The following is representative of existing services provided to Valdosta State University on a routine and recurring basis with regard to the general upkeep and maintenance of pertinent outside areas. This document reflects actual duties performed within the Grounds Department; however, it is not all inclusive due to the “crisis” demands that occur periodically, such as our response to recent tropical storm damages. It should be used as a guide to a better understanding of the overall daily contributions to the campus community that the Plant Operations Grounds Department performs.

VSU Grounds by the Numbers:

  • Almost 180 acres are maintained by the Grounds Department. The majority of this work is on a weekly basis driven by PM work orders, and it includes all areas owned or leased by VSU. PM work orders include mowing, blowing off of walks, patios and other hardscapes, trash clean-up, required pruning, and edging of walks, drives, and shrub beds.
  • Some areas, such as the ten acres of athletic fields, are maintained three times weekly with tri-plex reel mowers. Grounds is also responsible to these fields for fertilization, pest management, aeration, topdressing, and other prescribed PM work.
  • The thirty-five acres of shrubbery beds are maintained on a bi-weekly basis. Clippings from pruning trees and shrubs are recycled through a chipper and composted to be placed back in the beds as mulch. All areas of maintenance, including pest management and mulching, are included.
  • Trash collection and compaction is on a daily basis, including weekends. While some locations are serviced by the City, the majority of campus is taken care of in-house.
  • Twenty-seven irrigation clocks that control irrigation over the entire campus are the responsibility of one grounds person. Clocks are programmed to begin at 10:00pm and end by 6:00am. We maintain and repair all elements of the system, including maintenance to the eight wells owned by VSU. We also design and install new irrigation when required. Ninety percent of the irrigation was installed by VSU staff.
  • Approximately seventy annual flower beds are the responsibility of our Greenhouse located at North Campus. Plants are grown from seed or cuttings to supply two major plantings each year. Almost 20,000 seedlings are planted each spring and around 30,000 in the fall. A rolling stock of plants is kept to replace beds that may be lost during the growing season. Also, potted plants are maintained for special events such as Graduation, Honor’s Day, Convocation, Visitations, etc. The 40 ft. by 96 ft. greenhouse is maintained by our staff twelve months a year.
In Addition...
  • Tree maintenance, such as pruning is handled in-house. A private tree service is called in when we cannot handle the situation, such as major tree removal.
  • We routinely make repairs to asphalt and concrete surfaces.
  • We make repairs to existing landscapes, install new landscapes, renovate old landscapes, and do landscape design work.
  • We maintain a full service small engines mechanic and repair shop. We not only service Grounds equipment driven by a computerized PM work order system, but also make our service available to other departments if requested.
  • We assist other departments with aspects of clean-up, loading and unloading of materials, coordination of