?EUR??,,????'??Visitors have described it as playing inside a botanical garden,?EUR??,,????'?? said Tony Pistillo, director of public relations.

The resort and golf course cover 250 acres. Dennis Otsuji of ONA landscape architects designed the original landscape plan 11 years ago.

Today, golf course and grounds superintendent Kevin Kienast and assistant landscape manager Tom Norton make all the design and purchasing decisions. They are supported by a team of 10 groundskeepers, who tend to the landscaping seven days a week. ?EUR??,,????'??We keep the landscaping as fresh as the rooms,?EUR??,,????'?? Kienast said. ?EUR??,,????'??To accomplish this we continually replace plants. It never ends. ?EUR??,,????'??The staff begins at 6:30 a.m. and has the grounds cleaned and manicured by the time our guests get going.?EUR??,,????'??

Kienast said the lawn, which is a hybrid Bermuda, is mowed three to five times a week. Plants in the flower beds are switched out every six to eight weeks, requiring about 20,000 four-inch flower pots a year. Most are subtropical, sub mediterranean plants purchased from Progressive Growers in Vista and the Premier Color Nursery in Fallbrook, Calif.

Prominent in the design are birds of paradise, the official flower of Carlsbad. In addition to the familiar orange and blue blooms, dramatic, dark purple giant birds of paradise rise as high as 30 feet above the resort.

There are 15 varieties of palm tree on the property. Shrubs and trees are purchased from Briggs Tree Co. in Vista, Pardee Tree Nursery in Bonsall and the Miramar Nursery in San Diego, Calif.

Aviara has been a longtime partner with the Batiquitos Lagoon Foundation. Rick Ransburg, director of golf and recreation, serves as an officer on the foundation?EUR??,,????'???s board.

Two de-silt basins on the golf course shield the lagoon from upstream silt loads. The basins collect and hold particulate, allowing cleaner water to enter the reserve?EUR??,,????'???s ecosystem. The maintenance crew tries to limit use of toxic chemicals. Recycled water is used for the resort?EUR??,,????'???s turf and landscape.