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We Want Your Feedback!
The Olathe Parks & Recreation 2012 summer special event season was a great success. This year we saw record participation in the Fishing Derby, Summer Concerts, 4th of July fireworks and a great turn out for our first Touch-A-Truck, ETC event.
In order to continue to bring high quality events we now need your feedback! Please take a moment and fill out the following survey. Your feedback will help us shape our 2013 season!
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Changes to Fall Swim Program
There have been a few changes in the fall swim program listings. We have added Level V classes to the fall sessions. There has also been a change in pool availability requiring us to start session II a week earlier and add dates to the end. To view the updated aquatics page in the interactive catalog click here. Codes in the book will link you to registration. |
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Don't Forget to Register!
Looking for something fun to do as the weather cools down? Check out the variety of both youth and adult programs offered through Olathe Parks & Recreation and our partners this season.
Registration deadlines for fall sports are quickly approaching, don't miss your chance to rediscover a favorite sport or sign-up your kids for a great after school activity. Programs include:
(click link to view catalog page with program options and information):
Looking for something a little different? Check out the Youth and Adult enrichment sections of this catalog. Some of our staff choices include:
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Protecting Your Trees
The heat and drought have played havoc on landscapes across the City. The Olathe Parks department has received several questions about what homeowners can do to protect one of the most expensive pieces of their landscape, trees.
Rick Spurgeon, City of Olathe arborist, has several suggestions on what residents can do to protect their tree, much of which is what the City is doing to protect our tree investment.
- Don't depend on your irrigation system - Most residential systems are not effective at allowing the water to soak into the ground and get to the deep roots of trees. Watering your turf is opposite of tree needs. Daily, shallow turf watering can actually kill your tree.
- Think low and slow - Spurgeon suggests running your hose on a low setting at the base of your tree for 3-4 hours every 10 days. Another idea is to drill holes in a 5 gallon bucket, set along the base to the drip line (the canopy) of the tree and fill, do this a few times every week or so a couple of days a week.
- Aerate - Don't forget to aerate your trees. Many homeowners aerate their yards on a regular basis, but neglect their trees. The soil needs to be broken up around the tree to allow oxygen and water to flow to the root system properly. Turf aeration DOES NOT aerate the trees. Trees need aeration over one foot deep.
- Don't over water - just as important as low and slow watering every few days, remember that watering everyday can also cause stress. So space out your watering, but make sure the water is SOAKED DOWN DEEP, not just muddy on top.
- Mulch - Adding a good layer of mulch around your tree will help insulate the roots and conserves water.
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Spurgeon also suggests that this fall when residents begin to look at planting new trees they should take into consideration the area they are planting and to consider trees that are either native or adaptive to the area and our weather. A few trees that people might look into would include drought hardy trees such as Bald Cypress, Chinquapin Oak, Swamp White Oak , this is just a small list of trees that do well in the Kansas City area.
"Many times homeowners worry about their grass and not their trees in drought situation," said Spurgeon. "What is important to remember is that you can have brand new grass in as little as two weeks, but in many cases it takes 80 years to replace a tree lost to conditions like we are seeing."
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