We enjoyed working with Laislla while she was here in the United States.  We learned a great deal from her about Brazilian plantscaping and hope she learned a lot from us as well!  Here are pictures from Laislla's internship with us.

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It's impossible to talk about landscaping in Brazil without talking about Roberto Burle Marx.  Burle Marx is internationally known as one of the most important landscape architects of the 20th century. An artist of multiple facets, besides being a landscape designer he was also a remarkable painter, sculptor, singer and jewelry designer, with a sensibility that is shown throughout his work.

Born in São Paulo, Brazil on August 4th, 1909, Burle Marx moved to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 1913. During the years of 1928 and 1929 he studied painting in Berlin, Germany, where he was often seen at the Dahlem Botanic Garden's greenhouses. In this garden he noticed for the first time the beauty of the tropical plants and the Brazilian flora. After Germany, he spent a lot of time in the Brazilian forests where he was able to study and explore. This enabled him to add significantly to the botanical sciences, by discovering new rocks and plants for example. At least 30 plants bear his name!

At that time, the landscaping in Brazil followed European trends, called Eclecticism, mixing Classic and Roman, with the use of tropical plants or not. Burle Marx, flanked by other modernist artists of the time, broke these trends and began landscaping with a strong nationalist tendency.  The twentieth century marked a time of increased activity of landscaping in the country as well as growing demands of landscaped spaces to the urban population. During this time urban and social changes were constant and Brazil continued into the new century as an urban nation, enabling, especially after the 1950s, the expansion of the landscaping market, both within the public & private.

From landscaping projects in the Parque do Ibirapuera, São Paulo, to the Embassy of Brazil in Washington, DC, to work in Europe and other countries in Latin America, Burle Marx has produced hundreds of beautifully landscaped places around the planet.

Much of his work has a sense of timelessness and perfection. His aesthetics are often nature-based; for example, never mixing flower colors, utilization of big groups of the same specimen, using native plants and making a rocky field into a relaxing garden. He was very interested in each plant's character and what effect that has on the whole garden.

	Interior Landscaping in the New York Botanical Garden, by Roberto Burle Marx
	Sao Paulo is a big city, as you can see in the picture! A lot going on, not much space and the preoccupation with security, as in any big city, have generated a tendency to small gardens at home, in multi-apartment condominiums and commercial buildings. Sao Paulo also has a great deal of large public spaces like parks and plazas for landscaping.
	Interior landscape in a commercial building in Brazil.
	Catedral da Sé This cathedral marks the center of Sao Paulo, and palm trees form a path that invites for a stroll in the downtown.
	Parque do Ibirapuera. Inaugurated in 1954 for the 400th anniversary of the city, with buildings designed by famous architect Oscar Niemeyer and landscape by designer Roberto Burle Marx, Ibirapuera Park covers an area of almost 2 square kilometres (0.77 sq mi). It is the second biggest park in the city.

New York Times article about Roberto Burle Marx

I think now you guys can have an idea about how things are in São Paulo, and a little bit of Brazilian culture! 

Moving on to exterior landscaping with Integrity Landscaping

hola, ¿qué pasa? Another thing I did not expect to learn in the U.S., Spanish! And, of course, I love it!

You must have noticed that it took me a little more time to write the paper this week. It's because I get home ready to bathe and go to bed—landscaping outside is very tiring! But it is very interesting! Here are just a couple of quick notes, not all because there is so much, about what I'm doing and learning with Integrity Landscaping.

Planting trees: sounds easy, huh? Even if the tree is small, believe me, it is heavy! When we transplant, or move a grown plant from one pot to another or directly to the ground, it is important to "break" the little roots. The purpose is to unpack the soil that clings between the root and call upon the root to grow and spread to the soil in which it was inserted.

Planting lawns: The "lawns" we plant come in large rolls. You should plant them at different levels, without following a line (like a brick wall) so it doesn't create paths for water in between the grass.

My last entry from Buckingham Greenery.

During my internship, I have worked with almost all the employees who work in Richmond and Buckingham, and I always ask them what they like most about working with Buckingham Greenery. Almost everyone gave me the same answer, that they like to have Fridays off and be permitted to report directly to the jobsite rather than first coming in to the office. And yesterday I discovered that these are two of many practices taken by the company that qualify it as a Green Earth – Green Plants ® Certified Business. Some other measures taken by the company are: use of sub-irrigation conteiners; use of water and soap to clean the plants as an alternative to pesticides use; use of natural and recycled topdressing and accounts are on a 14 day maintenance schedule.

Not just the employees, but the earth thanks such sustainability practices!

This week I worked with Betty Jo, who is the Director of Sales; helped with Christmas scheduling with Lisa Lann; worked on inventories and calendars with Linda Palmore; and more Christmas and florals with James Boix.

As I said before, this was my last full week with Buckingham Greenery! Next Wednesday I'll start working with Integrity Landscape.

But don't worry, I'll keep the journal into my very last day here in the USA!

Hello!!!

I hope everybody have had a great Labor Day! But now, it is time to go back to work!  This is my last week with the Buckingham Greenery, but don't worry, I'll keep writing during my other internship, that will be with Integrity Landscaping VA. www.integritylandscapingva.com

Last week I learned some different things. I spent a day at the office in Buckingham, where Linda Palmore, Lisa Lann and Dawn Smith work.  I worked with Dawn learning how she makes all the bills and the contracts.

On Wednesday I spent a great day in Farmville with Connie. You know those days we plan to do many things and end up doing something totally different? Yeah, it was really what happened! But we had fun! I met some good friends of Connie, Synthia and Philip Fenaux. 

Also met Toni DeMaio, who took us for a tour of her manufacturing company, Triboro Shelving Company www.triboroshelvingcompany.com.

I met Father DeSouza, a retired priest who lives in Farmville, and Bill Franks, who we had breakfast with at The Bakery, (Synthia and Philip's bakery), and Father Joe Wamala, a visiting priest from Uganda, who we had lunch with at The Bakery.

We did also work that day! I went with Connie to one of her accounts where they use containers with sub-irrigation, allowing containers to be maintained easily, reliably, and with a minimum of effort. Sub-Irrigation is healthier for the plant, because it's watered from below, the water dispersion is more consistent, providing for more even root development. The container has a reservoir below the soil, allowing for longer intervals between watering.

Wait for more!!

Hello everybody!!
I know how much you guys like to know how my internship is going, but I think this week I'd like to use this space for some information that may help you to take care of your own plants!

Ok, let me be clear here, or our technicians will get mad me...If you already have Buckingham Greenery taking care of your office plants, then it's easy...you don't need to worry about them!  So, " Please, don't water the plants!" 

But if you don't...wait!!! You don't have Buckingham Greenery's plants in your office or fantastic horticultural technicians taking care of them? What are you waiting for?!?!?!?

All right, so I'm talking about the plants that you have in your house. What I found this week is sometimes we love our plants so much that we end up killing them with too much care! Indoor plants don't drink much water, so you should water them just once a week, sometimes once every couple of weeks.  It depends on factors such as:

Temperature: Indoor plants appreciate temperatures between 62 to 86 degrees F.  If your plant sits under an air conditioner it will drink more water then usual. When the seasons change the plants will take some time to get used to the new temperatures, so be careful with how much water you give it then during this time.

Light: If a plant gets direct sun all day (from a south-facing window) it will need a good amount of water.  Plants can also survive in a low light place, like a hallway or corridor, but it will just not need as much water.

Just keep in mind that you want to let your plants dry-out before give them more water. High humidity in a closed environment can be the perfect place for plant diseases and knats!
The most important thing is to know your plant. The amount of water that a plant needs really depends on the kind of plant, and each plant is unique!

Here is a little mental list I learned that will help you to water your plants correctly:

• How much light is it receiving?
• How warm is the surrounding environment?
• What season is it?
• What kind of plant is it?
• How moist the soil feel?

Hope you find these tips I've learned helpful!

Have a great week!!!

This past week was mostly a practical week! Except for Monday morning, when Hunter, Julia (which are the two new techs that are being trained) and I had a review about plants names, work procedures and company statements. After that I worked with Cyndi and Julia in the Virginia Center Mall, which is a new account, that we are taking care for the last three weeks now and I'm seeing the transformation in the place!

Tuesday I worked with Shea in the James Center, Omni Hotel and Bank of America taking care of their plants! Shea does a great job, and my favorite place is the James Center lobby!

Wednesday I worked with Monica. It was a long and full day of learning! We went to Cedarfield, Henrico Doctors Hospital and West Minster Canterbury. The people in the retirement houses are very concerned about their plants and love to take care of them. They also like to talk to us, giving advice and suggestions. Monica is very good with them! By the way, thanks for the lunch Monica and for all the tips about maintaining the plant's health!

On Thursday I worked at the office with Mary, Mary Lou and James. Mary Lou is a very nice lady who works temporarily during Christmas time, which already started for us!

As you can see, this was a full week!!

By popular demand here's another page for my journal about my internship at Buckingham Greenery!

Last week I worked with Cyndi at the VA Center Commons, on Monday, which was also the day that my relatives who were visiting the U.S. left to go back to Brazil ... I have to say it left me a little sad, but grateful for the time they were here with me!

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On Wednesday I followed Connie on a visit to some accounts at Johnson Willis Hospital and Altria. She taught me how to assess the work that is being done in the account and in the hospital everything was great—healthy and clean, with good top dressings, plants with good shape and all looked well!

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My name is Láislla de Gouveia. I'm 23 years old, Brazilian and a student of Agronomy at the University of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Currently I am doing my internship at Buckingham Greenery to get my degree!

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