The West Virginia Vegetation Management Association has honored two students in West Virginia University’s Davis College of Agriculture, Forestry and Consumer Sciences.

Christina Venable, an agronomy graduate student, received the Dr. Kenneth Carvell Student Award in the amount of $2,000. Kristin Lockerman, a junior majoring in agricultural and environmental education and forest resources management, received the $1,000 Roger Latham Memorial Award.

Venable, of Princess Anne, Md., is studying the use of native plants along West Virginia’s roadways. The research is part of a study commissioned by the West Virginia Division of Highways, in part to stem the tide of potentially invasive plants in the Mountain State.

She first studied different seed mixes and is currently comparing different propagation methods for native species. The DOH will use her findings to update planting practices along West Virginia’s existing and newly constructed roadways.

Venable plans to finish her master’s degree program in the spring of 2005. She earned her undergraduate degree in biology from WVU ’s Eberly College of Arts and Sciences.

Lockerman, of Hockessin, Del., is active in WVU ’s Forestry Club and the student chapter of the Society of American Foresters. In high school, she was a member of the Delaware State Future Farmers of America and worked with the Delaware Nature Society.

At WVU , she is active in the Gamma Beta Phi Society, an honor and service organization, and the National Collegiate Honor Society. After graduation, she plans to teach in the area of forestry.

The West Virginia Vegetation Management Association is an educational, nonprofit organization dedicated to providing expertise, solutions and networking opportunities to personnel involved in integrated roadside vegetation management. It is a network of state, county, city, university and industry personnel, all working toward safe, beautiful roadsides.