanting some of the same plants in a more ordered pattern that will make the space easier to maintain, more visually pleasing, and less likely to repeat the same issues as before.

In late October and into November, the following will take place: 

• October: Removal of a dead linden tree 
• Late October/early November: Tilling and weeding of the planting mounds. Our crews will be removing the temporary black plastic coverings, tilling the soil to remove weed roots, and spraying the area with Avenger, an environmentally safe herbicide that uses citrus oil to strip away waxy plant cuticles, causing weeds to dehydrate and die 
• November: Planting trees, shrubs, ornamental grasses, herbaceous pollinator plants, and flower bulbs across the entire site, plus covering exposed soil with triple-shredded hardwood bark mulch to reduce weed growth
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By spring of 2022, the mounds will have begun to grow in, and the pollinator plants should once again draw bees and butterflies by late summer of 2022.