Swartzell himself is a transplant to the area. He came to Las Vegas in 1982 from his native Georgia, where he earned a degree in agriculture with a major in floriculture at the University of Georgia. He recalls that before he arrived here, he had never seen some of area's most ubiquitous varieties of flora, such as the European olive tree. Swartzell points out that that particular tree, though widely planted on the campus years ago, is now banned in Southern Nevada, due to its prodigious production of allergens. That is the kind of information he shares with campus visitors during his landscaping education sessions.
Topics vary, but they usually include such favorites as new plants, transplanting, and pruning.
One subject that is discussed almost always, regardless of the announced topic, is water conservation, according to Swartzell. It's almost a given now. We just incorporate it into the various programs that we provide. Water conservation is also a concern on campus. It's one of the reasons that Swartzell is trying to reduce the amount of grass.