An academic arboretum has two purposes. In its fundamental and most basic role, such an institution serves as a repository for living specimens and the germplasm of plant species. If this goal has been accomplished, a secondary role can be achieved: showcasing these specimens to students and the public, with the intention of increasing knowledge about those trees, shrubs, and herbs. Because they exist in physical space and not as a description in a book or on a computer, the arboretum's cataloged specimens can be seen year-round and from 360 degrees. You can "zoom in" and look as close as you want. Can't find just the right photo of a tree? Go snap one yourself at the arboretum. If you like the organism enough, you may be able to collect some seed and start your own. Short of cutting the specimen down or doing permanent damage, every plant in the arboretum is part of an interactive experience; no screens involved.
In support of this ideal, today we'll show some photos of a recent arboretum tour that Centenary College's Visual Identity and Publications Manager Sherry Heflin was kind enough to photograph. Normally, photos of tours given at the arboretum are not available, since the curator cannot photograph herself while thinking, walking, and speaking. Perhaps the arboretum needs a very expensive autonomous drone with a nice lens for such occasions. Then again, Skynet drones might disrupt the ambience for a group that is supposed to be experiencing nature.
All photos below were taken by Sherry Heflin, on October 21, 2024.
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The tour began in the oldest part of the arboretum, between Hamilton Hall and the Student Union Building. One of the four black metal arboretum signs marks the northern edge of the arboretum.
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For a tour during the fall, fruits are a great topic. The arboretum has many different species of oaks growing in a small area, so it's easy to find acorns and compare them. These small acorns were collected under a water oak (Quercus nigra).
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This big acorn was snipped from a Burr oak (Quercus macrocarpa).
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Persimmons are ripe this time of year! Here, the arboretum curator holds an example of a perfectly ripe persimmon (Diospyros virginiana).
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French mulberry fruits are also edible, but not recommended. These pretty purple fruits weren't as numerous in late October.
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The arboretum curator displays the very small seeds of the redbud (Cercis canadensis).
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In the arboretum, there are plenty of opportunities to play the game: 'Where's the tree? Where's the vine?'. Here, the arboretum curator points out bright red fruits hanging from a black cherry (Prunus serotina). The bright red fruits actually belong to a vine, Carolina moonseed (Cocculus carolinus).
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Ouch! These spiny fruits were produced by the American chestnut hybrid, Dunstan (Castanea dentata).
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The arboretum has numerous red buckeyes trees (Aesculus pavia). Here, a Centenary students opens a buckeye fruit, looking for the large seeds.
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Buckeye seeds are shiny and look oily. What do you think they smell like?
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Competition over resources wasn't the focus of this tour, but a few examples were pointed out. Here we have an interesting example. Two trees are shown here. Their trunks have grown together. The slender trunk, leaning toward the left, belongs to a black oak (Quercus velutina). It was intentionally planted. The big trunk, growing straight up, belongs to a southern red oak (Quercus falcata). The red oak volunteered a few years after the black oak was planted, and the red oak has out-competed the black oak for sunshine, water and nutrients.
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| Even what looks like a bare stick
is worth talking about. At the beginning of the tour, the arboretum
curator explains that these is the arboretum's original patch of
Hercules-club (Aralia spinosa), planted in the old part of the
arboretum, circa 1990. Only three spindly plants remain. |
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Later in the tour, the arboretum curator points out a thriving grouping of Hercules-club. Here, the curator stands among the Hercules-clubs, holding two trunks. These plants are younger, and yet they are significantly larger. Viewing these plants in person and walking through the landscape, we can easily start to formulate hypotheses.
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There is always something to talk about in the arboretum. The landscape is always changing!
