New curators at two UW-Madison gardens aim to engage visitors
Two of campus’ public gardens recently welcomed new curators. Ben Futa comes to the Allen Centennial Gardens from, most recently, Fernwood Botanical Garden in Michigan. In addition to his public garden experience, Futa brings a passion for people and public programming.
“One thing I’m really focused on is making this the campus garden, not just the Department of Horticulture’s garden,” he says, “so I’m looking for ways to connect with other departments across the entire campus and Madison communities in ways that they can engage with this space and make it their own.”
We’re excited to see what Futa will bring to horticulture, CALS, campus and the Madison community.
At the southern end of campus, the Longenecker Horticultural Gardens in the UW-Madison Arboretum hired David Stevens as only the third curator since the establishment of the gardens in 1935. Prior to his role, Stevens was a forest genetics research specialist in the Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology.
Both Longenecker and Allen Centennial gardens are open to the public and support the university’s teaching, research and outreach mission. Stevens and Futa welcome visitors to explore and learn among the plants.
Read the UW-Madison news release about the new curators for more information.