Junior Hannah May can barely see an inch of paint in her room as dozens of plants cover her walls and ceiling. This past year, May has collected over forty house plants which have found a home in her room. Since then, she has become fascinated by the study of botany and horticulture.

“I actually only bought ten houseplants of my own. After that, I acquired most of them from gifts. Mr. Tellie actually gave me a few, and so did Ms. Zuckerman,” May said. “When you have a quirk as weird as mine, people tend to want to feed into it.” 

Horticulture is the study of plants and how they grow and develop. May believes that horticulture has positive environmental impacts and is therefore important to learn about how it can help the clim

Last year, May also founded CESJDS Horticulture Club so she could share her passion with others and, give those interested in horticulture a chance to share their passion. The club meets in room 316 every Wednesday during CT and May says they are always looking for new members. 

“Not a lot of people would think it’s interesting at first but if you actually join the club and you are in it it’s actually a pretty cool club,” co-president of Horticulture Club Nate Shemony said.

Her position as co-president of the club has inspired May to create presentations to teach members about botany and horticulture. However, in addition to slideshows, members of the club engage in activities such as drawing plants, selecting a plant of the week and even hope to revamp the school’s community garden. 

“I have actually learned a lot about characteristics of plants and I really enjoy gardening but I don’t think I’m that great at it…so I enjoy the presentations,” learning specialist and faculty adviser of Horticulture Club Ronitte Libedinsky said.

This past summer, May worked at Hillwood Estate Museum and Gardens. There she worked in the greenhouse which houses over 200 varieties of orchids. As an intern, May helped with the general upkeep, pruning, and directing visitors.

“I learned so much this summer, not only about botany and horticulture, but about work experience and how to communicate with others,” May said, “Most of all I learned that this is what I want the rest of my life to look like.”