Located on the north edge of Marengo, Gateway Park Arboretum has been awarded a Level I Accreditation by The ArbNet Arboretum Accreditation Program and The Morton Arboretum, for achieving particular standards of professional practices deemed important for arboreta and botanic gardens. The ArbNet Arboretum Accreditation Program is the only global initiative to officially recognize arboreta at various levels of development, capacity, and professionalism. Gateway Park Arboretum is also now recognized as an accredited arboretum in the Morton Register of Arboreta, a database of the world’s arboreta and gardens dedicated to woody plants.
Gateway Park Arboretum was created in 2004 with a grant that was used to purchase 70 trees. A collection of conifers was donated and planted that same year. Today there are 36 different species of identified trees and shrubs including 10 species of oaks and 12 species of conifers. A walking trail runs through the arboretum and continues around a 41-acre lake that is part of Gateway Park and Preserve. A meditation garden provides space for trail walkers to pause and rest or reflect. Guided tree walks and educational activities are organized by Iowa County Master Gardeners and Iowa County Conservation Naturalists.
A guided Spring Tree Walk in conjunction with a distribution of free tree seedlings will take place April 23rd at 2 pm. There will also be a tree planting demonstration and door prizes.
Arboretum accreditation is an important step toward achieving the goal of educating the public about the importance and the beauty of trees and their place in the natural world.
About Gateway Park Arboretum
Gateway Park Arboretum encompasses 7.5 acres of trees, shrubs, and perennial gardens. It is nestled within Gateway Park and Preserve, a 131-acre property owned by Iowa County Conservation. More information and a map of trees at the arboretum can be found at this link: https://iowacountyconservation.org/things-to-do/our-properties/gateway-park-and-preserve/
About ArbNet
ArbNet is an interactive, collaborative, international community of arboreta. ArbNet facilitates the sharing of knowledge, experience, and other resources to help arboreta meet their institutional goals and works to raise professional standards through the ArbNet Arboretum Accreditation Program. The accreditation program, sponsored and coordinated by The Morton Arboretum in Lisle, Illinois in cooperation with American Public Gardens Association and Botanic Gardens Conservation International, is the only global initiative to officially recognize arboreta based on a set of professional standards. The program offers four levels of accreditation, recognizing arboreta of various degrees of development, capacity and professionalism. Standards include planning, governance, public access, programming and tree science, planting and conservation. More information is available at www.arbnet.org.
