Posted on Feb 15, 2024 | Blog,News
University of New Orleans Promotes Healthy Trees & Conservation Education on Campus
Students preparing the cypress seeds.
The University of New Orleans (UNO), a KLB University Affiliate, has been recognized as a Tree Campus Higher Education for 2023. This is the second consecutive year that UNO has earned the Tree Campus recognition. Tree Campus Higher Education was founded by the Arbor Day Foundation in 2008 to honor colleges and universities that promote healthy trees and engage students and employees in conservation efforts.
In December 2023, UNO Garden Club volunteers and the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana (CRCL) hosted a student-driven service learning opportunity to collect cypress seeds on campus. Rowan Lambert, a recent UNO alumna who works as the Native Plant Program Coordinator at the CRCL, led the event. A portion of the cypress seeds collected at UNO were donated for coastal restoration efforts across Louisiana.
Louisiana observes Arbor Day on the third Friday of each year to coincide with the ideal season to plant trees in Louisiana. On January 19, 2024, the UNO Garden Club celebrated by hosting a second service learning opportunity with the CRCL. At this event, Rowan Lambert showed UNO students how to prepare the previously collected seeds for future planting. Students learned how to separate the cypress seeds from the shell and prepare them for cold stratification. The seeds should be ready for planting this spring.
You can learn more about sustainability efforts at UNO on our Sustainability website or by following @KeepUNOBeautiful and @UNO.gardeners on Instagram.
