University of California, Davis
IN-20: Grounds Certification

The landscapes of the University of California at Davis have been a resource for the campus community for over 100 years. As UC Davis grows and evolves, we strive to develop our campus into a living laboratory that encourages our community to observe and interact with the landscapes around them.

ArbNet Arboretum Accreditation:
The UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden spans the campus’s 5,278 acres and includes the historic Arboretum – a 90 acre living museum comprised of demonstration gardens and scientific collections – as well as the Putah Creek Riparian Reserve – a rare stream and grassland ecosystem managed for teaching, research, wildlife and habitat protection.

The UC Davis Arboretum received Arboretum Level IV Accreditation in August 2017 and renewed the accreditation in November 2022; the certification will remain in effect through November 2027. Level IV is the highest level of accreditation.

URL: http://www.arbnet.org/morton-register/university-california-davis-arboretum-and-public-garden

Bee Campus USA:
UC Davis became a certified Bee Campus in July 2019. The Arboretum’s established collections like the Mary Wattis Brown Garden of California Native Plants and the Australian Collection provide great food and shelter resources for pollinators. The newly-established Environmental GATEway features habitat gardens, including a hummingbird garden, insect pollinator gardens, a stormwater management system and bioswale. The Arboretum and Public Garden’s new Habitat Horticulture Learning by Leading™ undergraduate student internship team focuses on pollinator gardening and urban habitat corridors in these collections.

Through a partnership between the Arboretum and Public Garden and the Williams Lab in the Department of Entomology and Nematology, UC Davis has access to the latest research in pollination ecology, specializing in bee biology with an emphasis on foraging behavior and plant/pollinator interactions. The UC Davis Honey and Pollination Center highlights the importance of both honey and pollination to the well-being of consumers through education and research and through its vision, to help make UC Davis the world’s leading authority on honey bee health, pollination and honey quality. The UC Davis Bee Campus USA Program also partners with the UC Davis Student Farm. CALPIRG, UC Davis’s premier student public interest activism group, works to protect the environment, provide hunger relief, and promote civic engagement. The CALPIRG bee team tables to bring awareness to the Bee Campus USA certification.

Bee Campus Affiliates: https://beecityusa.org/current-bee-campus-usa-affiliates/?filter_affiliate_type_city_9358e=College%20or%20University

More information about UC Davis’s certification: https://arboretum.ucdavis.edu/bee-campus-usa

California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF) Certification:
The UC Davis Student Farm has 21.5 acres of land certified by CCOF (certified since 2002) growing a wide diversity of both annual and perennial crops. The farm focuses on sustainable agriculture and food systems, in-field experiential learning and supports student exploration, creativity, initiative, and leadership. They also have plantings of flowers and herbs that help support beneficial insect populations on the farm.

Tree Campus Higher Education:
UC Davis has been participating in the Tree Campus Higher Education program for over a decade. Campuses are recognized by meeting criteria including establishment of a campus tree advisory committee, following a campus tree care plan, and creation of service-learning projects aimed at engaging the student body.

URL: https://www.arborday.org/programs/tree-campus-higher-education/#recognizedSection

UC Davis Bee Campus Website: https://arboretum.ucdavis.edu/bee-campus-usa
UC Davis Bee Campus Article: https://www.publicgardens.org/news/article/uc-davis-blossoms-next-bee-campus-usa-nation
UC Davis Arboretum Website: https://arboretum.ucdavis.edu/
UC Davis Student Farm Website: https://asi.ucdavis.edu/programs/sf
UC Davis Honey and Pollination Center: https://honey.ucdavis.edu/
Williams Lab at UC Davis Website: https://williamslab.ucdavis.edu/

Cora Ballek, a student employee in the Sustainability office, assisted in compiling this credit response.