Awbury Arboretum (55 acres) is a nonprofit

arboretum An arboretum (: arboreta) is a botanical collection composed exclusively of trees and shrubs of a variety of species. Originally mostly created as a section in a larger garden or park for specimens of mostly non-local species, many modern arbor ...

and estate located at 1 Awbury Road in

Germantown, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Germantown () is an area in Northwest Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded by Palatine, Quaker, and Mennonite families in 1683 as an independent borough, it was absorbed into Philadelphia in 1854. The area, which is about six miles northwest fr ...

. Its grounds are open daily without charge. Established in 1916, it then became a nonprofit organization in 1984.

History

The arboretum dates back to 1852, when Henry Cope purchased the property. The grounds were laid out in the English landscape tradition, with advice from noted landscape architect William Saunders. A number of houses were constructed on the property; all are now privately owned with the exception of the Francis Cope House (1860) which is now the Arboretum headquarters. The Cope family formally established the arboretum in 1916; it became a nonprofit organization in 1984. The arboretum lies entirely within the Awbury Historic District, a National Historic District designated in 2001.

Trees

The arboretum is laid out as a series of open spaces, with clusters of trees and shrubs framing long vistas. Among its many mature trees, the arboretum contains a State Champion River Birch (''

Betula nigra ''Betula nigra'', the black birch, river birch or water birch, is a species of birch native to the Eastern United States from New Hampshire west to southern Minnesota, and south to northern Florida and west to Texas. It is one of the few heat-tol ...

''), and notable specimens of American Linden (''

Tilia americana ''Tilia americana'' is a species of tree in the family Malvaceae, native to eastern North America, from southeast Manitoba east to New Brunswick, southwest to northeast Oklahoma, southeast to South Carolina, and west along the Niobrara River to ...

''), American Sycamore (''

Platanus occidentalis ''Platanus occidentalis'', also known as American sycamore, American planetree, western plane, occidental plane, buttonwood, and water beech, is a species of ''Platanus'' native to the eastern and central United States, the mountains of northeast ...

''), and Paper Birch (''

Betula papyrifera A birch is a thin-leaved deciduous hardwood tree of the genus ''Betula'' (), in the family Betulaceae, which also includes alders, hazels, and hornbeams. It is closely related to the beech- oak family Fagaceae. The genus ''Betula'' contain ...

''). Other trees in the collection include ''

Acer rubrum ''Acer rubrum'', the red maple, also known as swamp maple, water maple, or soft maple, is one of the most common and widespread deciduous trees of eastern and central North America. The U.S. Forest Service recognizes it as the most abundant nati ...

'', ''

Amelanchier canadensis ''Amelanchier canadensis'' (bilberry,Canadian Wildlife Federation/ref> Canadian serviceberry, chuckle-berry, currant-tree, juneberry, shad-blow serviceberry, shad-blow, shadbush, shadbush serviceberry, sugarplum, thicket serviceberry) is a specie ...

'', '' Carpinus caroliniana'', '' Chionanthus virginicus'', ''

Cornus alternifolia ''Cornus alternifolia'' is a species of flowering plant in the dogwood family Cornaceae, native to eastern North America, from Newfoundland west to southern Manitoba and Minnesota, and south to northern Florida and Mississippi. It is rare in the ...

'', ''

Cornus amomum ''Cornus amomum'', the silky dogwood, is a species of dogwood native to the southern Ontario and eastern United States, from Michigan and Vermont south to Alabama and Florida. Other names include red willow, silky cornel, kinnikinnick, and squawb ...

'', ''

Cornus florida ''Cornus florida'', the flowering dogwood, is a species of flowering plant, flowering tree in the family Cornaceae native to eastern North America and northern Mexico. An endemic population once spanned from southernmost coastal Maine south to n ...

'', ''

Corylus americana ''Corylus americana'', the American hazelnut or American hazel, is a species of deciduous shrub in the genus '' Corylus'', native to the eastern and central United States and extreme southern parts of eastern and central Canada. Description The ...

'', ''

Fraxinus americana ''Fraxinus americana'', the white ash or American ash, is a fast-growing species of ash tree native to eastern and central North America. White ash trees are threatened by the invasive emerald ash borer. The tree is highly valued as lumber. ...

'', ''

Fraxinus pennsylvanica ''Fraxinus'' (), commonly called ash, is a genus of plants in the olive and lilac family, Oleaceae, and comprises 45–65 species of usually medium-to-large trees, most of which are deciduous trees, although some subtropical species are ever ...

'', ''

Liriodendron tulipifera ''Liriodendron tulipifera''—known as the tulip tree, American tulip tree, tulipwood, tuliptree, tulip poplar, whitewood, fiddletree, lynn-tree, hickory-poplar, and yellow-poplar—is the North American representative of the two-species genus ...

'', ''

Nyssa sylvatica ''Nyssa sylvatica'', commonly known as tupelo, black tupelo, black gum or sour gum, is a medium-sized deciduous tree native to eastern North America from the coastal Northeastern United States and southern Ontario south to central Florida and ea ...

'', ''

Prunus serotina ''Prunus serotina'', commonly called black cherry,World Economic Plants: A Standard Reference, Second Edition'. CRC Press; 19 April 2016. . p. 833–. wild black cherry, rum cherry, or mountain black cherry, is a deciduous tree or shrub in the r ...

'', ''

Quercus alba ''Quercus alba'', the white oak, is one of the preeminent hardwoods of eastern and central North America. It is a long-lived oak, native to eastern and central North America and found from Minnesota, Ontario, Quebec, and southern Maine south as ...

'', '' Quercus palustris'', ''

Quercus prinus An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the Fagaceae, beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northe ...

'', and ''

Quercus rubra ''Quercus rubra'', the northern red oak, is an oak tree in the red oak group (''Quercus'' section ''Lobatae''). It is a native of North America, in the eastern and central United States and southeast and south-central Canada. It has been intro ...

''. Shrubs include '' Aronia arbutifolia'', ''

Aronia melanocarpa ''Aronia'' is a genus of deciduous shrubs, the chokeberries, in the family Rosaceae native to eastern North America and most commonly found in wet woods and swamps. The genus Aronia is considered to have 3 species. The most common and wid ...

'', ''

Lindera benzoin ''Lindera benzoin'' (commonly called spicebush, common spicebush, northern spicebush, wild allspice, or Benjamin bush) is a shrub in the laurel family. It is native to eastern North America, growing in the understory in moist, rich woods. Desc ...

'', '' Viburnum dentatum'', and ''

Viburnum prunifolium ''Viburnum prunifolium'' (known as blackhaw or black haw, blackhaw viburnum, sweet haw, and stag bush) is a species of ''Viburnum'' native to eastern North America, from Connecticut west to eastern Kansas, and south to Alabama and Texas. Growth ...

''.

Layout

The arboretum contains two different man-made ponds, which are connected via a small stream. The largest pond is by the

SEPTA SEPTA, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, is a regional public transportation authority that operates bus, rapid transit, commuter rail, light rail, and electric trolleybus services for nearly four million people througho ...

Washington Lane station entrance, which also leads you into a

wildflower A wildflower (or wild flower) is a flower that grows in the wild, rather than being intentionally seeded or planted. The term implies that the plant is neither a hybrid nor a selected cultivar that is any different from the native plant, eve ...

meadow (which is right by Martin Luther King Highschool and many privately owned houses). From there, a trail through the woods takes you to the Francis Cope House, more meadows, and a wooded path. Across the street, there is a farm with goats and chickens, a community garden, and a playground.

References

External links

Awbury Arboretum

Schuylkill River National and State Heritage Area: Awbury Arboretum
{{coord, 40, 03, 06, N, 75, 10, 08, W, display=title Arboreta in Pennsylvania Botanical gardens in Pennsylvania Parks in Philadelphia Germantown, Philadelphia

History

Trees

Layout

See also

References

External links