Pam Sauerbrey

Pam Sauerbrey of Pahl's Market

Pam spent most of her summer on the tree and shrub lot at Pahl’s Market in AppleValley. In addition to her day to day duties, Pam helped redesign the layout of the shrub lot to better display the plants and hopefully sell more of them!

Pam's eye-catching layout of potted junipers

Dana Schifsky

Dana Schifsky of Cal's Market in Savage, MN

Dana spent many hours in the heat and sun caring for the trees and shrubs on display in the tree and shrub lot at Cal’s Market in Savage, MN. Dana also had many opportunities to put her rigorous study of plant materials to work by helping customers pick the right plant for the right place in their yards.

Gary Pagel

Gary Pagel working the perennial lot at Gerten's in Inver Grove Hts., MN

Gary spent his summer internship in the perennial lot at Gerten’s in Inver Grove Hts., MN. Gary assisted customers in selecting perennial plants appropriate to their placement in the landscape and site growing conditions. Gary was also responsible for maintaining an attractive sales yard which included caring for the plants and creating displays that would help customers visualize various plant combinations.

Just one of Gary's exquisite plant combinations!

Nate Olsen

Nate is working for Leslie’s Gardens in Cottage Grove, MN as a landscape foreman. On my recent on-site visit, Nate was working on a landscape renovation that included a new paver patio, fire pit and planting beds.

Kathy Gelhaye

Kathy is working for Gerten’s in the design department where she is busy creating landscape designs for residential customers. Kathy has produced close to 100 designs in her two months with Gerten’s thus far and is a welcome addition to the design staff which includes award winning designer Mary Clymer who is also a DCTC alumni.

Pictured: L to R Mary, Kathy and Colleen Moran Director of Design @ Gerten's

Matt Leifeld

Matt is working with Patio Town in Oakdale, MN as sales manager. Matt has combined his previous experience in retail sales with his more recent education in landscape horticulture at DCTC to create the perfect job for himself. Matt enjoys working with people and is leading workshops on paver installation and retaining wall construction for the DIY crowd in addition to his other duties as sales manager at Patio Town.

Photos of student volunteers

DCTC students and instructor Jeff Kleinboehl

Event Photos 

Joel Mickelson places 56th. out of 865 students for Superstar status!

Landscape Installation Team: Kathy, Brett and Keely

Brea Pool! takes 7th. place out of 120 in Woody Plant I.D. competition

DCTC student Deb Flanders honored as PLANET AEF scholarship winner!

Keely gets ready to do a little pruning

Truck and Trailer Team: Andrew and Joel

DCTC students with garden guru P. Allen Smith (center)

Learn more about P. Allen Smith  at www.pallensmith.com  

In addition to the competitive events students toured the beautiful residence of John and Nancy Williams, one of the premier residential landscapes in Atlanta. With ten acres and over a mile of trails the garden had plenty to “wow” students. The grounds included a world class collection of Japanese Maples, a formal oval garden, a vegetable garden, a rose garden, rock steams and waterfalls that feed several ponds stocked with Koi. Other garden features include an azalea garden, and Asian garden and a rustic pavilion garden dubbed “the ruins”. The gardens were in full bloom and spectacular! 

 Garden Tour Photos 

Azaleas in full bloom with garden ruin in background

Also included on the tour was the Smith-Gilbert Gardens. Situated on over fifteen acres, this garden recently made the transition from private to public garden. With a natural woodland trail, rose garden, conifer garden, rock garden, perennial border, vegetable garden, waterfall and pond, and a collection of thirty pieces of contemporary sculpture, the garden is a must see. The garden is a true botanical wonder with over 3000 varieties of pants, shrubs and trees. 

DCTC students with tour guide on natural stone retaininmg wall

DCTC student contemplates the view from Tea Garden pavillion

DCTC students were also afforded the opportunity to learn about Atlanta’s early history while touring the historic Oakland Cemetery (www.oaklandcemetery.com) which dates back to 1850. Docent Sally Smith was our tour guide for the afternoon and told the story of Atlanta while weaving in a short course in zone 7 plant identification. Thank you Sally! 

DCTC students with docent Sally Smith on far right

    

A view of part of the greenhouse with Rieger begonias ready to sell

Our students have been busy growing a bedding plant crop in the new DCTC greenhouse.  Beginning in January, students have been seeding, transplanting, watering, fertilizing and doing all the things one does to produce a fine crop of bedding plants.  In the process, they enrich their knowledge of how plants grow, what a quality plant is and how to produce it, and apply information learned in other classes.   For example, students studied the design of large planters, reinforcing lessons learned in landscape design, and produced planters that will adorn the stage at the DCTC graduation in May.

Plants that will be available for sale include annuals in pacs, geraniums, a variety of annuals in 4 1/2″ pots, and hanging baskets.  The sale is open to the general public May 6 and 7 in the DCTC greenhouse, behind the west end of the college building.

New Guinea impatiens

A petunia hanging basket developing nicely

Lantana -- a great plant for the heat of the summer

A bench of recently planted impatiens that should be perfect for the sale

But first, we had some award winners!  One of our graduates won the 2010 Grand Honor Award for Residential Design in the Minnesota Nursery and Lanscape Association Landscape (MNLA) Awards Competion.  This is a juried competition.  Our winner was Mary Clymer, who now designs for Gerten’s in Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota:

Mary Clymer, DCTC graduate, who won the 2010 MNLA Grand Honor Award for Residential Design

We also had two current students that were awarded MNLA Foundation scholarships at the Awards Luncheon, Annette Cayard and Paul O’Gara.  The scholarships were sponsored by the MNLA, Bachman’s, Inc., and Hoffman and McNamara, of Hastings, MN.  We thank the sponsors.

Annette Cayard and Paul O'Gara were awarded MNLA scholarships. Congratulatons!

Here is a sampling of some of the graduates we saw at the trade fair that are now established in their careers in the Green Industry.  Sorry for the image quality — I am not used to my new cell phone camera yet!

Gail is now a section grower at the Bailey Nursery greenhouse range.

Chad has started his own business, Bischoff Landscape Designs.

Laura is an inside salesperson for the wholesale nursery Bailey Nurseries in Newport, Minnesota. She was at their booth at the trade fair.

Erik is a crew foreman for The Mustard Seed, a design/build and garden center firm in Chaska, MN

Leah, whose title is Landscape Property Manager, works for Mom's Garden Management in Shakopee, MN.

• Design with Nature – Creating healthy communities above and below ground
• Saturday, February 27, 8 a.m. to 4:45 p.m.
• Radisson Hotel Roseville, 2540 North Cleveland Ave., Roseville

The St. Croix Oak Savanna and Twin Cities chapters of “Wild Ones” are partnering with the Minnesota Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects (MASLA), and “Blue Thumb-Planting for Clean Water” to present noted speakers Douglas Tallamy, Ed Plaster, Welby Smith, and Evelyn Hadden speaking about creating healthy communities above and below ground. Our experts will share the latest research in designing beneficial habitats using native plants to provide esential support for insects, birds, and wildlife. Also featured are exhibitors from native plant nurseries, natural landscape designers, and environmental organizations. Please join us for an exciting day of ideas in preparation for spring.

Space is limited so sign up early.

• For more information, and to register, visit: http://for-wild.org/chapters/twincities/conference.html
• Register by Feb. 22nd by mail or on-line.
• Cost is $40 for Wild Ones and MASLA members, $45 nonmembers.
• Price includes buffet lunch. For additional information call 612-293-3833 or email: designwithnature.conference@gmail.com.

Joel Mickelson and Jim Reetz participating in the Irrigation Assembly event. In another event Jim Reetz placed 3rd. out of 80 in Construction Cost Estimating.

DCTC students spent several months outside of regular classes preparing for this year’s event and the results reflect their dedicated efforts. Special recognition goes to two of our team members for placing in the top three of their individual events.  Elizabeth Spedaliere placed 2nd. out of 88 in Business management and 2nd. out of 101 in Woody Plant Identification while Jim Reetz placed 3rd. out of 80 in Construction Cost Estimating. Other outstanding results include Valerie Kohorst placing 6th. out of 75 in Maintenance Cost Estimating, Marybeth Jahr placed 6th. out of 48 in the Sales Presentation competition and Brett Hansen, Brea Pool and Racquel Currie placed 9th. out of 54 in the Landscape Plant Installation event. As a whole DCTC did very well with the majority of students placing in the top 25% of their events; a remarkable feat considering DCTC is a two-year program with many first-time students competing in multiple events. Congratulations to you all!

In addition to the competitive events students Elizabeth Spedaliere and Kristie Malecha were awarded scholarships from the PLANET Academic Excellence Foundation; Elizabeth took home the second highest scholarship amount out of over 50 scholarships awarded.
Additional highlights of our trip included a student career fair where students were able to network with industry leaders and explore job opportunities from across the country. Students also attended workshops and toured some of the most amazing gardens southern California has to offer at the Getty Museum in Los Angeles.

Funding for our annual PLANET SCD trip is provided in part through plant sales organized by students that take place throughout the year including our annual spring sale scheduled for May 7th. and 8th. in the new DCTC greenhouses.

The following are pictures from the trip.

Plant Installation team Brett Hansen, Brea Pool and Racquel Currie placed 9th. out of 54 in the Landscape Plant Installation event.

Teamwork DCTC style

Team DCTC at opening ceremony

Students Alison kirwin, Kristie Malecha and Elizabeth Spedaliere take a rest while touring the Getty Museum and Gardens in Los Angeles.

Brett Hansen and Racquel Currie at finish of Wood Construction event

Team DCTC checking out the competition

Marybeth Jahr placed 6th. out of 55 participants in Sales Presentation event

Valerie Kohorst placed 6th. out of 75 in Maintenance Cost Estimating event

DCTC cheering squad - “Ooh, Aah, We’re DCTC, Ooh, Aah…”

Team DCTC!!!

Suzanne Gappa

Suzanne Gappa, who will be graduating this spring, topped the list of people passing the MNLA Certified Professional examination at the March 6 testing date.  She achieved a score of 87%, considerably higher than even the next best score from the 40 people that took the exam.  Suzanne, while a student, also works as a landscape designer for Bachman’s, Inc.

Suzanne was the only DCTC student to take the test this time; more took it at the January test date.  Congratulations to Suzanne for an outstanding performance.

• Julie King, Sage Landscape Design, Merit Award for Landscape Management
• Sarah Hartung, Landscape Renovations, Merit Award for Landscape Management
• Tim Johnson, Southview Design, Merit Award for Landscape Design

Kristie Malecha, Laura Shippy, Jim Reetz, Valerie Kohorst

The winners will be honored at the MNLA Landscape Awards Banquet 2009 on February 16, 2009, at the University Club of St. Paul.

MNLA Certified Professional Examination

Seven DCTC students recently took the MNLA Certified Professional examination—with four passing the difficult test.

• Valerie Kohorst
• Laura Shippey
• Jim Reetz
• Kristie Malecha

Although the pass rate represents the program’s lowest on record, this round of testing was unusually demanding, resulting in a statewide pass rate of 16 out of 61.  DCTC’s performance brightens in the light that no other student from any other Minnesota and Wisconsin two- and four-year college passed the exam.

One out of every 10 MNLA Certified Professionals are graduates of our program—by far the highest percentage of any college in the region.

DCTC at the 2009 Green Expo

Every January, the Minnesota Nursery and Landscape Association holds a spectacular Green Expo at the Minneapolis Convention Center. The four-day event includes numerous workshops, a trade fair, business meetings, the administration of the MNLA Certified Professional and an awards banquet.

Three DCTC students won $1,000 MNLA scholarships this year:

• Catherine Gelhaye
• Valerie Kohorst
• Kristie Malecha

The scholarships are funded by the MNLA Foundation and sponsoring companies.

Two DCTC Landscape Horticulture alumni gave presentations at the Green Expo.

Tim Huinker of Anchor Block Company in Minnetonka delivered a workshop on “Outdoor Structures: Arbors, Pergolas, and More!” Tim’s graduate story on our Web site points to great his success during his career, including several TV appearances.

Julie King of Sage Landscape Design in Minneapolis served on the convention’s Women in Horticulture panel. With “Things I Didn’t Learn At School” working as the panel’s topic, Julie spoke about a number of communications techniques she has developed at Sage.