Located in the NW corner of the Oregon Institute of Technology (OIT) campus is a native plant garden that was installed in the summer of 2013 by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife, Civil Engineering students from OIT and children and adult volunteers from the recently established national Schoolyard Habitat Program. The purpose and goal of this native plant garden is to educate the public, particularly school-age children, on the native flora and fauna species found in the Klamath Basin and to recreate those environments here in this garden. There is a winding path that zigzags up a hill and contains a number of placards that highlight specific flora that visitors will see as they travel along the rock path. These placards stand in front of small communities of plants and trees to include the Oak Woodland Community; the Shrub Community; the Mixed Conifers Community; and the Juniper Community.
There was a local newspaper article recently that highlighted this native garden and the goal for the community is to bring classrooms of elementary schoolchildren to this garden and to be part of a workshop with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employees. This is a great addition to our community.
You can learn more about the projects the Schoolyard Habitat Program provides by visiting their website here and here.