Organization aims to create 'edible' landscape
Friday afternoon was brisk and blustery, but that didn’t shirk a small band of Golden Key Club members from their task of planting fruit trees around the far Bates end of campus.
Bates House and Cliff Apartments Graduate Housing residents will soon enjoy pears, oranges, plums and persimmons from 10 new trees planted by the Golden Key Club in observation of National Make a Difference Day.
“We celebrate Make a Difference Day to demonstrate our commitment to community service,” said doctoral student Martins Akintunde, a resident of Cliff Apartments. “These trees will be an excellent addition to the campus.”
The Golden Key Club teamed up with landscaping services in choosing the location of the trees, which Key Club advisor Heather Porter hopes will help bring attention to an oft-overlooked area of campus. These are by no means the first fruit trees on campus, however. Over the past year, Outdoor Recreation and the Green Quad have been planting trees at various locations around USC’s grounds, which can be viewed on a map on Outdoor Rec’s website in addition to the type of fruit they produce — from peaches to pomegranates.
“Several groups are starting to jump on board with the idea,” said Landscaping Services employee Kevin Curtis, who works closely with student organizations to bring the new plants to campus. “Edible landscaping has been gaining more traction as people start thinking of sustainability. Hopefully, there will be more within the next year, depending on how upkeep goes.”
Though fruit-bearing trees require more maintenance, student interest shouldn’t be a problem, Curtis said. The loquat trees located on Sumter Street across from South quad are picked clean every year.
More trees are on the way beginning Nov. 10, as Outdoor Rec commences with plans to plant 39 new trees in a calculated effort to offset their carbon footprint.
In the meantime, Golden Key Club members hope that their small but visible contribution to more neglected areas of campus finds favor with the student body and help improve involvement in their chapter.
“We want the honor society to be more than just a resume builder,” third-year chemistry student Elisa Bonnin said “I think that if we can show that we actually do things to help the campus, we’ll succeed in getting more active members,” she said.