Let village gardens grow unmolested

In this time of a poor economy I would like to know how much the village spends on flower replacement.

I've lived in Arlington for 55 years. And, the wasteful spending of plant removal in our parks and public spaces has recently bothered me.

Each spring we see tulips and other bulb flowers being dug up after they've finished blooming. They are then replaced with another type of flower that lasts most of the summer only to be pulled out and replaced with mums.

I worked at a local high school for 11 years as a groundsman. We planted once, and let it grow. There are a lot of plants that can grow in the same place. Once each dies out, it is replaced by another. With proper planning, this could last the whole growing season. I'm sure that the village can find better things to do with that money.

Alan Van Bladel

Arlington Heights