Bamboo. It was essential to the survival of the Skipper, Gilligan and the gang while stranded on the island.
As in past semesters, students in horticulture science are making bamboo a permanent part of Kilgore Hall. Professor Will Hooker’s Residential Landscaping class is using bamboo to create structures for use in the classroom.
This semester’s HS 400 class is making desk frames out of bamboo for its classroom that was recently equipped with a new floor, ceiling and bombproof desks. Hooker, a former landscape architect, said he is utilizing bamboo projects to allow his students to better communicate and work together.
“We started [this project] because I didn’t have any desks for them,” he said. “The reason I use bamboo is because it’s free, and people are trying to give it away. It fits our budget perfectly.”
Two years ago, his class built a bamboo gazebo behind Kilgore Hall facing Hillsborough Street.
“I’m trying to give each class that comes through an experience in building,” explained Hooker. “The complexity changes, but the process is the same.”
The class, made up of 13 students, works both inside and outside the classroom to complete it’s desk frame project.
“I probably spend about 25 hours a week [working on the project],” Erica Pineiro, a senior in landscape architecture, said.
Elizabeth Phelps, also a senior is landscape design, said she is diligently working while enjoying her classroom experience.
“I like it a lot so far. It’s different and fun,” Phelps said. “I know his classes always did bamboo projects. I thought it would be monotonous, but the more I do it, the more I like it.”
Phelps said now she is able to look at things from a “different perspective.” Pineiro said she considers her experiences in Hooker’s class and horticulture science life-changing.
“Everyone should be required to take permaculture,” she said.
Hooker also teaches Introduction to Permaculture — HS 432.
“[The class is] about living smart, really,” she said. “It makes me want to put in landscapes that give back [to the environment].”
