Remembering Larry Lamb, educator, ecologist, botanist

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It is with great sadness that we share the news of Larry Lamb’s passing. Larry spent 40 years working in the Faculty of Environment as both an adjunct lecturer and head of the ecology lab.  

A recipient of the lieutenant-governor’s Ontario Heritage Award for Lifetime Achievement, and the John Goldie Award in Recognition for his Dedicated Service to the Field of Botany, Larry’s impact on ecology was far-reaching. On Waterloo’s campus, he was instrumental in creating the Robert S. Dorney ecology garden outside of the Environment 1 building. Larry also designed the East-West Garden at Renison University College for which he received a Fellowship from the college. 

Larry was recognized across North America for his ecological work and appeared in David Suzuki’s “The Nature of Things” showcasing his tall grass prairie native ecosystem. An advocate for preserving prairie grasses and plants indigenous to southern Ontario, he was described as the leading authority on zeriscaping or naturescaping, a low-maintenance, drought-tolerant garden form replacing standard grass. He was invited by the former First Lady of the United States, Lady Bird Johnson, wife of president Lyndon B. Johnson, to her ranch in Texas to advise on prairie gardening. 

More can be read about Larry Lamb in the Lifetimes section of the Waterloo Region Record and in the University of Waterloo’s Daily Bulletin. In-lieu funeral services Larry requested all to enjoy a walk along the Larry Lamb Riverside Trail at rare Charitable Research Reserve in Cambridge. Donations can also be made to rare in Larry’s memory.