NEWSROOM
Creating a Cypress Habitat at Cypress Cove Elementary
May 6, 2010
In April 2010, first grade students at Cypress Cove Elementary in Slidell, LA planted Louisiana irises, bald cypress trees, and a sweet red maple tree in their newly created rain garden. “A schoolyard rain garden brings the wetlands to students and provides an outdoor classroom for wetland education,” says Mindy McCallum of LSU AgCenter’s 4H Youth Wetlands Program. Ms. McCallum, along with Carol Franze of the LSU AgCenter and Louisiana Sea Grant, worked with the school to choose a location for the rain garden. “A rain garden is best placed in an area that holds water and would otherwise be considered a problem area. The ecological function involves allowing runoff from buildings and parking lots to be filtered by the wetland plants prior to reaching nearby streams,” commented Mrs. Franze.
A local nursery, Cut N Edge Landscaping on North Military Road in Slidell, LA, donated the wetland plants used in the garden. “I especially like that we planted cypress since it is our school’s namesake,” says Jessica Stubbs, Resource Helping Teacher at Cypress Cove Elementary. Stubbs continued, “The LSU AgCenter has done so much for our school, such as helping plant our vegetable garden and offering several in-school programs.”
To enhance the use of the rain garden, Ms. McCallum is developing lessons plans and activities for teachers at Cypress Cove Elementary. “There is so much to learn from a rain garden, including hydrology, plant adaptations, and the natural filtration of pollutants. I hope that teachers, parents, and students can recognize the beauty and function of wetlands that are so prevalent in Louisiana and consider using them as a natural filtration system in their own backyards,” stated Ms. McCallum.
For more information contact Mindy McCallum, LSU AgCenter Extension Associate for 4H Youth Wetlands Program. mmccallum@agcenter.lsu.edu
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