<p>Our family just spent the past 10 days in VA and had a GREAT time! (Thanks to all who provided the restaurant and activity recommendations.) At any rate, while we were on campus walking around for orientation, we noticed a significant amount of the grass around campus was dead and weed infested. We didn’t see any sprinkler heads (perhaps we overlooked them), but it got us wondering why the grounds weren’t lush and manicured. Does the school use sprinklers or is this banned for environmental or budget concerns? Does the state of VA enact water restrictions in times of drought, and if so, is the school currently under a ban? Does the school cut back on landscape maintenance during the summer months? I know the lawns are trivial in the midst of today’s economy, so please don’t interpret this question as a criticism; our family was just curious that’s all.</p>
<p>The sprinklers are out in full force in the spring. I think it is just hard to maintain in the summer, besides new orientees walking every which way. Also I know the landscape committee has serious budget concerns (hence why I got to redo some stuff on their website for 1/3 the cost of the semipro they had submit a quote before looking for student help)… PLUS you have to consider that the highlight is graduation, think of the toll that takes on the grass. The grass is immaculate before graduation, and then thousands of people trample everything (especially but not limited to the lawn)… I know they specifically replanted the grass outside of Thornton for sure in May so that would be my guess anyways…</p>
<p>FYI, Cville often has a water restriction during the summer/fall. My guess is UVa either has a restriction or sees that Cville is suffering and chooses to not water either out of water concern or budget concern. The lawns are BEAUTIFUL during spring time, and during the fall it generally rains enough to keep things looking decent (the trees are always perfect in the fall :)) I understand your concern, but UVa does care, it’s just recently VA as a whole has been hit REALLY hard with extreeeemmmeee heat and very little rain. The landscaping guys work their butts off during all other times of the year. It’s nice they aren’t exasperating Cville’s water problems</p>
<p>Thornton’s grass re-birth was due to all of the underground steam tunnel work around there. They’ve had all sorts of asbestos tents and sites up, and they ripped up a lot of ground to replace pipes. The area looked terrible for a long time :(</p>
<p>Thanks for taking the time to respond. While we were there, we all agreed it was VERY hot (and where we’re from, we know hot; 20+ consecutive days over 100 is not foreign to us). We don’t, however, have quite the humidity VA had. It, coupled with the heat, made for some really uncomfortable days. I guess we thought the lawns would be inviting for students to read, kick back, play frisbee, etc. – you know…like they show on the website pictures. The courtyard around the McCormick dorms, for example, had grass that was didn’t have one ounce of green. Literally, it was all dead and definitely not very inviting. There probably is a water ban in effect right now which would explain this. I’m sure, like Hazelorb said, the school will replace certain sections when the time is right. Both of you mentioned how pretty everything is in the spring. We were there for just a day or two this past spring for Days onthe Lawn. We were so focused on seeing the school itself and hearing what it had to offer that we didn’t notice the grounds. I can’t wait now to see Charlottesville in the spring when I come to help her pack up and store everything.</p>
<p>jc40, every lawn in Charlottesville is brown right now, and will remain that way until the weather cools down in early September. In Charlottesville it gets too cold to grow the grasses that thrive in the deep South, e.g. Bermuda grass, but the “northern” varieties like bluegrass hate the heat. So people plant “tall fescue” and just live with dormant grass between about mid-July and late summer/early fall. It might be possible to irrigate your way out of this phenomenon but it would take an awful lot of water and I don’t know anybody who does–it might not even be legal, as we are pretty careful about water use. On the bright side, it’s nice not to have to mow in the heat!</p>
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Perhaps these are areas where summer campers are playing or walking?</p>
<p>There are certain foot paths that have been worn into the grass in some areas and grass will never grow there again. Over time, the University has bricked some of them, but some remain was grass free paths.</p>
<p>That being said, the lawn in front of Peabody Hall, the Chapel, and the Rotunda is green and gets watered with in-ground sprinklers a few mornings each week. I don’t see any brown grass in my travels and I haven’t seen weeds.</p>
<p>Our grounds crews are downright amazing. Within hours of the microburst earlier this month, they had all the walking paths clear. Their speed was impressive!</p>
<p>Hi, jc40. Glad you enjoyed your trip.</p>
<p>I am actually kind of glad to hear the grounds were somewhat browned. The Charlottesville/Albemarle area is in a drought (again). It seems to be the new norm. It is my understanding from my environmental educator spouse, that we are seeing conditions right now that rival the drought of 2002. He is quite surprised that we are not under mandatory restrictions. (We certainly are at home, but then again we always are:)). The spring is definitely beautiful, especially when we have a wet winter. You will see frolicking on the lawn then:). The temperatures here are typically extremely hot in the summer. My kids attended a program at UVA last week and were unable to do the outdoor scheduled activities in the afternoon due to the heat. We weren’t surprised. Unless you are in the shade or by the water, you don’t really enjoy being out during the afternoon hours. Yesterday was an exception. How nice to actually see rain!</p>
<p>jingle…Now that you mention it, the “dead” grass we saw (especially around McCormick) was longer and wispy. It probably was a fescue or rye that was brown because of the intense heat. I’m jealous that it comes back for you in the fall. Many in our area overseed in the winter with rye so that they’ll have a green lawn, but it dies out in the summer and never returns (even perennial rye).</p>
<p>Dean J…There were a lot of students and their parents walking everywhere while we were there, so you’re most likely right; much of what we saw probably were “foot paths” which are an unavoidable part of university landscape. Also, like I mentioned earlier, it’s not my intent to be critical but rather merely observant. I’m certain the lawn crew works like gophers. In this heat, I have nothing but the utmost of respect for anyone who’s in this line of work. If it’s over 90, I’m staying inside – no yardwork for me!</p>
<p>oldUVAgrad…I, too, am happy that the school is really trying to be environmentally aware. We noticed several signs of this while there. As political conservatives, environmental issues are not our #1 concern; however, our family still maintains that we must be responsible with the world God has given us. Kudos to UVA for taking measures to employ strategies that eliminate/minimize harmful effects on the environment. :)</p>