Contact: Maridith Geuder
The Crosby Arboretum, a South Mississippi nature center that recently became a part of Mississippi State University, will be the topic of an Oct. 23 presentation on the Starkville campus.
Executive director Larry G. Pardue will give a multi-media presentation that introduces the arboretum's resources. The 7 p.m. public program will be held in 301-302 Colvard Union.
Named by Garden Design Magazine as one of the best public gardens in the nation, the arboretum includes separate natural areas, including a 20-acre savanna, a 5.5-acre wetland and a 30-acre woodland.
Central to the gardens is Pinecote Pavillion, the only Mississippi building to win the American Institute of Architecture's AIA Honor Award for Design Excellence. The wood-and-glass structure was designed by famed architect Fay Jones.
"We will do a slide presentation that focuses on the history of the arboretum, as well as its future," Pardue said. Mississippi State art student Nathan Williams also will present an interactive video tour of the arboretum.
Located at Picayune, the regional native-plant conservatory comprises more than 1,000 acres in seven natural areas, supporting more than 700 species of indigenous trees, shrubs, grasses, and wildflowers.
"It is a world-class facility that represents the flora and fauna of the Pearl River Basin," said Cameron Man, head of Mississippi State's landscape architecture department and an arboretum board member.
"The presentation will be an informational meeting for the university and local community, as well as other interested persons, to learn how this facility will be incorporated into the educational and research mission of Mississippi State," he said.
The arboretum is a part of the university's Division of Agriculture, Forestry and Veterinary Medicine and its Coastal Research and Extension Center.