Feature This!

Boston's Arnold Arboretum

By Katy Schiel

Situated on 265 acres in Boston's Jamaica Plain neighborhood, the Arnold Arboretum offers an amazing collection of trees, shrubs, and vines from across the globe, as well as a public research library and herbarium. Since its founding in 1872, the arboretum has fulfilled its mission by continuing to amass and study its vast collections of plant species and by offering horticultural education to the greater Boston community.

Charles Sprague Sargent, the arboretum's first director, planned the naturalistic grounds in collaboration with landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted as part of Boston's Emerald Necklace park system and Harvard University. The influential organization and design of the arboretum has made it a model for similar institutions around the world.

The Arnold Arboretum is free and open to the public sunrise to sunset, everyday of the year.

Special Attractions
Every third Sunday in May the arboretum celebrates its large collection of lilacs with a daylong festival of picnicking, music, and lilac tours. In the spring of 2002, the Arboretum will finish construction on a new Sun-Loving Shrub and Vine Collection. This collection will feature more than 350 varieties of shrubs and vines not represented elsewhere on the grounds.

Education
The Arboretum offers classes and tours for both adults and elementary school groups. Free tours of the Arboretum are also being offered throughout the summer.

Research Library & Database
The library contains a non-circulating research collection of over 100,000 volumes devoted to the study of woody plants. Volumes include works on botany, horticulture, floras, forestry, and taxonomy. The entire catalog can be accessed through the Arboretum's website. Ready for a visit? Follow this WoodNotes hyperlink and find out more about what's happening at our Featured Arboretum: http://www.arboretum.harvard.edu/