Arboretum volunteers prune and plant

The day began with Doak Nickerson, district forester with the Nebraska State Forestry, showing right and wrong ways of pruning, demonstrating on the honey locust trees at the south end of campus adjacent to the Heritage Trail.

“We covered about 100 pages of the pruning text in a couple of hours,” said Lucinda Mays, CSC public horticulturist. “This kind of hands-on event helps people learn how to take care of their trees during the right time of year.” 

In honor of CSC’s centennial in 2011, the group planted the first of 100 commemorative trees to mark the occasion --  a bur oak near new fitness equipment at the trailhead. 

The event was capped off with a shrub pruning session led by Mays demonstrating full cut-back pruning on rabbitbrush in contrast to selective pruning on cotoneaster shrubs.

Work days are planned for each season throughout the year to provide the opportunity for community members to learn more about working with plants of the high plains and landscape gardening techniques. Each work day begins with a mini-lesson and demonstration of the work to be done and is followed by up to two hours of work activities. The next work day is scheduled Saturday, June 12, and will focus on sowing flower seeds timed to be in bloom for the fall semester. 

Mays encourages volunteers of all ages and hopes interest in high plains horticulture grows. For more information contact Lucinda Mays at 308-430-4186.