About the BOG
WHERE IS IT?
The BOG is located in the heart of campus, in front of Mann Lab, next to Hoagland Hall and the soccer field --behind the Tri Co-ops and the grove of Eucalyptus Trees. The BOG team typically holds meetings at the Eco-Hub (located next to the Bike Barn, Aggie Re-use Store, and the Silo), or in the Botanical Conservatory (located right behind Hoagland Hall and the BOG).
WHAT IS THE BOG?
The Biological Orchard and Gardens (BOG) is collaboration between students, staff, and academic programs at UC Davis to create a 24,000 ft2 biodiversity teaching landscape in the heart of campus. The core of the project revolves around an innovative Slow Food, Ark of Taste orchard which functions as a living museum, showcasing13 varieties of fruit trees which are in danger of commercial extinction. By preserving these California-heritage trees, the BOG promotes agrobiodiversity -- while providing delicious, free fruits for the community to enjoy!
The remaining three-quarters of this space will feature plants native to South Africa, the Mediterranean region, and California; demonstrating the diversity of plants native to the Mediterranean biome and serving as an outdoor ecological laboratory directly supporting instruction in the university’s immensely popular Introduction to Biology course.
​
Current Site Plan - Click to enlarge
HISTORY
The concept for the BOG began with a student running for student government, who proposed to turn the Mann Lab lawn into a orchard park free for all students to enjoy --a space to pick fruit and hang out in between classes. Following the student’s election, the orchard concept was implemented, however, many of the trees did not survive due to a lack of an efficient irrigation system (only a couple of fig trees remained). The BOG remained dormant for several years due to a lack of student involvement. In 2013, the BOG was re-invigorated with a successful crowdfunding campaign and with a “Go Green” grant from UC Davis dining services.
​
Original Site Plan - Click to enlarge
FUTURE PLANS
The BOG is joining the campus-wide effort in transitioning towards a landscaping genre that embraces lawn reduction and plantings more suitable for the teaching, outreach, and research mission of the University and sustainability practices. The motivation for the BOG is to serve as a teaching garden for multiple university courses and provide a relaxing space to enjoy the outdoors and sample delicious fruit. The BOG’s main function is to serve as a demonstration of and test site for plants more suitable to this region’s hot dry summers and cool wet winters, with a focus on drought tolerant plants less commonly available in the Sacramento Valley.
