The following story was written by O.C. Register staff writer Barbara Giasone in 2006:
David Bishop was oblivious to the eight live reindeer prancing in the Big Thunder Ranch corral.
Bishop, a lifelong Fullerton resident, and his crew worked from 2 to 7 one morning last week plugging hundreds of red poinsettias and cyclamen into the Frontierland gardens for the 8 a.m. opening of Disneyland’s holiday season.
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“We had to wait until workers strung all the Christmas lights before we could do our job,” said Bishop, 44, the lead gardener for Frontierland, Critter Country and Tom Sawyer Island.
The holiday stuff can’t appear until the first day of the seasonal celebration, leaving a single morning to replace fall foliage with red and green flora.
Although the 10,000 poinsettia plants ordered for the entire resort look hardy, they are perhaps the most fragile decorations, Bishop said.
“Children stand on foot rails to see the reindeer and accidentally step on the plants,” Bishop said, “or guests stumble into the planters.”
The seasonal plants are also susceptible to botrytis disease caused by over-watering or bugs.
“We sometimes have to change the plants out every two days,” he said.
Bishop worked the night shift beneath movable halogen lights. He spruced up all sizes of live Christmas trees, amaryllis plants and showy ornamentals.
Each year, 1 million annuals, 5,000 trees and 40,000 shrubs are planted throughout the resort. With more than 800 species from 40 nations represented, Disneyland is one of the most extensive and diverse botanical locations in the western United States.
Bishop offers the following tips for maintaining holiday blooms:
- Keep soil moist but not soggy.
- Remove old flowers or flower stalks to keep plants looking fresh.
- Ordinarily, poinsettias do not need ”deadheading,” or pinching blooms. But if the plants are indoors, water the flowers frequently as forced-air heating systems dry out the containers quickly.
