Gulf Coast Landscape Horticulture Research Gardens—A New LSU AgCenter Industry/University Partnership

Land grant university research gardens for landscape horticulture plant trials are not a new concept. Over the past 10 years in the southeastern United States, there has been renewed interest in expanding these plant trials, however, beyond what is traditional done with seasonal bedding plants. A Landscape Horticulture Research and Extension Center, housed at the LSU AgCenter’s Hammond Research Station, Hammond, LA was initiated in 2004 under the leadership of then recently appointed station superintendent and research horticulturist Regina Bracy. Prior to this change in the station mission, efforts at Hammond since horticulture programming inception in 1922 had been primarily fruit and vegetable work with secondary work in ornamentals and other specialty crops. Gardens at the station include a sun garden, shade garden, care and maintenance area, azalea garden, piney woods garden, low care rose garden, crape myrtle garden, field production and evaluation garden, urban forest area and camellia garden. Most gardens have raised beds with irrigation and pine straw mulch. Plant trials conducted include warm season annuals, cool season annuals, herbaceous perennials, ornamental grasses, tropical/sub-tropicals, new flowering shrubs, new trees, an extensive collection of new crape myrtles and more. Data from some bedding plant trials at the LSU AgCenter is now being coordinated with 35 additional sites (24 university related) in the North America via the National Plant Trials Database (www.planttrials.org). Cooperative effort is on-going with many national nursery companies such as Greenleaf Nursery, Bailey Nursery, Ball Horticulture, Conard-Pyle / Star Roses, Plant Development Services, Inc. We also have close partnership with similar university efforts in neighboring and nearby states Mississippi State University, University of Florida/IFAS Quincy and Stephen F. Austin State University Gardens, Nacogdoches, TX. In-state nurseries are also involved in cooperative efforts with plant trials at the station. Consumer, master gardener and industry people’s choice (plant favorites) are voted on at meetings and field days. In the future, plants of distinction will be introduced at the LSU AgCenter’s annual landscape industry day in the spring. Funding for efforts comes from the specialty crop competiveness block grant program, Louisiana Nursery and Landscape Foundation for Scholarship and Research, nursery financial and in-kind contributions, master gardener society donations, urban forestry funds, urban/wildland interface grants, and firewise landscaping grants. Industry events at the station include a spring industry day and lecture series, landscape pest management workshops, a fall landscape industry field day, Ball Horticulture University, Louisiana Plant Materials Conference, and more.