Georgia Southern University President Kicks Off Holiday Season with Annual Holiday Tree Planting
Georgia Southern University President Brooks Keel, Ph.D. today continued the tradition of planting a holiday tree. The tradition, dating back to 1978, was started by former President Dale Lick as a way to kick-off the holiday season.
Surrounded by faculty , staff and students, Keel completed the planting of the tree on Forest Drive near the University’s Health Center. “The planting of the annual holiday kicks off a series of holiday events at Georgia Southern University and I am proud to continue this great tradition,” said Keel. “This is one of the most beautiful university campuses in the country and I couldn’t think of a better tree than the Southern Live Oak.”
Keeping with recent tradition, the Southern Live Oak was selected from a Georgia nursery, this time near Augusta, Ga.
Georgia Southern University Landscape Architect Chuck Taylor said the tree and the location were chosen for specific reasons. “The Southern Live Oak is an iconic tree of the South and its planting on Forest Drive will ultimately result in a beautiful addition to this part of campus. In addition to being a great tree, it is the perfect addition and continuation of a bioswell project, a joint project between the University’s physical plant group and Georgia Southern biology and construction management students.” The bioswell has been planted with native plant materials with the intent to filter rain and runoff water before it reaches main waterways and streams.
About the Tree
Quercus virginiana, also known as the Southern Live Oak, is an evergreen or nearly evergreen oak tree native to the southeastern United States. The tree can be a massive, wide-spreading, picturesque tree, or a mere shrub, depending on the site. Acorns provide for wildlife and decent growth and ease of transplanting have led to ornamental use. It is one of the best known species in the coastal region of the southeastern United States. In the past, it was widely used for structural pieces in the manufacture of wooden ships, and large groves were actually considered a strategic resource by the federal government.
Source: forestandrange.org/efloras.org
Georgia Southern University Holiday Festivities Continue:
Lighting of Sweetheart Circle Scheduled for Thursday at 4:00 p.m.
Georgia Southern University will continue its kick off to the holiday season with The Lighting of Sweetheart Circle on Thursday, Dec. 2, 2010 at 4:00 p.m. Members of the community are invited to attend what is quickly becoming one of the community’s most popular holiday traditions.
Attendees are encouraged to bring a new, unwrapped toy which will be donated to The Ronald McDonald House.
Posted in Archive, Events, Press Releases
