Greetings from our Executive Director
Hello Arboretum Friends, Look out! So much is happening at the Arboretum this September. First, our traditional fall fundraiser Autumn Bounty, has been re-envisioned for 2020. No big tent, no live auction, and no partying on the courtyard. Instead you'll find...
Forest Disturbance and Succession – A Look at the Pattern of Forest Dynamics
What if I told you that the forests you see in our mountains and across our landscape now may be wildly different in the next 100 years? Ok sure, 100 years is a long time, but some of our trees can live longer than 300+ years. So why would forests change in 100...
The Arboretum’s Japanese Pagoda Tree (Sophora japonica or Styphnolobium japonicum) Aids WSU Research
Regents Professor Norman Lewis, and fellow researcher and spouse Laurence Davis, shown in the photo above, are holding cuttings from the Arboretum's Japanese pagoda tree (Sophora japonica or Styphnolobium japonicum planted in 1988) on Friday, June 26, 2020 at the...
A Request from our Board President Stuart Simmons During the Covid-19 Crisis
Dear Friends and Supporters, On Easter Sunday, my family and I took a walk through the Yakima Area Arboretum to enjoy the beauty of the season and to escape, for a short while, the confinement imposed by the Covid-19 virus. The Crabapples were in fine form and the...
An Arboretum Update
Hello Friends, We wanted to give you and update from the Yakima Area Arboretum. So much has changed in the last three weeks as the events of the Covid-19 coronavirus have unfolded. The grounds are still open for your enjoyment, and will remain open unless we are...
A Note from Your Friends at the Yakima Area Arboretum
Dear Arboretum Friends, First let's start with some good news. Despite all the cancelling and postponing of events and classes in the coming months, the Yakima Area Arboretum grounds will continue to be open for your enjoyment and mental health. If you feel up to it,...
Tree Investments—Making the Right Choice
Let’s face facts: A tree is probably the largest monetary investment you will make in a plant. Unlike annuals and perennials, a tree is a long-term investment that matures over time. When shopping many people fear they will select the “wrong” tree - a tree that...
Celebrating 50 Years! 1967-2017
The dream started over fifty years ago when several members of the Central District of the Washington State Federation of Garden Clubs gathered together on a dry and dusty patch of old farm land, tucked between the river and the future Interstate 82, to plan. As they...
Why all the Fungus Among Us?
When you see a mushroom in your yard, what you are actually seeing is the “fruit” (like an apple on a tree) of a greater organism called fungi. The “body” of the fungi hides in the substrate of your lawn or in decomposing organic matter, like a tree stump, just...
Thank you to Pacific Northwest University Students!
Members of PNWU's incoming freshmen class braved the heat and got to know one another while weeding the Japanese Garden this morning. Thanks for all of your hard work. We can see the huge pile of weeds behind you! Pacific Northwest University of Health Sciences