Northwest to offer Landscaping class
By Nancy Patterson| 8/6/09

A new class will be included in Northwest Mississippi Community College’s fall offerings that could appeal to the homeowner as well as to students interested in a career in landscaping. Landscape Design I (HLT 1513) will be taught by Len Lawhon on Tuesday evenings from 6 to 9 p.m. in the new addition to the Physical Science Building on the Senatobia campus.

To be offered through the Career and Technical Division of the college, the class will introduce students to the drawing instruments and supplies used in the preparation of landscape plans. Students will learn to conduct a site inventory and analysis, appraise client needs, and create a basic landscape design plan using presentation methods and media.

No stranger to the industry, Lawhon has worked in landscaping for 26 years. He runs DeSoto Farm, a wholesale tree farm in the Memphis area.  The original family business, which just celebrated its 50th anniversary, is Lawhon Horticultural Spray and Lawn Service.  Another division of this company is Lawhon Landscape In Memphis.

Lawhon has taught landscaping at the community college level for the past 10 years at Southwest Tennessee Community College. His design projects have included residential areas in Collierville and the Collierville Square and projects on college campuses including the University of Memphis and Northwest Mississippi Community College.

“This class would be a great elective for our students in the Drafting and Design Technology program as well as for those who might be interested in beginning landscaping design,” said Jerry Nichols, dean of Career and Technical Education and Workforce Development.

For more information on the Landscape Design I, call the Career- Technical Dean’s Office on the Senatobia campus at (662) 562-3361.

Registration for the Fall 2009 semester is Aug. 13 and 14 at all 
campus locations in Senatobia, Southaven and Oxford.