Think it’s tough keeping your own yard in tip-top shape?  How would you like to be responsible for the care, upkeep and beauty of nearly 7 million square feet of turf?  That’s the primary responsibility of Michigan State University’s gardeners, and they do that job beautifully!  The gardeners are part of Physical Plant Division’s Landscape Services department.  And as you walk around MSU admiring our great campus, we have the gardening crew to thank for a lot of the beauty we see.

Here’s a few fun facts about MSU Gardeners from the MSU Physical Plant website.

Their duties include:

• installing and maintaining turf,
• installing and maintaining flowers and shrub beds,
• removing snow,
• controlling litter,
• and controlling insects and diseases that harm MSU’s beautifully green campus.

Each year, crews are responsible for about:

• 8,000 pounds of seed
• 160,000 pounds of fertilizer
• 1,000 yards of compost
• 2,000 yards of mulch

So here’s to you, MSU Gardeners.  Thanks for putting (and keeping) the green in MSU!

Useful site:

Check out the Physical Plant website to learn about many of the other departments and types of employees that keep MSU running.  And stay tuned to future Thankful Thursday posts to learn more about the good work being done by employees there and all over MSU!