Texas Tech's Davis College of Agricultural Sciences & Natural Resources marks its celebration of sustainability and community next week with its participation in the university's annual Arbor Day on Friday (Apr. 29). 

Arbor Day is an annual event that provides an opportunity for students, faculty and staff to join together to beautify the Tech campus, while building a sense of community, said Davis College Interim Dean Cindy Akers. An Arbor Day t-shirt and planting alongside other Red Raiders makes the event one of the spring semester's anticipated events.

When Texas Tech was founded in the 1920s, most of the funds went towards the buildings, but the campus was lacking landscape. In 1937, President Bradford Knapp decided to dedicate one day every spring to beautify the campus. He proclaimed to the university that one day every spring Texas Tech faculty, students and anyone who could lend a hand would help plant trees and shrubs around campus.

The day was carried out in true West Texas fashion. Administrators supervised the work on horseback. Home economics students in long dresses and sunbonnets rode in covered wagons to hand out coffee and doughnuts to the volunteers who were planting.

Although it was a great celebration for one day of the year, caring for the trees and shrubs became difficult for the other days of the year due to the inadequate water supply. Most of the plants died, leaving the Texas Tech campus as the typical West Texas land it's known for. The tradition lasted only 10 years, ending in 1948, until it was resurrected in the late 1990s by former Texas Tech Chancellor John Montford.

Davis College organizations participating in this year's campus-wide program include:

• Agriculture Economics Graduate Student Association
• Agriculture Education & Communication Graduate Organization
• Alpha Zeta
• Davis College Dean's Office
• Horticulture Society
• Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources & Related Sciences (MANRRS)
• Student American Society of Landscape Architecture (SASLA)

The schedule of events is:

• 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m. – Pot-a-Succulent by Student Activities Board; Yard Games by Rec Sports
• 11 a.m.-1:00 p.m. – Free Food & T-shirt with TTU Student I.D. 
• 11:30 a.m.-1:00 p.m. – Live Music
• 12-1 p.m. – Affirmation Rocks by Student Activities Board
• 1:05-1:20 p.m. – Closing Remarks
• 1:25 p.m. – Planting Begins

The annual Arbor Day tradition has grown exponentially over the years. Today, more than 160 student organizations participate in the planting process and help the university's grounds maintenance department tend to the landscape across campus.

The event is a partnership among Tech's Center for Campus Life; Division of Student Affairs; Grounds Maintenance; Hospitality Services; Office of Sustainability; Operations Division; Student Activities Board; Student Union & Activities; Teaching, Learning and Professional Development Center (TLPDC); Transportation & Parking Services; and UREC.

CONTACT: Cindy Akers, Interim Dean, Davis College of Agricultural Sciences & Natural Resources, Texas Tech University at (806) 742-2808 or cindy.akers@ttu.edu

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