We have a number of interesting
plants on campus.
Below are some that come to mind.
A dense stand of Pseudosasa, a type of bamboo grows,
near the Tea Ceremony House. Some of it is over 10 feet tall,
nearly an inch in diameter at the base and is quite woody. I
would like to plant some really large hardy bamboo
(2 or 3 types) on campus. Any suggestions? We are especially
interested in some types that do not have a great tendency to
'run'.
A very good sized Franklinia (Franklinia altamaha)
was planted in the spring of 2001. It will be blooming a bit
this year (mid to late July) and we hope it will bloom profusely
in coming years.
The bottlebrush buckeye (Aesculus parviflora) creates
a nice display in late June and early July in several places
on the Peale property.
We have some kudsu (Pueraria lobata) growing on
campus. It has been growing in a weedy area at the edge of one
of our outlying parking lots. I know it has been there for at
least 10 years and I suspect it has been there for quite some
time before La Salle acquired the property. Recently some of
it has been moved closer to the main part of campus where it
can be seen more easily. In the southern U.S. it has become a
really noxious weed but up north the winters seem to keep it
in check.
Also on the Peale property, near the Tea Ceremony house,
one will find three beautiful Dawn Redwoods (Metasequoia glyplostoboides),
a young bald cypress (Taxodium distichum) with very small
'knees', a very nice Japanese Umbrella-pine(Sciadopitys verticillata) and a double row
of Kwazan cherries (Prunus serrulata 'Kwazan').
The Sequoiadendron (California Giant Redwood) came
through its first winter (2000-2001) in fine shape grew nicely
this past summer. Soon it should reach 2 feet. It has a ways
to go to live up to its common name!
