Did you know that the Founders Memorial Garden employs a dedicated team of student workers every year to help maintain the garden? Well, when this team isn’t getting their hands dirty in the garden, they’re out gaining even more real-life experience through summer internships!
From the Smithsonian Gardens to policy internships, our FMG student workers dipped their hands in all types of soil this summer. Expand on the tabs below to learn more about their experiences!
Treasa McHugh, BLA
Landscape Architecture Intern at Smithsonian Gardens
What was a day in the life as an intern like?
Each day was different – besides meetings and working on projects at my desk, activities also included site visits, fieldwork, and field trips. Additionally, there were many opportunities to learn from other staff besides the landscape architects, including horticulturists, curators, archivists, and education specialists.
What was the most rewarding part of the experience?
It was really special to work for an organization whose main purpose is to educate the public about the importance of plants and gardens. My own values align strongly with that mission.
What was the most challenging part?
One challenging but interesting part of landscape architecture at Smithsonian Gardens is the agency review and approval process. Although every jurisdiction has its share of codes and ordinances, designing and developing within such an important historic district as the National Mall is really on another level. I admired my bosses for their dedication and patience in this regard.
How did your student work in the FMG support your internship?
My work experience from FMG prepared me well for this internship! Though the two places operate at very different scales, the same principles of public garden and historic landscape management apply to each. Many of my skills were useful in both roles, like plant ID and AutoCAD. Both jobs have complemented my BLA curriculum by helping me understand how designed landscapes perform and age, as well as the maintenance they require.
Do you have any favorite projects that you worked on?
Some of my favorite projects included accessioning new trees for the living collections, preparing for a new campus-wide garden exhibition (which opens next summer!), and exploring redesign opportunities for a stretch of streetscape adjacent to the Hirshhorn Museum and Ripley Garden.
Daniel Bonner, BLA
City of Newnan Landscape Architecture Intern
What was a day in the life as an intern like?
Everyday is different when working for the city, as so much of the job revolves around serving the public and ensuring developers are following the city’s regulations. As the assistant to the city’s landscape architect, I had a hand in everything my boss would do everyday.
A typical day starts at 8am answering emails from people around the city requesting tree removal permits, architects and landscape architects needing help with their plans, and contractors in the process of construction wanting inspections for their landscape and stormwater structures. After an hour of that we would drive around the city, conducting site inspections and assisting citizens with issues ranging from tree health to property line disagreements to misunderstandings about ongoing construction. After a few hours of that, we would break for lunch, and typically after we returned we would have a few meetings to attend. Oftentimes those meetings were pre-construction meetings which emphasized the “do’s and don’t’s” of construction in the city, but sometimes they would be check-ins for ongoing city park projects. Finally, towards the end of the day we would conduct plan reviews for all of the submitted plans that day, checking to make sure everything on the plan was in agreement with the city’s landscape ordinance. Once every other week we would also attend a city council meeting, which was highly informative in understanding how projects get approved not only through city staff, but also through elected officials.
What was your favorite part of the internship?
My favorite part about my internship was working so closely with the public and seeing how landscape architecture can be used to serve a community in more ways than creating public spaces. Whenever anyone contacts the city it is usually the most important thing they have to do that day, so it was special to assist with everyone’s needs and ensure they could have success.
What was the most challenging part?
The most challenging part was definitely being the “bad guy” when developers violated the city’s landscape or stormwater ordinances during construction. No one likes to be told that what they did was wrong or that they’ll need to change something, but it is very important that everyone follows the same rules. We always tried our best to not hold up construction for a project, so it was essential to let contractors know when they were in violation as soon as possible so they could fix their mistake without any hangups.
How did your student work in the FMG support your internship?
While the tasks I was asked to do were not anywhere close to what I typically do for FMG, having a deep understanding of maintenance and plant material was incredibly useful when evaluating problems in our current parks, as well as reviewing the plans for future parks to be managed by the city.
Ansh Patel, BLA
Intern, Vision Landscaping & Associates
What was your internship?
I worked at Vision Landscaping & Associates, a design-build firm that focuses on residential-scale projects. The firm was uniquely located on a farm and included both a shade and sun nursery, offering a hands-on learning environment.
What was a day in the life as an intern like?
A typical day as an intern varied greatly. Some days I would be designing a planting plan, while other days I might be building a fence, installing sod or plants, removing trees, working in the nursery, or performing pruning tasks. No two days were the same, which made the experience fun and engaging.
What was the most rewarding part of the experience?
The most rewarding part of my internship was seeing my work make a direct and immediate impact on the environment.
What was your favorite part of the internship?
My favorite part of the internship was being hands-on in every phase of the process, from designing planting plans to actually building and installing them. It helped me connect design theory with real world application.
How did your student work in the FMG support your internship?
My experience working with the FMG played a big role in supporting my internship. It helped me become more confident in identifying plants, get comfortable with working outdoors, and develop the ability to create effective planting plans.
