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Randal Christman is a valuable employee. He?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?s a busy man and he rarely sits still. That?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?s how it is when you?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?re the sole full-time grounds maintenance worker at Treasure Island Water & Theme Park Resort.
The 80-acre park sits in the resort center of Wisconsin Dells, Wis.?EUR??,,????'?????<??oelocated about 50 miles north of Madison. The operating season is short, the park is open from Memorial Day to Labor Day each year, which means that most months working around guests isn?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?t an issue.
Christman spends most of the year working solo or with two or three part-time staff members who help mow close to 30 acres of turfgrass every week during the warm months. One break in routine comes each spring, when a dozen members of the on-site hotel?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?s housekeeping staff emerge to help plant a total of 400 flats of annual blooms.
?EUR??,,????'?????<?They love it,?EUR??,,????'?????<? Christman said. ?EUR??,,????'?????<?We have a couple of employee days when we say, ?EUR??,,????'?????<?All hands on deck?EUR??,,????'?????<??oeeveryone outside!?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR? Some of the girls actually fight to get outside and plant flowers.?EUR??,,????'?????<?
It takes a week to two weeks for the willing crew to plant the season?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?s geraniums, petunias, marigolds, impatiens, celosias and others.
Christman and his crew call spring the ?EUR??,,????'?????<?Hell Months?EUR??,,????'?????<? because it marks the race to deadline before the busy summer months. Before the summer of 2006, the crew worked alongside contractors working to finish the park?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?s indoor Parthenon attraction?EUR??,,????'?????<??oea complex designed to draw visitors outside of the warm vacation months. Last winter also saw significant outdoor construction as a storage shop and old hotel complex were demolished to make way for new water slides.
The construction is designed to draw business, but it sometimes gets in the way of the landscaping crew, as it rushes to finish its own list of cold-season tasks. After the lawn mowers take their last pass around the grounds?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR? 30 turfgrass acres, the crew and resort planners walk the park in a very deliberate way to plan their winter work.
?EUR??,,????'?????<?We all just go out there and kind of scratch our heads and come up with a plan,?EUR??,,????'?????<? Christman said. ?EUR??,,????'?????<?We have meetings and then we go from there.?EUR??,,????'?????<?
The deadline in spring means that careful planning to maximize the use of autumn time is especially important. The 80-acre grounds are populated with willow, ash, oak and maple trees, making fall leaf cleanup a demanding task.
One innovative method is to use a large Sullair air compressor to blow leaves from under trees and shrubs into piles. The large compressor is towed on a trailer behind a truck, with its power giving a significant advantage over backpack blowers, Christman explained.
?EUR??,,????'?????<?With this thing you can blow four-to-five times the area in the same amount of time,?EUR??,,????'?????<? he said.
Other items laid down the previous spring need to be removed each fall as well. Before the snow flies, the crew removes old, faded mulch from planting beds, leaving the geotextile weed barriers exposed until spring. (Each April, the beds are filled again with fresh mulch?EUR??,,????'?????<??oeit takes four or five ?EUR??,,????'?????<?big dump trucks?EUR??,,????'?????<? full to get the job done.)
Also each fall, the crew spends about a week straight to prune trees and tear out old annual flowers. With all the trees on site, the job isn?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?t a small one, either. To complete, Treasure Island relies on a significant amount of expensive equipment. This includes a Snorkel lift, self-propelled two-man bucket lift and ?EUR??,,????'?????<?numerous?EUR??,,????'?????<? Stihl chain saws. Expansive undeveloped land around the park means that instead of spending valuable time to haul the debris to a landfill, the crew can store it in a secluded spot, where it can be chipped for mulch at a later date.
The busy task often calls for an extra pair of hands. Often they belong to director of maintenance Eugene Morse, who?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?s not afraid to get out of the office and get his hands dirty.
?EUR??,,????'?????<?Gene?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?s a great guy,?EUR??,,????'?????<? Christman said. ?EUR??,,????'?????<?He?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?s isn?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?t afraid to get out there and work with the guys; he?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?s a working machine.?EUR??,,????'?????<?
If fall is marked by one overriding concern?EUR??,,????'?????<??oegathering debris?EUR??,,????'?????<??oethe start of spring brings no relief. When the snow melts (the amount varies by year) it?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?s time to get back outside and pick up the leaves, twigs and assorted windblown mess. It?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?s also a time of year that stirs a grounds superintendent?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?s blood.
?EUR??,,????'?????<?I?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?m chomping at the bit to get out there and start doing the work,?EUR??,,????'?????<? Christman says.
When things are looking cleaner, the crew spends several days treating the grounds with Preen pre-emergent herbicide granules. The team spends another day spraying the walkways and adjacent areas with Roundup?EUR??,,????'?????<??oewhich greatly reduces the time needed to bring the paths to their weed-free, amusement-park-clean state.
Around the same time, park management plans for annual color plantings?EUR??,,????'?????<??oewhich (as mentioned above) consist of close to 400 flats. Helping organize the task is Barb Mattei, the wife of a Treasure Island administrator, also known as the resident ?EUR??,,????'?????<?flower encyclopedia.?EUR??,,????'?????<?
With the housekeeping staff?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?s help (and a little help from the weather) most of the job is finished by the Memorial Day weekend, when guests descend.
With flowers in the ground, the busy summer routine commences. Christman spends about three days a week mowing. He?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?s assisted by seasonal workers, who help finish the job by Friday, so the lawn looks great for visitors.
As temperatures rise, the irrigation system becomes more important.
Wisconsin gets rain, but drought isn?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?t unknown either.
?EUR??,,????'?????<?When it?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?s hot in August, I could walk around with a hose all week and not keep up,?EUR??,,????'?????<? Christman says. In 2005, workers added 3,000 ft. of Rain Drip irrigation pipe. That?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?s more than half a mile.
With many more miles of lawn to mow, of course. Christman and his workers take care of the job with a pair of Ransomes mowers?EUR??,,????'?????<??oeone a 36-inch walk-behind, the other a riding mower with a 48-inch deck.
A final challenge?EUR??,,????'?????<??oeof the pest variety?EUR??,,????'?????<??oewaits on the park?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?s putting greens. These are ants, which are constantly depositing small piles of sand on the smoothly-trimmed surfaces. One thing never changes. Christman can fight the ants with malathion but?EUR??,,????'?????<??oelike the park?EUR??,,????'?????<???EUR?s guests?EUR??,,????'?????<??oethey always come back again, year after year.
?EUR??,,????'?????<?I never win the war,?EUR??,,????'?????<? he says. ?EUR??,,????'?????<?I just succeed in moving them around.?EUR??,,????'?????<?
More information on Treasure Island: www.wisdellstreasureisland.com.
Francisco Uviña, University of New Mexico
Hardscape Oasis in Litchfield Park
Ash Nochian, Ph.D. Landscape Architect
November 12th, 2025
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