Talking Trees with Bill Graves
October 8, 2024Talking Trees with Bill Graves
On the gorgeous Fall afternoon of October 7, Dean of the Graduate College, Dr. Bill Graves, led a wonderful tour of six notable trees on campus. Bill first stared his seminar with a short history of each tree:
Mexican leatherwood (Dirca mexicana) in the Hort courtyard; Oklahoma seaside alder (Alnus maritima) (outside the Hort greenhouses); Amur maackia (Maackia amurensis) (next to the Hub); American sycamore (Platanus occidentalis) (next to the Hub); American beech (Fagus grandifolia) (in front of Beardshear); and northern Catalpa (Catalpa speciosa) (outside Pearson Hall). What was the most fascinating to us was Bill’s role in these trees, having secured or started many of them himself! Bill’s love of trees was palpable–from trees as a major theme in his research lab as a Professor of Horticulture to the Heritage Tree Program on campus to help preserve notable specimens. We give a big shout-out to Bill for taking time out of his busy life to educate us and share his special love of trees!