Daily Pioneer News

PLATTEVILLE- With 35,000 square feet of ornamental horticulture gardens, the University of Wisconsin-Platteville Pioneer Gardens, located next to the Ralph E. Davis Pioneer Stadium, offers educational and recreational opportunities for the community and students.

Visitors can follow the brick walkway and view an array of plants and flowers in full bloom, some of them unique to campus. Labels on each plant give the Latin and common name, so guests can educate themselves on how to identify different plants. The gardens also give visitors the opportunity to observe how the different plants grow and are cared for and decide if those plants are something they want to add in their own garden. The greenhouses provide additional plant observation opportunities and are open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The gardens are also a learning opportunity for students, serving as a living laboratory. In the horticulture and landscape classes, students install plants, prune them, do pesticide calibrations, identify plants and perform landscaping such as installing the fountain, retaining walls and walkway.

"The goal of Pioneer Gardens is for students to get practical experience as well as be an educational opportunity for the public," said Michael Compton, associate professor of horticulture.

Future plans for Pioneer Gardens include installing a gazebo garden, rose gardens, a butterfly garden with a pond, shade gardens, an herb and fragrance garden, high light gardens, rain garden and canvas garden where students will create various images using flowers and landscape materials. Once these plans are complete, the gardens will be able to accommodate weddings and special events. Most of the funding for Pioneer Gardens has come from donations. In order to expand the gardens, UWP is looking for donations toward any of the ten areas, the rose garden, butterfly garden or plants around the gazebo. Other needed items include benches, trees and a small bridge.

Anyone interested in making a donation or wanting more information about Pioneer Gardens may contact Denee Hirsch of the UWP Foundation at (608) 342-1969 orhirschd@uwplatt.edu

Contact: Denee A. Hirsch, UWP Foundation, (608) 342-1969,hirschd@uwplatt.edu Prepared by: Krystle Kurdi, UWP Public Relations, (608) 342-1194, kurdik@uwplatt.edu