General Maintenance, Washrooms, Grass Cutting, Turf Maintenance, Horticulture Services, Tree Services, Pesticide Ban

General Parks Maintenance

The general parks maintenance program provides maintenance and upgrades to furniture, sports and play equipment, fencing, walkways, signage, curbing and other structures, for Pickering's 81 parks. Parks staff maintains 6 field house/washrooms, 60 playgrounds, and 21 tennis courts. General maintenance services include:

• Playground inspections
• Playground and court surface repairs
• Field House/washroom repairs
• Vandalized equipment/structure repairs
• Garbage/litter cleanup
• Special Events
• Trail Maintenance
• Park infrastructure repairs
• Memorial bench program

Washrooms

Park washrooms are open from early May to Thanksgiving (weather permitting)

• Beachfront Park - 9 am to 9 pm
• Kinsmen, Dunmoore, David Farr, Brockridge, and Centennial Park - 9 am to 10 pm

Grass Cutting

Grass cutting in City parks and boulevards is performed from May to October and cycles are weather permitting.

• parks are cut every 7 working days and trimmed every 16 working days
• boulevards are cut and trimmed every 20 working days
• high priority locations are cut and trimmed weekly

The season starts with six crews of four staff, and in September staffing is reduced to three crews of two until the end of the season, as our student labourers return to school.

View the Parks Maintenance Information Sheet.

Horticulture Services

The horticulture program includes the establishment and maintenance of floral and shrub displays on designated City properties, including parks, City Facilities and boulevards.

Turf Maintenance

The Turf Maintenance Program provides regular maintenance and repairs for turf of designated high profile properties and sport fields. The program includes aerating, fertilizing, top dressing, over seeding, sod work, and weed control.

There is also a Ball Diamond Maintenance Program to provide a regular maintenance and repair schedule for all City permitted diamonds. Parks staff maintains 31 ball diamonds and 38 soccer fields.

Tree Services

The City's forestry program includes the general maintenance of trees on City streets, in parks, and on other designated City properties. The program involves tree planting, (including boulevards/streets, parks, and community involved naturalization planting) tree mulching, tree pruning, mature tree inspection and maintenance, tree and stump removal, and tree pest and disease management. Visit our Trees page for more information.

Pesticide Ban

Ontario's Cosmetic Pesticide Ban took effect April 22, 2009. Under the ban, more than 250 pesticide products are banned for sale and over 95 pesticide ingredients are banned for cosmetic uses. Pesticides cannot be used for cosmetic purposes on lawns, vegetable and ornamental gardens, patios, driveways, cemeteries, and in parks and school yards. There are no exceptions for pest infestations (insect, fungi or weeds) in these areas.

Pesticides can be used for public health and safety to control plants that are poisonous to the touch, such as poison ivy; insects that bite, sting, are venomous or are disease carrying, like mosquitoes; and insects or plants that may cause damage to a structure or infrastructure, such as termites.

For more information, visit the Ministry of Environment and Climate change website or contact them at 416.325.4000 or 1.800.565.4923.