Villanova University
OP-9: Landscape Management

There are only two areas that are excluded from the managed grounds: the Santander Bank building and the building next to it. The Santander building measures 61,518 square feet and the other building measures 70,597 square feet. We don’t typically include the above area as part of campus since we don’t manage it.

All areas of campus operating under organic practices do not use any inorganic fertilizers or chemical pesticides.
Two meadows or fields mowed every other year used for campus research and programs.
Most fertilizers are organic or organic based fertilizer on campus. An organic fertilizer is our first option when needed.
Use of wood chips in place of mulch in certain places on campus. Wood chips are produced from fallen trees and tree branches on campus.
Use of all natural mulch, no processed mulch or dyed mulch.
All leaf material collected on campus is composted and used as mulch or as soil conditioner.
Fungicides and herbicides are only used for emergency purposes.

Villanova uses IPM on grounds throughout campus. All areas of campus operating under IPM practices do not use any inorganic fertilizers or chemical pesticides. We work hard to limit watering to nighttime or early morning when temperatures are low and use fertilize when needed in spring and fall. 
Pesticides are only used as a last resort. We closely monitor for pests and use cultural practices when possible to help control the pests before they reach a threshold. Herbicides are used sparingly. Again, we use cultural practices to control weeds (e.g., hand weeding, weed whacking and mowing before weeds go to seed, mulching, and monitoring for weeds and invasive species).We also aerate and overseed lawns to help prevent weeds from occurring. In winter we also continue to remove invasive species from around the perimeter of campus, such as along fences, railroad tracks and meadows.

The grounds department mainly orders native plants for their projects on campus. When replacing plants, grounds prioritizes native plants over non-native and avoids using invasive plants. We strive to have at least a 2 to 1 ratio of trees planted for every tree removed.

Villanova's Grounds Maintenance department works very closely with Dr. Traver in the Civil Engineering department to provide the best and latest methods of maintaining the integrity of the natural hydrology of the campus. The Villanova campus is considered a model for this type of management, having over two dozen different actual sites including rain gardens, several porous paving installations, bio retention basins, underground infiltration beds, etc.

Villanova does not have written policies for the landscape materials management or waste minimization. However, Villanova has been committed to those practices for over 20+ years. The practices have evolved over the years to incorporate best practices as established by University research and industry experience. We compost all the leaves collected on campus, grass clippings, perennial cuttings, and dead plant material. Also, we chip brush and tree branches from campus. The wood chips are used throughout campus landscapes as a natural mulch.

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