The Top 10 Most Beautiful College Arboretums
Best College Reviews, an independent college review journal, recently released a list of the top 50 college arboretums across the country. Information was gathered from school websites and the North American Plant Collections Consortium, and the following criteria were used to compile the rankings:
• Size of arboretum
• Size of the collection
• How long the garden has been established
• Opportunities for college students
• Connection with the community.
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#10: Allegheny Arboretum – Indiana University of Pennsylvania
Indiana University of Pennsylvania’s lush 354-acre campus is home to 1,320 trees in the Allegheny Arboretum. The mission of the Arboretum is to “provide a learning environment that will advance our global understanding of temperate forests, cultivate an aesthetic appreciation for regional flora of the Allegheny Plateau, and demonstrate practical applications of woody plant materials to modify and mitigate local environmental conditions.” This living museum not only provides beauty, but an outdoor classroom where each specimen is carefully labeled, maintained, cataloged and mapped.
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#9: University of Wisconsin–Madison Arboretum
The mission of the University of Wisconsin (UW) – Madison Arboretum is to be “a global source of knowledge of and a model for restoring ecologically sustainable relationships between people and the land through integrative, innovative and collaborative approaches in science, stewardship, education and public engagement.” Covering more than 1,200 acres in Madison, plus outlying areas in Wisconsin, the UW Arboretum has three distinct garden collections that include Wisconsin’s premier collection of hardy trees, shrubs and vines, as well as a unique native plant garden representing native plant communities of southern Wisconsin.
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#8: Mizzou Botanic Garden – University of Missouri
The Mizzou Botanic Garden, which was established in 1999, is a living museum of thousands of plants displayed among famous icons, most notably, Jefferson’s original grave marker and the Columns of Academic Hall. There are 11 thematic and seven special collection gardens spread throughout the Mizzou campus. The goal of the garden upon inception was to “turn our environment into an exceptional and beautiful learning opportunity for our students, faculty, staff and visitors.” This goal has been actualized as the garden is a delight to students, faculty and visitors, as well as an academic environment for educators, researchers and students.
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#7: Crosby Arboretum – Mississippi State University
Located in Picayune, Miss., the Crosby Arboretum contains 104 acres in its Native Plant Center, plus more than 700 acres in seven additional natural areas, sheltering 300 species of indigenous trees and shrubs. The Crosby Arboretum is the premier native plant conservatory in the Southeast and is a resource for education in the region and the world. It provides for the protection of the region’s biological diversity as well as a place for the enjoyment of plant species native to the Pearl River Drainage Basin of south-central Mississippi and Louisiana. The Pinecote Pavilion and the Piney Wood Lake are ideal for observing native water plants in their natural setting.
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#6: Minnesota Landscape Arboretum – University of Minnesota
The Minnesota Landscape Arboretum features 1,137 acres of natural areas and public gardens filled with more than 5,000 plant species and varieties. It is one of the premier horticultural field laboratories and public display areas in the country. Visitors will enjoy the acres of gardens and tree collections, prairies, woods, and miles of trails. The garden was born out of the University of Minnesota Horticultural Research Center and established in 1958. In addition to a smorgasbord of natural wonders, the garden is decorated with sculptures throughout the grounds, as well as in the new Sculpture Garden.
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#5: Connecticut College Arboretum
The Connecticut College Arboretum has a rich history and tradition stretching back to its establishment in 1931. Since its beginning, the college has been dedicated to the mission of teaching, research, conservation, recreation and public education. The Arboretum now spans 770 acres and is utilized in at least 30 different college courses, part of the school’s mission to create a “living laboratory.” There are three major plant collections: 120 acres of trees and shrubs from around the world, 30 acres of native plants, and three acres of diverse wooded plants in a garden setting.
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#4: Carleton College Cowling Arboretum
The Carleton College Cowling Arboretum, also known as “the Arb,” is used extensively as an outdoor classroom by a number of Carleton courses, especially in Biology and Geology. Students are able to carry out observations and experiments in a natural setting within walking distance of the campus, an invaluable asset for classes with a field component. The Arboretum is divided into the Upper Arboretum south of Highway 19 and the Lower Arboretum, which is north of the highway; “lower” because it contains the low-lying floodplain of the Cannon River. The Upper Arboretum has some trails designated for bike use and generally smaller areas of natural communities. In contrast, the Lower Arboretum has populations of rare plants and animals.
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#3: Saint John’s Abbey Arboretum – Saint John’s University
Founded in 1856 by Benedictine monks, and located in the transition zone between the prairies to the southwest and hardwoods to the Northeast, Saint John’s Arboretum is home to a variety of plants and animals. The Arboretum is more than 2,500 acres of lakes, prairie, oak savannah, and forest; the conifers found at Saint John’s were planted in 1896 by the monks, and are part of the oldest pine plantation in the state of Minnesota.
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#2: Coker Arboretum – University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Offering something unique during every season of the year, the Coker Arboretum is at the center of one of the most beautiful university campuses in the nation, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Managed by the North Carolina Botanical Garden, it is one of the Garden’s oldest features. The Arboretum dates back to 1903 when Dr. William Chambers Coker, the university’s first Professor of Botany, began to develop a five-acre boggy pasture into an outdoor classroom. He desired to create a place dedicated to the study of trees, shrubs and vines native to North Carolina. Today, the garden is a flourishing testimony to Dr. Coker’s legacy and vision, displaying a wide variety of plantings including flowering trees and shrubs, along with bulb and perennial displays.
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#1: F.R. Newman Arboretum – Cornell University
The F.R. Newman Arboretum is filled with panoramic views overlooking the rolling hills and valleys that were carved out by Fall Creek following the retreat of glaciers more than 10,000 years ago. Not only is the F. R. Newman Arboretum a beautiful place to enjoy picturesque views, it is a place for the scientific study and public exhibition of a diversity of trees and shrubs. The collection includes nut trees, crabapples, oaks, maples, shrubs and urban trees that comprise a 100-acre pastoral setting. The Arboretum is part of the larger Cornell Plantations, which boast a mature botanical garden, and a diverse network of nature preserves in addition to the F. R. Newman Arboretum. These exquisite gardens make Cornell one the most beautiful campuses in the nation.
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#10: Allegheny Arboretum – Indiana University of Pennsylvania
#9: University of Wisconsin–Madison Arboretum
#8: Mizzou Botanic Garden – University of Missouri
#7: Crosby Arboretum – Mississippi State University
#6: Minnesota Landscape Arboretum – University of Minnesota
#5: Connecticut College Arboretum
#4: Carleton College Cowling Arboretum
#3: Saint John’s Abbey Arboretum – Saint John’s University
#2: Coker Arboretum – University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
#1: F.R. Newman Arboretum – Cornell University
“This list was one of the most enjoyable to research,” says Nick Plato of Best College Reviews, who wrote the details in the list. “I found myself wanting to visit each school just to hang out in such beautiful settings. I was impressed with the commitment of so many of the schools to nature, study, research and contemplation, not only for students, but for the whole community.”
The complete list is available on the Best College Reviews website. Check out the gallery of the arboretums that cracked the top ten.
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Brian Sparks is senior editor of Greenhouse Grower and editor of Greenhouse Grower Technology. See all author stories here.