Pacific Science Center was closed for two weeks in September. During that time, the Tropical Butterfly House underwent a major face lift . To illustrate the changes, Life Sciences Volunteer Terry Pagos took a few “Before and After” photographs. Can you see the difference?
Pruning not only makes the Tropical Butterfly House look less overgrown but also encourages the nectar providing flowers to grow. By trimming back foliage plants, we allow nectar providers more space to grow as well as more access to sunlight.
It took the dedicated horticulture staff and assistants more than 14 days to fill twenty-plus bags of pruned foliage. Horticulturist Jeff Leonard estimates that if each bag weighed a minimum of 50 lbs., then ½ a ton of plant material was pruned, pulled and extracted from the garden. In addition, we removed five full garbage cans of timber and netting for another one thousand pounds of refuse. You should be able to tell a difference!
Disposing of this material is not as simple as tossing it in a “Clean Green” bin. Because our facility is regulated by the United States Department of Agriculture, all foliage, timber and netting had to be frozen at -20 F degrees for a minimum of 72hours. After the freezing process, the material is deemed “compostable.”
Come visit the Pacific Science Center this fall for your opportunity to see the Tropical Butterfly House at it’s very cleanest. We think you’ll notice the difference!
The butterfly house looks great. I would love to see it in person, but teaching on the east coast has to come first. My best to all at the center. People still ask me about the Dead Sea Scrolls when I wear my vest. More later. Bill Clough Vss 2006-2007 Dead Sea Scrolls...Grossology... Dreamliner.
ReplyDeleteGreat butterflies house. How did You cleaned The surfaces before The First entrance and usage?
ReplyDeleteProbably before the first usage it was disinfected with ozone.
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