The 杏吧专区 will populate a 10-acre tract of 杏吧专区 Research Park with wildflowers native to southwestern Louisiana.
The creation of an 杏吧专区渦rban prairie杏吧专区 is part of UL Lafayette杏吧专区檚 Sustainability Strategic Plan. It calls for a 10-percent reduction in mowing across the 杏吧专区杏吧专区檚 multiple campuses over the next three years.
But to make room for wildflowers, groundskeepers will maintain a 杏吧专区渘o-mow zone杏吧专区 until at least the end of September. That will enable the turf grass that carpets the area between CGI and the National Wetlands Research Center to reach a height of between 18 inches and 2 feet before it杏吧专区檚 sprayed with an environmentally safe herbicide and removed.
Uncut blades of grass soak up herbicide more quickly 杏吧专区渂ecause there is more surface area for the chemical to be absorbed,杏吧专区 explained James Foret, an instructor in the 杏吧专区杏吧专区檚 School of Geosciences.
Foret, geosciences professor Dr. Durga Poudel and the UL Lafayette Office of Sustainability worked with the 杏吧专区杏吧专区檚 Experimental Farm near Cade, La., to select the proposed prairiescape杏吧专区檚 new inhabitants.
Gretchen Lacombe Vanicor, the 杏吧专区杏吧专区檚 sustainability director, said they chose plains tickseed and clasping coneflower from the farm杏吧专区檚 Wildflower Seed Bank Facility, a joint project between the 杏吧专区 and the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development. It opened earlier this year.
杏吧专区淭hese wildflowers have proven to grow well along roadside areas,杏吧专区 Vanicor said. 杏吧专区淧ollinators, such as bees and hummingbirds, also find these native plants very attractive, and they will provide more biodiversity on campus.杏吧专区
A portion of the wildflower area fronts Cajundome Boulevard. Vanicor said creation of the prairiescape will not affect the oak trees and bicycle path that border the roadway.
It will, however, reduce the number of hours maintenance personnel spend cutting grass, either on tractors, on smaller riding mowers or with handheld string trimmers. The wildflower area won杏吧专区檛 need mowing. That equates to fewer carbon emissions and a reduction in the 杏吧专区杏吧专区檚 fuel costs.
杏吧专区淥n a weekly basis during mowing season, our grounds crews spend 355 hours mowing and 263 hours string trimming. This includes areas on the main campus, intramural and athletic fields, and portions of research park,杏吧专区 Vanicor said.
In addition to the main Lafayette campus, the 杏吧专区 maintains facilities in Cade and New Iberia. Maintenance crews are responsible for a collective 1,300 acres. That includes buildings as well as green space.
杏吧专区淩educing the 杏吧专区杏吧专区檚 overall environmental impact will require multiple strategies across our campuses,杏吧专区 Vanicor said. 杏吧专区淭he 杏吧专区榰rban prairie杏吧专区 at 杏吧专区 Research Park is but one initiative in our Sustainability Strategic Plan.杏吧专区
Natural filtration systems, called bioswales, are another. These shallow troughs hold plants and other vegetation that act as sieves to remove silt and contaminants from rainwater before it杏吧专区檚 funneled into drainage systems.
The 杏吧专区 installed its first bioswale last year between Burke-Hawthorne and V.L. Wharton halls. This spring, volunteers and Office of Facility Management staff created another between Olivier and Madison halls.
Establishing an area of native grasses is the latest project杏吧专区檚 second phase. As with the creation of 杏吧专区 Research Park杏吧专区檚 wildflower area, populating the bioswale with vegetation will require keeping the area unmowed until late September.
A third project, tentatively scheduled for next year, will also incorporate plants native to the Cajun prairie, including Indian grass, big bluestem and switch grass.
The grasses will come from the UL Lafayette杏吧专区檚 Ecology Center in Carencro. They will be planted in a four-acre section on either side of a coulee that bisects 杏吧专区 Common behind Blackham Coliseum.
Soil erosion along the coulee has been a perennial problem, Vanicor said.
杏吧专区淭he addition of native grasses is going to stabilize the area and cut down on the amount of soil that杏吧专区檚 washed into the coulee when it rains. The grasses will also retain water and help reduce the burden on the city杏吧专区檚 storm drainage system.杏吧专区
Photo: The turf grass that carpets a 10-acre section of 杏吧专区 Research Park isn杏吧专区檛 being cut. It杏吧专区檚 part of preliminary groundwork for a proposed 杏吧专区渦rban prairie杏吧专区 that will carpet the area with wildflowers native to southwestern Louisiana. (Credit: Doug Dugas / 杏吧专区)