A PreK-12 school just became D.C.'s newest arboretum

@media only screen and (max-width: 600px) { .mob-pad { padding-left: 20px !important; padding-right: 20px !important; } .mob-img { width: 100% !important; max-width: 100% !important; } h1 { font-size: 22px !important; } h2 { font-size: 17px !important; } } What's growing at Plantsoon A varied issue this time. A brand-new accredited arboretum at a school in Washington, D.C. New research on why children overlook plants — and what schools can practically do about it. And a look inside an office where every plant has a story you can scan. Here's what's been happening. Success story Accreditation D.C.'s newest arboretum is a PreK-12 school — and it runs on Plantsoon On Earth Day this April, Sam Nelson and the team at E.L. Haynes Public Charter School cut the ribbon on Euphemia's Arboretum, with nearly all of the plant signs installed and ready to scan. Shortly after, the arboretum earned official ArbNet Level I accreditation — making it Washington, D.C.'s newest arboretum, and the only PreK-12 and Title I school arboretum in the region. It's exactly the kind of milestone we love to see: a living, teaching collection that students can explore right in their own schoolyard. "Plantsoon was critical in turning Euphemia's Arboretum at E.L. Haynes Public Charter School into a Level I ArbNet-accredited arboretum — and, more importantly, into an interactive learning tool for students and teachers, with digital maps and bilingual smart labels that connect directly to the curriculum. Together, we're transforming a pretty campus into a living classroom." — Sam Nelson, Educational Arborist & Founder of Tree Stories LLC And the story is just getting started: the team is planning how students and teachers will use the maps, records, and app once educational applications are fully integrated at the start of the next school year. Hear it from Sam himself — watch his short video on how Euphemia's Arboretum came to be: ►  Watch the video Read more The school's announcement of Euphemia's Arboretum.  Read the announcement → Visit their virtual garden.  View on Plantsoon → Insights Education Children overlook plants — but the research says that's learned, not fixed Stories like Euphemia's Arboretum are exactly what our latest research piece is about. People notice animals far more readily than the plants around them — a documented tendency researchers call "plant blindness." But a 2022 review of 326 studies found no evidence that it's innate. It tracks instead with the reduced contact with plants typical of urbanised life — which means it's something teaching can reverse. The evidence points in a consistent direction: awareness is linked to relevance. People notice and remember plants that matter to their lives, through frequent, first-hand contact — not through the sheer volume of facts presented about them. Separately, a large review found that nature-based, outdoor experiences boost academic learning and engagement, with the clearest benefits for students less well served by the conventional classroom. That's also where technology earns its place — not as more screen time, but as an invitation outdoors. A QR-coded label on a schoolyard tree brings a child to the real plant; the screen then adds depth, like the tree's history, a record of its seasonal change, or an audio description. The technology serves the place, and the place is the lesson. The research describes plant blindness as a consequence of reduced contact with plants — not a fixed feature of how children are built. For school leaders Favour sustained, relevant contact over a one-time installation — a few plants pupils return to beat a large display they pass once. Integrate the work across the curriculum, so it survives a staff change. Involve pupils in planting, documenting and describing specific plants. Measure what you can — a simple before-and-after of which plants pupils recognise turns impact from intuition into evidence. Schools hold one of the few outdoor spaces children share every day. The article makes the case that the schoolyard is worth treating as a teaching tool — and features both Euphemia's Arboretum and Belgium's Sint-Pietersinstituut as worked examples of how far that idea can travel. Read the insights Closing the awareness gap in schools — what the evidence says works, where technology fits, and practical guidance for school leaders, all grounded in cited studies.  Read the full article → Ready to get accredited? Start your ArbNet accreditation journey — for free Euphemia's Arboretum is proof that any school, garden, or institution can earn recognition for its trees. Our ArbNet Accreditation Starter Package is completely free and gives you everything you need to document your collection, meet ArbNet standards, and achieve accreditation — without the complexity. FREE Get the Starter Package → Customer story Biophilic design Workspaces that breathe — every element in Etion's office has a story Etion's office isn't a row of desks. Working with Fijne Werkplek, it became a landscape: an arena for meetings, a winding table for collaboration, focus spots screened off with leaf-shaped acoustic panels, and a quiet area built around a moss wall. The space assumes you'll move between focus, conversation, creation, and recovery throughout the day — and gives you somewhere to move to. That's biophilic design: no plant as mere decoration, no acoustics as an afterthought. Every element is there for a reason. The living wall helps restore attention after deep work; the leaf-shaped screens dampen sound and bring the outdoors in. The challenge is that this reasoning usually walks out the door with the designer — and a careful piece of the design quietly disappears when someone moves a planter to make room for a coat rack. That's where Plantsoon comes in. Every element gets a smart label. One scan with a phone opens the story in the browser — no app, no account, no friction. Not just what it is, but why it's there: what it does for the acoustics, the air, and your head after a meeting, plus the science behind it. Fijne Werkplek designs and installs; Plantsoon makes sure the story stays, and keeps growing with the space. "The whole design is full of choices you don't see unless you know them. With Plantsoon, that story sticks around." — Rob Deckers, biophilic design expert at Fijne Werkplek Take a look Explore the Etion office for yourself.  Visit the digital experience → Learn more about Fijne Werkplek and Etion. Your ideas matter — share them with us We're always looking to improve Plantsoon — both the platform and our physical plant labels. If you have suggestions, ideas, or feedback on anything we could do better, we'd love to hear from you. Write to us at hello@plantsoon.com — your input directly shapes what we build next.