Landscape Pros to Lend Green Thumbs to Arlington National Cemetery

Hundreds of landscape industry professionals will volunteer on Monday at Arlington National Cemetery to beautify and improve more than one quarter of the cemetery’s historic grounds, according to the National Association of Landscape Professionals.

Organized by the group, the “Renewal & Remembrance” event will involve more than 400 volunteer landscape professionals from across the country.

More than 200 of the cemetery’s 624 acres will be touched by the volunteers, the group said in a news release Wednesday.

They will be mulching, pruning, aerating, planting, liming and applying gypsum. Approximately 80 tons of lime will be applied to 182 acres of turf to ensure Arlington’s rolling green landscape remains pristine.

By helping to neutralize acidic soils, the application of limestone makes nutrients in the soil more available to Arlington’s lawns. Irrigation experts will perform audits, and inspect and repair irrigation systems. Tree care experts will install lightning protection on seven of the cemetery’s historic trees and cable two others for support.

Children with parents volunteering at the event will plant flowers on the cemetery grounds. Entering its 19th year, Renewal & Remembrance is the largest landscape industry day of service in the country.

PHOTO of Arlington National Cemetery from Patch archive