In an effort to continually upgrade Laurelwood Arboretum, a group of Friends of Laurelwood Arboretum (FOLA) volunteers worked with the gardening staff to stabilize a bare soil bank on Ridge Road. They first placed felled tree trunks along the edge of the road and then anchored them with rebar. Then volunteer Tom Hennessey brought in his Deere 46 tractor to backfill the area with compost. The final step was to plant Vinca minor (also called periwinkle or myrtle) along a 100’ long by 10’ deep soil bank. “The new plantings were thoroughly watered and once established will retain the soil so that there is reduced soil runoff,” said FOLA’s Executive Director Elaine Fogerty.

Volunteers included June Ra, Jane VanEeuwen, Prahba Sahasrabudhe, Azalia Krasneperora, Lillian Sayeg, Marge Roukema, Audrey Malec, Linda Ransom, Gerry Lowry and Nancy Alexander. They worked alongside horticultural manager Joan Scott-Miller and gardeners Eddy Lantiqua and Felix Fernandez.

Volunteer days at Laurelwood Arboretum are every Tuesday and Friday from April to the end of October from 9 a.m. to noon, and drop ins are welcome. There is still work to be done to ready the arboretum for the winter. For information, send an email to info@laurelwoodarboretum.org or call 973-202-9579.