Grass and Trees

Greystone has always been famous for it’s grass and trees.

The grass is an inspiration in so many ways… it is perfect to run on, to roll on, to eat on, and to sleep on. It looks perfect from a distance and anyone who has found it difficult to provide a lush green lawn for their own home can’t help but wonder how we do it. The answer is found in the hundreds of hours we dedicate to this job every fall.

This is the time of year to plant grass, for grass grows very well during the warm days and cool nights of September and October. By the time of the first frost in late October, the grass will be deeply rooted and able to withstand a cold winter. So for the past month we have been working hard to get our ground prepared for new seed. When spring arrives, the grass quite literally grows an inch a day! It becomes lush and deeply rooted, ready for a long hot summer.

Most places around camp just require a little work (drainage, irrigation, fertilizer); but the softball field needed a lot of work (as you know). This work is coming to a close and we are about to finish the grass planting and move to other projects.

As a part of the softball field renovation, we removed the dead (or dieing) Hemlock trees that surrounded the pavilion. These trees have been a part of the Greystone landscape for generations, now they are being replaced by the next generation of soon to be majestic trees. It is part of the stewardship of this property that always makes me a bit sad.

These trees have been a part of my life. I have climbed in their branches, sat in their shade, rejoiced in their beauty, and taken them for granted. Every camper and counselor shares this experience of the trees in camp. Seeing them go is always sad but it also invites improvements which make me very excited.

The tree service suggested we “clean up” the surrounding Pine trees around the softball field. 90 years of ice, flood, drought, and wind have made an impact that is noticable if you pay attention. As soon as they started this work it was obvious what an improvement this little bit of work would accomplish. Soon we will have a lovely view of the mountains through the massive trunks of these wonderful trees. The entire campus will look so much better! All because we had to do the hard work of removing something we loved.

There are lessons in the green things of camp. Grass and trees teach us that hard work is necessary. They teach us that sad things are not completely bad. They teach us to plan for the future (a tree planted now is not really enjoyed for at least ten years and is not really great for a generation). They also teach us that things that we take for granted are often very important to our lives.

So this weekend, I encourage you to hug a tree and lie down in the warm grass… and think of camp!

Jimboy