Another successful Hawkwood LEAF season has come and gone. We were finally met with an abundance of early summer moisture that stretched our summer season longer and gentler than we have had in the past. Now winter’s embrace is upon us with the promise of spring around the corner.
This year our LEAF Program’s actions were more proactive rather than reactionary to what mother nature throws at us. We were able to get our spring cleanup done in good time, and we planted our flowers a bit earlier than normal. We didn’t have the June warmth needed for fast growth of the flowers, but the lack of extreme temperatures helped offset this. A brief hailstorm in the east half of Hawkwood did some unplanned flower pruning but they bounced back nicely, and our parks were cleared of fallen branches within a week.
The rework of the flower beds at the two John Laurie Blvd entrances in 2024 proved successful. These beds are exposed to constant sun and wind in summer and winter with difficult growing conditions and are maintenance intensive. A leveled soil terrain with the retaining walls and the use of in-ground water distribution systems worked well. Our Northern Pocket Gophers have yet to give their reviews on our healthier plants, however…
This same rehabilitation technique will be prioritized for the community entrance flower beds on Hawkwood Road across from the Library on Nose Hill Drive.
The road reconstruction of the median at the Hawkstone Drive at Nose Hill Drive community entrance forced our hand to finally reconsider and reconstruct this challenging flower feature. It too is exposed to sun and wind but also ingests copious amounts of road salt. The vehicular traffic at this location also makes this a dangerous location for our crews to be working in, and we have had too many close calls. Our attempt at growing plants tolerant to the harsh growing conditions were not exactly what many of us were hoping to see. As such, a xeriscape rock feature was installed, and an additional flower planter was added here.
An additional planter was also placed in the park on Hawkwood Crescent. This SW corner of Hawkwood did not have the same balance of LEAF features other areas of Hawkwood enjoy due to the difficulty of finding a suitable location.
Five additional spare planters will join us this spring as we continue to suffer planter losses due to undeclared motor vehicle incidents.
Behind the scenes, LEAF programs city-wide have begun a much-welcome rethink about how these programs are administered. It is exceedingly difficult for new communities to go through the process of inaugurating their own LEAF program. A pause in policy has been initiated until these programs are recreated to be fair and palatable for all communities and city administration. The process has been extremely collaborative and forward thinking – exciting times are ahead! Stay tuned for more.
For anyone new to Hawkwood, a warm welcome! The Hawkwood Community Association is a volunteer driven organization that successfully brought the vast majority of homeowners together in 2004 in a vote to create and implement our City of Calgary Enhanced Landscape Maintenance Program (officially ELM but affectionately known as LEAF in Hawkwood – Landscape Enhancement Appreciation Fund) after only 20 years of community deterioration. The HCA agrees to carry out all mowing and litter cleanup. In turn, the city “grants” the HCA the funds they would have spent in Hawkwood but are no longer needing to spend in our green spaces. Residents contribute to a Special Tax Levy annually, of which 100% is put back into Hawkwood, and in turn is combined with the granted money that enhances mowing and litter pick-up, provides all of the community flowers and winter greenery, and irrigation in eligible parks.
By now, our winter displays should be in place providing texture and warmth on our cold winter days. Material for these is sourced locally from trees destined to go to the landfill compost. Once we are finished with them in spring, they will join the compost there or be turned into mulch.
Next summer’s displays are already being prepared in our suppliers’ greenhouses. Please enjoy the winterscapes of our streets, parks, playgrounds, and our spectacular outdoor recreational facility, as frost and snow lay a pristine blanket on our Hawkwood community and our Hawkwood homes.
LEAF
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