Year of Publication

2021

Competition Category

Design

College

Arts and Sciences

Department/School

Biology

Abstract

This project examines existing pollinator habitats on the University of Kentucky campus and identifies areas of need based on the connectivity of the existing habitats with the use of nontraditional landscape design methods. Pollinators are crucial to Kentucky ecosystems and the pollination of native plants. Given Kentucky’s central location, it offers an abundance of opportunity to create more pollinator habitats and aid in pollinator migration. This study examines the overall size and quality of existing pollinator habitats on campus to identify areas fit for the implementation of new gardens. Pollinators such as bees are unable to travel the long distances that Monarchs and other migrating pollinators can. For this reason, it is important to have enough healthy and diverse habitat to support a range of pollinator species on campus and eliminate some of the barriers of travel many of these species face to gather pollen, nectar, and reproduce. The hope of conducting this study is to raise awareness of pollinator gardens on campus and gain support for the application of more native pollinator species on campus. As a result of this research and the index of campus gardens GIS map, a pollinator garden at the Jacob’s Science Building was constructed to demonstrate the multi departmental approach that can be taken to produce a functional pollinator habitat. The team considered year-round bloom time, ease of maintenance, and the implementation of research plots to fit a multitude of spatial niches. This garden design was developed using easy to access digital visualization tools such as Google Earth Pro for aerial photos and aerial calculations; QGIS for mapping; Excel for plant list and calculations; and Procreate for individual plant’s character and plan rendering to compare and to illustrate which plants bloom in each season. These tools provide access to others outside the landscape architecture field to design, create, and install breathtaking and practical gardens. This approach can provide an easy and inexpensive way to create more pollinator gardens on the University of Kentucky campus in which a multitude of disciplines can participate.

Notes

Quincy Ipsaro won the first place in the Design category. She is a Biology student with a minor in Environmental and Sustainability Studies. She did this project as the Built Environment Intern at the University of Kentucky Office of Sustainability.

Carolina Segura-Bell was the faculty mentor.

Download

Share

COinS