Althouse Arboretum: from Environmental Education Center to Public Garden by Kristen Ryan

ALTHOUSE ARBORETUM

FROM ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION CENTER TO PUBLIC GARDEN

Kristen Ryan

THE ALTHOUSE ARBORETUM: FROM ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION CENTER TO PUBLIC GARDEN

A Design Thesis Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of Cornell University In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Landscape Architecture

by Kristen Ryan December 2017

The TheGardens GardensatatMill MillFleurs Fleurs

Bowman's Bowman'sHill HillWildflower WildflowerPreserve Preserve

Althouse AlthouseArboretum Arboretum

Grounds GroundsFor ForSculpture Sculpture

Temple TempleUniversity UniversityAmbler Ambler

Morris MorrisArboretum Arboretumofofthe theUniversity UniversityofofPennsylvania Pennsylvania

Jenkins JenkinsArboretum Arboretum

Chanticleer ChanticleerGarden Garden

Haverford HaverfordCollege College

Fairmount FairmountPark ParkHorticulture HorticultureCenter CenterShofuso ShofusoJapanese JapaneseHouse Houseand andGarden Garden !!!!

James JamesG. G.Kaskey KaskeyMemorial MemorialPark ParkThe TheWoodlands Woodlands !!!!

Camden CamdenChildren's Children'sGarden Garden

Bartram's Bartram'sGarden Garden

Tyler TylerArboretum ArboretumTyler TylerArboretum Arboretum

Medford MedfordLeas LeasHealth HealthCenter Center

Scott ScottArboretum ArboretumofofSwarthmore SwarthmoreCollege College

Longwood LongwoodGardens Gardens Brandywine BrandywineRiver RiverMuseum MuseumofofArt Art

Mt MtCuba CubaCenter Center

Hagley HagleyMuseum Museum

Source: Source:Esri, Esri,DigitalGlobe, DigitalGlobe,GeoEye, GeoEye,Earthstar EarthstarGeographics, Geographics,CNES/Airbus CNES/AirbusDS, DS,USDA, USDA,USGS, USGS,AeroGRID, AeroGRID,IGN, IGN,and andthe theGIS GISUser UserCommunity Community

30 Public Gardens in 30 Miles of Philadelphia

ABSTRACT

TABLE OF CONTENTS

The 17-acre Althouse Arboretum was established as an initiative of the GreenAllies, a nationwide foundation geared towards empowering youth to lead environmental sustainability projects in their communities.

ABSTRACT vi

The role of the arboretum is to support the GreenAllies mission. Themes for programs and events at the arboretum include environmental education, innovation, and leadership development. The arboretum’s community includes not only local residents, but also a regional network of schools (K-12) and universities. While the property meets these goals easily, it has not yet met its goal of being a certified arboretum. Instead, it is functioning as a successful environmental education center. Over the course of this thesis work, and in collaboration with Professor Don Rakow’s Public Gardens Management class (PLHRT 4850), I worked with the Arboretum and its stakeholders to produce a master plan along with a range of small projects that can be implemented immediately for swift movement towards achieving their goal of meeting Morton Arboretum’s ArbNet Level I Arboretum Accreditation standards. These projects include interpretation strategies (required for meeting the ArbNet standards), planting plans, and designs for landscape features (both of which will set the arboretum on the path to Level II certification). Some of these latter features may need to be fleshed out as the Arboretum grows in the future.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ix LIST OF FIGURES

FORWARD 1 INTRODUCTION 3 Context Planning 4 SWOT Analysis 5

Community Context 8

SITE ANALYSIS

Ecoregions

Reading Soils with Vegetation 16

Tree Canopy Composition

Ash Tree Canopy Changes

RESEARCH AND CASE STUDIES

Methodology 26

Botanic Gardens and Climate Change, Sustainability, and Citizen Science

Learning Laboratory 27

Environmental- and Cognitive Engagement, and Active Play 29

Intergenerational Environmental Learning

Utility: Functional Landscapes

Planting and Style

vii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

DESIGN

The Master Plan

Dead or Alive, from Blight to Art: Uses for the Ash Tree

Landscape Features and Planting Plans

INTERPRETATION

Small Signs, Big Ideas 52

Larger Signs, “Aha” Moments 54

First and foremost, I want to thank Ken Hamilton, the CEO of the GreenAllies and the director of the Althouse Arboretum. Ken’s willingness and enthusiasm was the key component for this thesis work, without which we would have none of the following material, nor any reason to look at it.

CONCLUSION 55

I must also thank my collaborators in this work: Professor Don Rakow and the students of his Public Gardens Management Class in the Spring of 2017. I am very grateful to him for taking on the Althouse Arboretum as the case study for the class. Working with the class, we became catalysts for each other’s ideas. Without them, the designs I produced would not have been nearly so rich, nor the analysis nearly so well thought out. The class produced a development plan and a collections policy. Their work can be found in the appendices.

Appendix G: An Incomplete list of Woody Species on Site 94

I am particularly thankful to Daniel Weitiosh, a student in Prof. Rakow’s class and an arborist for the Cornell Botanic Gardens. With his expert

APPENDICES Appendix A: Basic Risk Assessment for Trees at the Althouse Arboretum Appendix B: Basic Horticultural Illustrations 58 Appendix C: Satelite Campus Sketches Appendix D: Community Meeting Minutes

Appendix E: The Althouse Arboretum Development Plan Appendix F: The Collections Policy 80

WORKS CITED

viii

help, we inventoried, assessed, and geolocated all of the ash trees (about 330 of them on or near the proprty) in one weekend. Last but not least, thanks go to Professor Kathryn Gleason, my thesis advisor. Without Kathy’s support over the last three years (especially this last one) I may not have had the will to embark on an independent thesis. Instead, I likely would have opted to take the conventional final studio, where far less self-motivation is required. I am so glad I stuck with the idea to come back to the Althouse Arboretum for my final semester’s design work. The experience has been so much more rewarding that I could have imagined.

LIST OF FIGURES

FORWARD Note: all figures and illustrations are mine unless otherwise noted.

v 30 Botanic Gardens in 30 Miles of Philadelphia 1 2014 Master Plan (provided by Althouse Arboretum) 7 Tricounty Population Map (data provided by the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission) 10-11 Althouse Arboretum Campus Map: Main Campus, Ponds Campus and Prout Farm 12-13 Ecoregions, and what makes Althouse Arb Unique (data provided by the US EPA) 15 Soils Analysis (data provided by USDA Web Soil Survey) 17 Site Analysis 19 EAB Spread 2014-2011 (data provided by the USFS) 20-21 Impacts and Opportunities of Ash Demise 22 EAB Progression: ash tree canopy years 0-6 23-25 Ash Trees At the Althouse: a map based on on-site geo-located tree survey 28-35 Case Studies, illustrated 38-43 Master Plan Iterations: from concept sketches to final plan 44-45 Dead or Alive: 6 Uses for Ash Trees 46 The Borer

My work at the Althouse Arboretum started the summer before beginning my graduate schooling at Cornell University. During that time, I was involved in preliminary site work and meetings for the piece of property known as the Althouse Arboretum, a project of the GreenAllies. At the time, the property had been donated for use as an arboretum to the organization the SAVE Alliance Foundation (the precursor to the GreenAllies). The foundation originally started as an extension of the Souderton Area High School environmental club: SAVE (Students Against Violating the Earth). SAVE is an EPA award winning organization, known for tackling issues of environmental sustainability. Its members (including myself) were often inspired to continue to do similar volunteer work in the community even after graduating from the school. In 2011, these community volunteers became a formal group, the SAVE Alliance Foundation. The scope of this Foundation grew beyond that of a single school district, moving to encourage school kids in the region, and now across the country, to become environmental leaders: the GreenAllies, whose mission is:

47 Rain Garden Planting Plan A, with plant list

Empowering Students

48 Rain Garden Planting Plan B, with plant list

Driving Environmental Innovation

50 Edible Woodland Planting Plan, with plant list 53 Cans to Plant Tags: how to create interpretive signs and plant labels by upcycling

Creating Visionary Leaders

counsellors who educate the third through fifth graders who enroll in summer camp. Activities and programming like the summer camp, have made the property a very successful environmental education center. In collaboration with Professor Don Rakowâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Public Gardens Management class (PLHRT 4850), the goal for this semester was to produce a body of work to aid the Arboretum in the transition of this property into a fully functional Level I arboretum. The work that was produced carefully considered input from the Althouse Arboretum community members, the GreenAllies board of directors, and the Upper Pottsgrove Township Council members. The class produced work around two specific topics: fiscal development and collections management. Their final documents can be found in the Appendices. The importance of these documents in fulfilling the arboretumâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s goal to be a certified arboretum cannot be overstated. All professional organizations for Botanic Gardens strongly advise having collections policies to guide the development of the plant collection and associated interpretation materials (Aplin, 2016). The development plan will be just as important, as a functional guide for funding the projects prioritized by the arboretum.

Changing the World

Over the past two and a half years, the Althouse Arboretum has functioned as a home base for the GreenAllies, encouraging students to use the property for environmental learning and leadership development. Many of these are high school students involved as interns and camp x

Forward

INTRODUCTION

My contribution to this body of work, beyond helping to kick off the relationship between the arboretum and the class, are the designs and guidelines for the associated physical changes to the property: • Crystalizing role of the arboretum as desired by the community through the use of multiple community meetings • Performing site analysis and creating graphics to convey the site conditions to nonlandscape architects • Identifying the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) surrounding the arboretum • Mapping the ash trees on the property – all threatened by the proximity of the Emerald Ash Borer

What role can a landscape architect have in designing a contemporary version of a master plan for a brand-new arboretum? The following chapters are my exploration into answering this question on the site of the Althouse Arboretum in Pottsgrove, PA. And much like the challenges facing this arboretum, the answers to this question are multi-dimensional (they span extended periods of time), multi-scalar (they exist at scales and require resources that are very small to very large), and dynamic (they have the ability to shift in response to new conditions). Throughout the rest of this introduction, I will explain the history and challenges of the site and how the property came to be the Althouse Arboretum. In the following chapter, on site analysis, we will see some of what makes this arboretum unique. The analysis also shows some

of the key threats to the site, including the presence of Emerald Ash Borer in the surrounding area, and possibly on-site. We then move on to discuss the theories and case studies that I have referenced in creating my designs and suggestions for the Althouse, which are on display in the concluding chapter. Wrapping everything up, and underpinning much of this work are the appendices. These include transcripts of community meetings, basic horticultural guidelines, the collections policy and fiscal development policy (produced by other students), supplemental graphics, and a partial list of the current species on site (there are already more species on site than are required for ArbNet Level I certification).

• Creating conceptual designs for landscape and environmental interpretation, • Producing landscape interpretation strategies and designs for implementation on a budget • Rendering plans and perspectives of designed areas for use as wayfinding and/or fundraising material (ongoing as of the publishing of this document).

The Arboretum’s original Master Plan from 2014. Introduction

CONTEXT PLANNING

SWOT ANALYSIS

The Althouse Arboretum lies within the boundaries of the Upper Pottsgrove Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. It is about an hour and a half (typical driving time) from downtown Philadelphia. This location is rich in planning efforts, and its close proximity to the Philadelphia area is often advantageous when applying for grants. Evidence of this can be found in the list of grants received by the arboretum already, and by the grants that are suggested for the arboretum in the development plan, found in the Appendices.

The SWOT Analysis is a tool well known to managers and business people. My first experience with it was in a class at Delaware Valley University on small business management, for use in evaluating the scope of the business as a whole. The SWOT acronym stands for: strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. The first two areas of analysis involve internal or inherent traits of the arboretum (such as the relationship with the township), the latter two analyze traits external to the property. All the items identified in this SWOT will be addressed later in section on design unless it is directly addressed here.

When developing a property like the arboretum, it is important to look at the planning initiatives and requirements that will impact the property. Most important are the township initiatives, and the relationship of the township to the arboretum. In this case, Upper Pottsgrove Planning Board, along with most of the community, has a wonderful relationship with the arboretum. They see a synergistic partnership where the Township initiatives can be furthered by initiatives at the arboretum. (full transcript of interview with Councilman Elwood Taylor in Appendix B).

STRENGTHS

Strengths, as far as a SWOT is concerned, are those things which the Arboretum has going in its favor: those things that are orchestrated by the arboretum community, or that are a result of the property’s location/geography, etc. The main strengths of the Althouse Arboretum are: -unique conditions and criteria which can make the Althouse Arboretum non-competitive with the threeother native-plant focused public gardens in the Philadelphia area -good relationship with the township/town council

WEAKNESSES

SWOT “weaknesses” are things that provide specific challenges to the management of the arboretum, and which need to be specifically managed for or overcome so that the arboretum can thrive. Many businesses fail to directly engage their weaknesses, or ignore them in favor of doing “business as usual.” These are the businesses that wither. In some cases, these weaknesses can be turned into strengths. For others, management can act to reduce or even eliminate the impacts of these weakness. The weaknesses identified for the Althouse Arboretum are: -available labor is largely non-professional. Many of the volunteers have the willingness but not the knowledge to do the required work -very low funds available for horticultural staff or large design installation -the board of directors for the GreenAllies as a whole has no public garden management and little horticultural expertise. This is something that can be addressed right away. The board could expand by inviting one or more additional members who have this expertise (an option more suitable for the short term). Or, they could decide to split and have a secondary board dedicated only to the governance of arboretum business.

-great community relationship, -the quantity of volunteer hours of community labor (by Eagle Scouts, high school students, neighbors, and other volunteers)

Introduction

OPPORTUNITIES

Opportunities are positive factors within the reach of the arboretum that have not yet been taken advantage of. In this case, these are: -the network of strong horticultural knowledge in the Philadelphia area. Forming relationships with other arboreta, universities, horticultural groups, and/or garden clubs would be a great way to expand the horticultural knowledge of the arboretum community. -Professional (APGA) membership. The American Public Gardens Association is a multi-national association for Public Gardens. Membership for organizations is based on yearly operating budget, so cost would be minimal for the Althouse Arboretum. Benefits of membership include access to multiple working groups, including those for small and new public gardens, education, garden design and planning, native plants, and volunteer engagement. In addition, access to online learning resources from American Fundraising Professionals (which covers management, board development, and business practices). More information can be found here: https:// publicgardens.org/institutional-membership.

THREATS

Threats are factors outside of the Arboretumâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s control that may have a significant negative impact on the arboretum. Chief among these are:

Hunterdon Legend

Bowman's Hill Wildflower Preserve !

Mercer

30 mile Philadelphia Radius

Rail

Population 2015

-Emerald Ash Borer, which could destroy the 300+ ash trees on site in a short (4-6 year) period of time

5.00 - 9934.18

-the immediate community may be unable to provide the financial support needed for the longterm maintenance of the arboretum

88649.73 - 141997.00

Berks

Althouse Arboretum

Bucks

9934.19 - 25107.44 25107.45 - 51503.00 Montgomery

51503.01 - 88649.72

Temple University Ambler

Morris Arboretum of the University of Pennsylvania

Jenkins Arboretum

Lancaster

Chanticleer Garden

Chester

Philadelphia

Haverford College

Fairmount Park Horticulture CenterShofuso Japanese House and Garden !!

Burlington

James G. Kaskey Memorial ParkThe Woodlands !!

Tyler Arboretum Tyler Arboretum

Delaware

Bartram's Garden

Scott Arboretum of Swarthmore College

Camden !

Longwood Gardens !Brandywine River Museum of Art

Gloucester New Castle !

Data provided by the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission.

Introduction

COMMUNITY CONTEXT

For this project, I have defined the arboretum community as the group of people who are directly impacted by the Althouse Arboretum. This includes not only the users of the arboretum, but also its neighbors who may benefit (say, from an increase in bird sightings) or be negatively affected by the changes at the arboretum (for instance, increased noise or traffic associated with arboretum visitors). The initial community meeting was conducted on Monday, January 9, 2017. It was held at the home of Nancy Baker, the Community Coordinator for the arboretum. 20 people were present: 13 students of nearby Pottsgrove High School (two of whom were recently graduated alumni), one board member of the GreenAllies, two neighbors (one of whom was also a volunteer), and two volunteers. Ken Hamilton introduced the meeting and I ran it. For a full transcript, see Appendix C. The main discussion focused around questions regarding the future of the arboretum: site users, potential additions to the physical site, programmatic strengths of the arboretum and potential programs for the site. The participants felt that future users of the site would expand from local to regional users: Bucks, Montgomery, and Philadelphia area schools, and the families of those school children. There is also a shopping outlet mall nearby and it was felt that there was potential to divert some of those shoppers pre- or post- trip as a way to de-stress. The most successful programs on the site to date, in terms of both fundraising and community turnout, are the Night Hike, held in October; the Easter Egg Hunt (in spring); the recycling programs (Christmas tree, electronics, and chemical); and the summer camps. Possible additions may include summer concerts and curricula-based field trips. 8

THE REQUIREMENTS FOR A LEVEL I CERTIFIED ARBORETUM The most successful aspects of the arboretum were thought to be the use of the arboretum by people of all ages, the environmental education and active experience of nature that the site provides, and the opportunity that the site provides to young leaders for experiential learning, experimentation, and teaching (for example, high school students are the main facilitators of the summer camps run for 3rd5th graders). It was felt that any proposed physical changes should support these successful elements of the arboretum, and allow for the expansion of the strongest programs. The second community meeting was held on 1 April, 2017. Present were Ken, Nancy Baker, Wendy Gaynor (a community member, and a member of the local area food bank), Elwood Taylor (the Planning Board’s Chairman), a local student representative, and Daniel Weitiosh, and myself. Based on the feedback from this meeting, the focus of this masterplan shifted slightly from long-term goals that would need additional funding for prioritizing, describing, and designing elements of the master plan that could be installed immediately, inexpensively but in a quality manner by the arboretum’s interns. These elements will be found in the following pages. The other major take-away from this meeting was the support of Elwood Taylor for formalizing the Althouse Arboretum’s relationship/management of the satellite campuses. He believes it is possible and has made it a goal to put those campuses under similar agreements that govern the management of the main campus of the arboretum. This means that the arboretum could invest more time and energy in these properties without the worry that the township might change its mind in regards to

their management and lease them to someone else. Formalizing these relationships would have huge impacts for the future arboretum. It would enable the property to display and interpret a much wider variety of landscapes and experiences. This in turn would enabled the arboretum to become a Level II certified arboretum, if they choose to do so. The requirements for a Level I certified arboretum per ArbNet are as follows:

fulfillment of the arboretum plan and provide for the basic needs of the arboretum collection and functions of the arboretum. • An arboretum public dimension that includes some level of public access, and at least one public event or educational program each year focused on trees or arboretum purposes (for example, an Arbor Day observance) (ArbNet, n.d.).

• An arboretum plan: documentation of some sort, such as an organizational plan, strategic plan, master plan, or other, that defines the purpose of the arboretum, its audience(s), the types of plants that are to be grown to achieve that purpose and serve those audiences, provisions for the maintenance and care of the plants, and provisions for the continuing operation of the organization through time with a clear succession plan. • An arboretum organizational group of people or governing board or authority that is dedicated to the arboretum plan and its continuation beyond the efforts of a single individual. Such an organizational group can affirm fulfillment of standards and authorize participation as an accredited arboretum. • An arboretum collection with a minimum number of 25 kinds (species or varieties) of trees or woody plants that have been planted and are growing in accordance with the arboretum plan. Plants in the arboretum collection must be labeled in some way as to identify them taxonomically, including scientific name and cultivar if applicable, and documented in some way so that information on their acquisition (source or origin, date of acquisition, etc.) is available for access. • Arboretum staff or volunteers who ensure Introduction

PROUT FARM CAMPUS

MAIN CAMPUS

PONDS CAMPUS

ยง 400

200

400 Feet Source: Esri, DigitalGlobe, GeoEye, Earthstar Geographics, CNES/Airbus DS, USDA, USGS, AeroGRID, IGN, and the GIS User Community

Introduction

Northern Dissected Ridges and Knobs

Pocono High Plateau

Southern New England Coastal Plains and Hills

Low Poconos Northern Glaciated Ridges Northern Glaciated Limestone Valleys

Northern Glaciated Limestone Ridges, Valleys, and Terraces

Northern Limestone /Dolomite Valleys

Northern Sandsto ne Ridges

Passaic Basin Freshwater Wetlands

Northern Glaciated Shale and Slate Valleys

Northern Shale Valleys Anthracite Subregion

Glaciated Triassic Lowlands

Glaciated Reading Prong/ Hudson Highlands

Highlands

Reading Prong

Northern Limestone /Dolomite Valleys

Hackensack Meadowlands

Trap Rock and Conglomerate Uplands

Glaciated Triassic Lowlands

Long Island Sound Coastal Lowland

Barrier Islands /Coastal Marshes Barrier Islands /Coastal Marshes

Northern Sandsto ne Ridges Northern Shale Valleys

The Gardens at Mill Fleurs

Reading Prong

Northern Dissected Ridges and Knobs

Bowman's Hill Wildflower Preserve Althouse Arboretum

Triassic Lowlands

Trap Rock and Conglomerate Uplands

Grounds For Sculpture

Inner Coastal Plain

Temple University Ambler

Morris Arboretum of the University of Pennsylvania

Piedmont Limestone/Dolomite Lowlands

Jenkins Arboretum Chanticleer Garden Haverford College Shofuso Japanese House and Garden Fairmount Park Horticulture CenterThe Woodlands Tyler ArboretumTyler Arboretum Bartram's Garden Scott Arboretum of Swarthmore College

Medford Leas Health Center

Longwood Gardens Brandywine River Museum of Art Mt Cuba Center

Piedmont Uplands Triassic Lowlands

Hagley Museum

Delaware River Terraces and Uplands

Chesapeake Rolling Coastal Plain

Barrier Islands /Coastal Marshes

Inner Coastal Plain

Pine Barrens

NATIVE PLANT FOCUSED GARDENS

Delmarva Uplands Chesapeake-Pamlico Lowlands and Tidal Marshes

Ecozones and Botanic Gardens in the Philadelphia Area

Source: Esri, DigitalGlobe, GeoEye, Earthstar Geographics, CNES/Airbus DS, USDA, USGS, AeroGRID, IGN, and the GIS User Community, Esri, HERE, MapmyIndia, ÂŠ OpenStreetMap contributors, and the GIS user community

Introduction

SITE ANALYSIS ECOREGIONS

The Althouse Arboretum is located in the Triassic Lowlands, just to the North and West of an outcropping of Trap Rock and Conglomerate Uplands (Regions 64a and 64b level IV ecoregions). These are both sub-regions of the Northern Piedmont Ecoregion as described by the US EPA. Looking at these ecoregions, especially in relation to two other native plant focused botanic gardens in the region, we can see the unique position of the Althouse arboretum. Mt. Cuba Center is located in a different ecoregion, the Piedmont Uplands, and Bowman’s Hill Wildflower Preserve (located near a similar meeting of the Triassic Lowlands and Trap Rock and Conglomerate Uplands) is focused mostly on the collection and demonstration of the herbaceous (non-woody) plants native to this ecoregion (whereas the Althouse Arboretum on the other hand, is focused on maintaining a collection of the woody species in this region). And though each of these gardens is sufficiently different in their nature, it is still nice to see that they are dispersed to three of the four corners of the Philadelphia area, and about an hour and a half ’s drive from one another. The Piedmont is the larger (level III) ecoregion that encompasses the rolling hills and irregular plains between the Coastal Plains and the Appalachian Ridge-and-Valley ecoregions. It is underlain primarily by metamorphic rocks, with occasional igneous protrusions, all of which has been deeply weathered. Sedimentary rock formations are much less dominant than in other plains. The soils of the Piedmont tend to be clayrich, and acidic, originally supporting vast OakHickory-Pine forests. In the Northern Piedmont, where the Althouse Arboretum is located, the land was once mostly encompassed by Oak-Chestnut forest (Brown, 1999). 14

The Upper Pottsgrove region and its surrounding areas belong to the Triassic lowlands part of the Piedmont. The underlying geology is literally the foundation for the soils, plant communities, and ecological systems found above this layer of the earth. Other Triassic rock formations in the area are Brunswick, Hammer Creek Conglomerate, Lackatong, and Limestone Fanglomerate, but the formation under the Althouse Arboretum is Diabase. Otherwise known as “black granite,” this sedimentary rock resists environmental influence, so it is extremely slow to erode. It also impedes water infiltration and groundwater movement, and is very difficult to excavate. The arboretum exhibits some of the typical qualities of this underlying geology: the sloped boulder fields stand guard over a seasonally high water table (Upper Pottsgrove Township, n.d.). The forests that were supported by this Triassic formation were once Appalachian Oak Forests, primarily composed of white and red oaks), but this composition was modified by the farming and development efforts that took place over the last few centuries. Hickory (Carya spp.) tend to be more common in the Triassic lowlands because the soils include more calcium and magnesium, and are less acidic than the surrounding ecozones. For this same reason, red maple (Acer rubrum) and black tupelo (Nyssa sylvatica) are less common here (Woods, etal. 19). Interestingly, there are some red maple on the arboretum’s main campus. They are found in the same areas the ash are in, perhaps because the ash trees accumulate calcium, pulling calcium out of the soil and storing it in their cell walls (Brown, 1999; USFS, 2013b). The soils above the diabase layer at the arboretum are somewhat varied. The following

Data provided by the USDA Web Soil Survey and by the Althouse Arboretum. Soils Analysis

types of soils are found on the main campus (USDA, 2017). Mount Lucas Soils: a silt-loam. These soils are on slopes from 0-25% (quite flat ground to very steep ground), and in areas both in and out of the area that will be referred to as the boulder fields. These soils are found in the areas of the arboretum with the seasonally/ephemerally high water table and have a generally slow percolation rate (Commission, 2006). Neshaminy Soils are a gravelly silt loam which is “extremely bouldery.” This type of soil extends into the middle area of the boulder fields, but its bouldery nature is generally subterranean. Digging into this soil for planting is very laborious and

should be undertaken only when there is a very strong rationale for planting in such sites. Note that these soils are also slow to percolate, and that they extend over the majority of the arboretum slated for intense- and semi-intense planting strategies (Commission, 2006). Urban Land Odorthents (soils resulting from infrastructure and other development) are also present on the site, in a relatively small area along the roadside to the North (downhill) from the parking lot. These mostly consist of a shale and sandstone complex (Commission, 2006).

Site Analysis

READING SOILS WITH VEGETATION We also know that these soils absolutely determine the plant compositions we see above ground, from the smallest ephemerals to the mightiest trees. The entire composition of a forest is determined by the biophysical micro-particles in the spaces beneath the earth that we cannot see, for the most part, with the naked eye. But we can infer much about that world simply by reading the canopy. With eyes on the current ecology, we can read and interpret the soils through the plants the soils support. The lack of heaths (plants in the family Ericaceae) shows that the soils may not be as acidic as they are in other parts of the Piedmont. Ericaceous plants are those like rhododendrons, kalmias, and blueberries that thrive in low pH, somewhat infertile soils. At the arboretum, there are very few of these plants (and the ones that are there were deliberately planted). This does not mean that these plants will not do well, only that the soils are not so acidic as to discourage other types of plants. There is also evidence of this semiacidic nature: the red maples, tulip poplar-beechmaple wooded canopy composition, and especially the moss that is thriving in the mown â&#x20AC;&#x153;meadowâ&#x20AC;? areas all point to this (Fike, 1993).

UP TO CANOPY

Topography and the high water tables on site

Data provided by the Althouse Arboretum

Existing Canopy - darker areas indicate individually mapped trees on the existing survey.

Data provided by the Althouse Arboretum

DOWN TO ROOTS

Site Analysis

INITIAL COUNTY SIGHTINGS OF EAB - 2014

TREE CANOPY COMPOSITION It should be noted that over the past 150 years, the Northeastern Canopy has changed significantly due to human behavior. As immigrants and horticultural enthusiasts shipped favorite plants from the old world to the “new” world, people unintentionally brought species that did a little too well. The first main change in our canopy came with the Chestnut Blight, brought to the Americas from overseas, which decimated the American Chestnut. At the time, the Chestnut made up to 25% of the canopy in Northeastern forests. The second major change was felt mostly through changes in the streets and campus allees which had enthusiastically relied on the gothic arches of the American Elm. Dutch Elm Disease wiped out these monocultural plantings with swift gusto, leaving behind not the green cathedrals, but their grey skeletons. The third is currently moving swiftly through Eastern Forests: the Emerald Ash Borer, a creature, much like DED which does not have the sense to leave its host alive. The borer attacks both of our common ash species, the Green and White Ashes, Fraxinus pensnylvanica and Fraxinus americana.

Of the ways to “preserve” ash trees, injection is the best at minimizing unintended effects on surrounding soil and plant ecology: there is no accidental integration of systemic pesticides into adjacent plants or any of the soil microbiota. However, it should be noted that in preserving these trees, one is not maintaining the tree’s ecological function, but rather maintaining isolated specimens. By injecting trees with systemic pesticides, almost all the ecological benefits of ash trees collapse: all insects that use the ash for food are poisoned, not just the Emerald Ash Borer. This means that there will be fewer insects to support bats, birds, and other creatures who depend on the insects’ place in the food web as compared to a replanting strategy, which can in fact target additional support of that food web. The ecological function that does remain is the shelter which can be provided by the physical structure of the tree (USFS, 2013a).

Federal EAB Quarantine Confirmed States First Reported EAB location in county

INITIAL COUNTY SIGHTINGS OF EAB - 2017

Also on the horizon is the hemlock wooly adelgid. Though this is not so much a concern for the Althouse Arboretum, as most of the hemlock in the area were planted for their ornamental qualities and not naturally occurring as part of an ecosystem, the wider regional impacts may be devastating to communities composed of natural stands of hemlock, Tsuga canadensis. In the face of Emerald Ash Borer, the initial impulse of many people is to preserve as many of these trees as is financially possible. There are many issues with such preservation, not the least of these are the financial and ecological burdens of regular chemical pesticide applications. Data provided by the USFS.

Site Analysis

ASH TREE CANOPY CHANGES

During the process of fast decline experienced by ash trees under attack by EAB, the trees should be monitored especially closely for hazards and the arboretum should be prepared to remove limbs and/or whole trees which might threaten public safety. This process of monitoring and action can be done according to the step-by-step evaluation process that can be found in the Appendices. Note that this process is merely for spot checking between years with official and complete analysis of the trees by an arborist certified in risk assessment. Additionally, there are many arborist courses for beginners at other arboreta in the area (including Morris), that I recommend as a supplement to train employees to spot issues which require certified arborist attention. A survey of the ash trees on the property was conducted on April 1st and 2nd by Daniel Weitosh assisted by myself. Daniel is a certified arborist who works for the Cornell Botanic Gardens and who is participating in the Public Garden Management class. His work here was extremely valuable. The process consisted of identifying the trees, noting their size (diameter at breast height, or DBH) and canopy spread, and assessing the risk that each tree may pose. He has given the following notes regarding the risk assessment: Hazard assessment: The risk rating field should be taken with a grain of salt because: 1. It was conducted as a Level 1: Limited Visual Assessment. 2. Trees were only viewed from one side 3. No advanced methods of defect inspection occurred (probes, sounding, etc.) 20

40 50’

EVERGREENS

Year 0 - unaffected Trees

4. A low rating may not indicate a safe tree. It only appeared as such from one perspective, or didn’t have any targets 5. A high rating likely correlates with nearby static targets (sheds, hoop houses), attraction hazards (something that increases the time humans spend around a hazard), and trails (especially intersections). 6. Daniel tried to reserve high-risk designations for trees that should be mitigated in the next year. The prioritization of tree removal by risk is especially poignant for the Althouse Arboretum, where financial limitations severely limit the arborist work that can be done for any other purpose over the course of the next few years. However, this strategy will still provide micro-climates that can then be used to systematically work toward the larger design goals. In the second community meeting, one of the strategies for these areas was enthusiastically received: the idea to reintroduce the American Chestnut, Castanea dentata, to the arboretum.

Year 6 - The decline of the ash tree is quick - total canopy loss within about 6 years of initial infection. The largest increase in sunlight is seen not around the trunk of the tree, but a spot 50’ to the north. This is because of the latitude of the arboretum.

This would provide multiple opportunities for landscape interpretation including Penn’s Woods/ historic landscapes, the more subtle impacts of humans on forest communities (both negative and positive) and edible forests. The community at the arboretum especially liked the symmetry to the reintroduction of the American Chestnut, whose demise was instigated by human actions, with the timing of the destruction of ashes through EAB, also instigated by human actions. The chord it struck was one of faint hope. That human intervention might be able to conserve a species, and perhaps even re-introduce the species into the wild, is a core principle of living museums (both zoos and botanic gardens). And if the Arboretum is willing to partner with groups such as the American Chestnut Foundation, and the plant breeders at institutions such as Penn State and SUNY-ESF, this may be a very well-timed and valuable effort, as plant breeders may also be reaching out to other institutions for trial sites. Other arboreta in the area may also be useful resources: Tyler Arboretum is implementing a similar program and may be willing to share contacts in order to further the research that is being done.

FLOWERING DECIDUOUS

HERBACEOUS

Site Analysis

YEAR 2

YEAR 3

Initial infestation. There will be minimal canopy loss this year, but a few insects may be spotted along with their D-shaped exit holes in the main stems of the tree. It is difficult to diagnose at this point unless locals are on alert!

D-shaped exit holes in the bark may be visible from where the larvae exited the bark. Secondary damage may be more visible than the direct evidence of the borer damage: woodpecker damage may be especially telling as they peck the bark away to get to the larvae under the bark.

Approx. 30% canopy loss: EAB damage is obvious (to those trained to spot it) due to canopy condition.

EXISTING CONDITIONS

YEAR 1

Ash Risk Assessment

YEAR 4

YEAR 5

YEAR 6

50% canopy loss: if the tree is to be conserved for ecological function, it should be cut at the base here, as felling the tree now may allow it to resprout from the base, allowing for sunlight to penetrate the canopy. Visitors could then get up close to the remaining ash, making it a great educational specimen.

Tunneling larvae have almost completely girdled the tree by chewing through the active cambium.

The tree has died, or its canopy has been reduced to a few sprouts off the main trunk. The EAB population leaves the area to search for living ash trees. The only ashes left in this area are those that were too small to attract the borer. These young trees may be targeted when they reach full size.

Ash-Only Canopy Assessment

Survey data provided by the Althouse Arboretum

Survey data provided by the Althouse Arboretum Site Analysis

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Aerial Imagery produced by Google Earth. Survey data provided by the Althouse Arboretum, and on-site analysis by Dan Weitosh and the author.

Site Analysis

RESEARCH AND CASE STUDIES METHODOLOGY

Research was conducted in the Cornell University Library using various search engines, books, notes, and the LAF (Landscape Architecture Foundation) performance series. The most useful search engine was Science Direct. For search engines, each goal stated by the arboretum community was used as a separate search term. For the articles, I did download from Science Direct, the “related articles” function was a very useful tool. In addition to the search engines, several books were recommended to me by Kathryn Gleason, or I had previously read them. Notes that I had taken at the American Public Gardens Association Conference in Denver, CO (2014) and the American Society of Landscape Architects in New Orleans, LA (2016). Among the sessions that I went to, the most useful information was from the Children’s Gardens sessions on adventure play and environmentalcognitive engagement were also extremely useful. Looking at the Landscape Architecture Foundation Performance Series, I restricted my search of case studies to those listing the following topics: carbon sequestration & avoidance, preservation & restoration, recreational & social value, educational value, rainwater harvesting, local materials, native plants, learning landscapes. From the results of this search, I hand-picked only those in suburban or rural areas, with under 100 acres, and those which demonstrated exceptional educational or social value. By exceptional, I mean that the values demonstrated aligned particularly well with the stated goals of the Althouse Arboretum’s community members (stated above). Any case studies not from the LAF Performance Series were recommended by Kathryn Gleason, Don Rakow, or were previously known to me through my time as a professional gardener.

BOTANIC GARDENS AND CLIMATE CHANGE According to researchers, there are three main data sources for research on phenology-based climate change. Those are: field notes, herbarium specimens, and dated photographs. Academic researchers have realized that botanic gardens are great repositories for all three of these data types, and have used them successfully (Panchen, Primack, Aniśko, & Lyons, 2012, p. 751). The Althouse arboretum can easily support the collection of at least one, if not two types: photographs, and field notes. The arboretum can also encourage people from all fields (not only academics) to study phenology and climate change for themselves.

LEARNING LABORATORY

A cited goal of the Althouse Arboretum community is that the master plan be flexible to community participation in aspects of the design and interpretation of the landscape. The following case studies show various ways that this participation can be achieved well, with no sacrifice to the overall design. Developing a built environment which enables easy integration into the K-12(+) curriculum in Pennsylvania will encourage mutually beneficial relationships between the Althouse Arboretum and many of the schools in the Greater Philadelphia Area. Using curricula as the building blocks for design and interpretation at the arboretum also fits hand-in-hand with the GreenAllies mission of enabling youth (students) to catalyze environmental and sustainable change. The capacity of youth to do this has been well established, not only by the success of GreenAllies members, but also by academic research (Ballantyne, Connell, & Fien, 1998). In order to enable youth in these efforts, it is important that their learning is founded in experience, and not solely reliant on more traditional in-school book learning.

CASE STUDIES: The Dell at The University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA Designer: Biohabitats, Nelson Byrd Woltz; LAF Series Challenge: Daylight the Meadow Creek and restore its ecological productivity, create a stormwater treatment facility, and develop a space that would become an amenity for public recreation and education at the heart of the UVA’s historic campus. The campus setting provided the challenge of creating a master plan that was

flexible enough to allow for student participation and experimentation. Project Goals/Benefits: According to the LAF website, the Dell provides recreational opportunities for an estimated 10,000 users each year, including members of the University, the adjacent residential communities, and thousands of visitors. The Dell provides an educational resource and learning laboratory for students: it has been the subject of thesis work, individual and group grant-funded research, academic design work, and is used as an outdoor classroom year-round. The Dell has proven to be an excellent resource and an ongoing case study opportunity for many students who have been involved in water quality testing and monitoring; design research and proposals; and botanic education courses. Partnerships with the student body and with various schools within the University have proven to be very valuable and have resulted in the collection and analysis of excellent data and feedback. This has enabled the University to effectively gauge the efficacy and success of the design. [cite] Lessons for the Althouse: The capacity of a high-functioning ecological landscape to be both open to the public and a very successful active site in student projects. Creating similarly flexible spaces at the Althouse Arboretum would be ideal.

The Willow School, Gladstone, NJ Designer: Back to Nature; LAF Series Challenge: Create an educational facility where the landscape functions as an environmental classroom. With very little understory and significantly depleted topsoil, the forest surrounding

Research and Case Studies

success of the demonstrated green features, many of the neighbors became interested in adopting similar features on their own properties. The site used various educational components to inform the public about the features. Information was distributed through a website, signage, and tours. Together, the combination has educated “thousands” about the water cycle as well as other sustainable landscape solutions fit for residential settings.

ENVIRONMENTAL-COGNITIVE ENGAGEMENT/ ACTIVE PLAY

the original school was in decline. The poor site conditions were used as an opportunity to teach students, school community and county regulators that redevelopment offered an opportunity to restore, improve, and interpret the natural systems on the site. Project Goals/Benefits: Engage all 250 students in gardening throughout the year. An estimated 1% of the school’s food comes from the school vegetable gardens and adjacent fruit trees. The school recycles an average of 280lbs of organic waste each month as compost for the vegetable gardens. Nearly every student surveyed composts organic waste at school. The project engages all students in an educational curriculum that includes landscape processes and ethics. When a sample of students were asked to list environmentally-friendly features of green buildings, 82% listed landscape

features like rainwater harvesting, composting, vegetable gardens, or wetlands. When asked about stormwater, 86% of the students knew that asphalt and concrete were not the best ground surfaces for managing stormwater around a building. One Drop at a Time, Elmhurst, IL Designer: De La Fleur, LLC; LAF series Challenge: Design and implement the project on a small budget with limited labor resources. This is similar to the situation at the Althouse Arboretum, where the annual budget is still small, and the labor resources consist mostly of community members, and students. Project Goals/Benefits: The Neighbors of this site took a “wait and see” approach when it came to their own adoption of the displayed green features: the green roof and the bioswale. After seeing the

New trends are also lauding the use of nature as the “drug” we should take in order to cure many of the illnesses (mental and physical) that are common to our indoor, sedentary society. The “Nature Rx” has particularly been used to increase psychological well-being as a sort of compounded bonus to the physical activity which is well-known to aid in the prevention of heart disease, diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure, and osteoporosis. Some of the psychological benefits include stress reduction, attention restoration, and reduced feelings of frustration. More and more research has come out in the past decade in support of adventure play: unstructured, exploratory play in which children can manipulate their own environments. It may be that the adventure play landscapes are much more engaging than their static, sterile, rubber and steel counterparts. Adventure play areas are full of the magic of possibilities. There is some debate over whether or not such areas should have a goal or a lesson in mind to be taught to the players

(Lambert, Daniel Orion, 2016). I believe that it is impossible to design a play area without a good story in mind, and all the best stories have a few lessons embedded in them. For use at the Althouse arboretum, the stories should have multiple layers, and many possible lessons so that every type of user is able to feel the satisfaction of having learned at least one thing new, whether that is how water runs downhill, how to collect water to make mud, how to use mud to build a structure, how to use sticks to build a structure, how to remove a splinter, how to step to avoid mud piles, what animals are attracted to mud, or even when to visit the arboretum in order to find (or avoid) the mud. The arboretum already includes areas for active play: the low ropes course and children’s woods.

Research and Case Studies

CASE STUDIES: Discovery Hollow at the Tamarack Nature Center, White Bear Township, MN Designer: HKGI Challenge: Design a safe space for childhood free play in nature - a “Destination for Discovery”. In this case, the goal was also to include places for parents to supervise from outside of the play area to allow for child determined play options. Project Goals/Benefits: Use a visual preference survey of national and international examples of nature, arts and learning best practices to help define the desired character for the re-envisioned TNC (per designer, Hoisington Koegler Group, Inc.) According to the Ramsey County website, the nature center also provides day camps, public programs, drop-in “discovery stations”, 30

orienteering, volunteer programs, and even a nature preschool (in addition to the Discovery hollow). Lessons for the Althouse: nature play for children can be encouraged by including certain elements in the landscape that children can modify to create their own environments - sticks and small logs for building, sand and water for “stream” creation, building of forms with wet sand and/or mud, etc).

Hands on Children’s Museum, Olympia, WA

later in life.

Designer: The Portico Group Challenge: Much like at the Tamarack Nature Center Discovery Hollow, the goal was to create a space for children to manipulate their environments to create unique spaces for themselves. In this case, the half-acre outdoor exhibits were to compliment the 9,000sf indoor spaces. All of this was to be built sustainably. Project Goals/Benefits: The HOCM is a LEED Silver certified facility geared towards children under 10 years old. Indoor and outdoor spaces are blended with elements such as large “garage door” walls perforating certain sections of the building. The ability of children to modify their environment is shown to be beneficial for the development of a child’s ability to make decisions

Research and Case Studies

INTERGENERATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL LEARNING An additional goal stated by the community was to create conditions in which the community can learn about the natural environment. Studies have shown that intergenerational learning, learning which fosters relationships between people of all ages, is a key component of life-long learning. The most successful spaces for iG learning are places that not only provide the basic physical opportunity for cross-generation interaction, but also which provide organizational and community support for those interactions: they provide programmatic opportunities (seniors & sprouts type events), and make special efforts to include programs around other issues such as gender and cultural diversity (Buffel et al., 2014, p. 1787).

Huntington Children’s Garden, Huntington, Designer: Ned Khan

Challenge: The Helen and Peter Bing Children’s Garden is celebrating ten years of introducing youngsters to the wonders of the natural world through interactive sculptural elements based on the themes of earth, air, fire, and water. Project Goals/Benefits: Designed by California kinetic artist Ned Kahn, children get to splash in water, make music with pebbles, dance under rainbows, disappear into a swirl of fog, and hold the magic of magnetic forces in their hands. They might not realize it, but they’re learning about the building blocks of life: Nothing grows without light, water, earth, and air. (from the website) Lessons for the Althouse: The garden also 32

uses Discovery Carts that are mobile, educational exhibits for children and families that encourage observation and exploration. Discovery Carts offer visitors the opportunity to participate in hands-on activities in the gardens using live plants, artifacts, and other objects. Though this garden may be more highly designed than that envisioned by the community of the Althouse Arboretum, there are elements of play and learning (the elements earth, air, fire, water) that have come up as design inspiration at the arboretum in zen gardens. The HCG shows how these themes can also be utilized for children’s education.

Individual benefits for these interactions vary. For adults, benefits include physical (increase in activity and mobility), emotional (stress reduction), relational (a wider circle of friends), and communal (skill sharing). For youth, benefits seem to be more studied, and are listed as including “enhanced sense of social responsibility, increased self-esteem, better school results, access to adults at difficult times, less involvement in offending and drug use, improved school attendance and greater personal resilience (Buffel et al., 2014, p 1787).” Potential outcomes for the community are also very sunny, with the most relevant benefits for the Upper Pottsgrove township being the “diversification of volunteering with the potential of older people contributing positively to their community” and the potential for “educational institutions becoming more involved in their communities as they start to utilize the skills of the wider community to help to achieve educational objectives” (Buffel et al., 2014, p 1787).

CASE STUDIES: Cusano Environmental Education Center, Refuge at Tinicum, Philadelphia, PA Designer: Andropogon Associates, Ltd.; LAF Series Challenge: This center is also an environmental education center aimed at a wide audience, their main mission was to interpret and use native plant communities to help restore soil health over time. Meadow, woodland and small wetland communities were designed as educational exhibits and to help screen out the neighboring land uses and immerse the visitor in an entirely different, “wild” environment than the surrounding residential/ commercial properties. The site design also uses porous pavement, cisterns, bioswales, and wetlands to reduce the stormwater footprint and limit the amount of water draining directly to Darby Creek. Project Goals/Benefits: Offers 16 environmental education and outreach programs, including a professional curriculum development program for K-12 educators, twice the number of programs at a similar refuge. Serves 135,000 visitors annually. Lessons for the Althouse: In 2003, the Cusano Environmental Education Center meadow was originally planted entirely with native species; however, a 2011 plant inventory indicated that over 50% of the meadow is now over-run with opportunistic exotic species. This issue is beginning to be addressed by the refuge as a whole by developing a plan to reduce the invasive plant species and instituting an invasive species management program through the volunteer Friends of the Refuge network. However, the Althouse Arboretum is less prone to ruderal Research and Case Studies

UTILITY: FUNCTIONAL LANDSCAPES

invasive species due to its high shade cover. The most vulnerable areas are those by the roadside and parking areas. Careful, coordinated management of these areas will be needed to manage invasive plant populations.

-- Most new plantings should be along main paths.

BELOW: MAGIC IN WINTERTHUR’S CHILDREN’S GARDEN. SUCH UNEXPECTED SPACES CAN ENGAGE YOUNG AND OLD MINDS ALIKE.

-- Paths should be wide enough to accomodate gator (with dump cart and 200+ gallon water tank) along side 1-2 pedestrians.

MAIN PATHS

-- Secondary paths can allow some new plantings. These should be located near enough to a main path so that the hose from the watering tank can reach the plants as they need to be established. -- Paths should be wide enough for two people to walk side-by-side.

SECONDARY PATHS

Path widths must function to support the plantings that are the soul of the arboretum

Research and Case Studies

PLANTING AND STYLE

In addition to creating an environment that supports learning in and of itself, the arboretum also needs to support the subjects of that learning: it needs to create habitat that will support an abundance of the region’s wildlife. My main sources of (literary/philosophical) inspiration, beyond the inspiration gained from the community meetings and site itself, were from the following (more detail can be found in the chapter on Theory and Case Studies): “Planting in a Post-Wild World” by Claudia West and Thomas Rainer “Planting: A New Perspective” by Piet Oudolf and Noel Kingsburry and “Principles of Ecological Landscape Design” by Travis Beck

Research and Case Studies

DESIGN

GARDEN ROOMS

THE MASTER PLAN

From the beginning the goal of this project was to create a master plan and the supporting documents that could be used by the Arboretum to create momentum, both as a guide for organizing future projects on the site and as graphics to show the great potential of the site to future donors. It is also hoped that this map will replace the functional but spartan map that greets visitors today.

townshipâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x153;Green Fields/Green Towns initiative (Township, 2009).

The inclusion of the satellite campuses (found in the Appendices) is, perhaps, slightly risky. At the moment, neither campus is formally under the management of the arboretum. However, the township has expressed interest in formalizing an agreement where the arboretum would maintain those properties in the same way that it maintains its main campus. This move is also in line with the

GARDEN WALLS - EVERGREENS

Design

GARDEN PATHS + FEATURES/NODES

The design idea here is to disperse the feature groups: active, passive/restful, and intensive learning. The dispersal is meant to be even, in order to create a rhythm which will allow for people of many physical and cognitive abilities (and desires) to create a unique experience to them. 40

By offering features which can support various levels of activity and engagement, the design should encourage repeat visitation as visitors explore different aspects of the garden each time they visit.

Design

DEAD OR ALIVE, FROM BLIGHT TO ART: USES FOR THE ASH TREE

SNAG

STUMP ART

OTHER ART

LUMBER

FURNITURE

MULCH

If the trees are girdled (killed) in place before the EAB gets to the site, it is possible that the trunk and some structurally sound branches nearest the trunk, can be used as a snag. A snag is just an ecological term for a standing dead tree. By running a chain saw around the circumference of the tree, an arborist could ensure that the supply of nutrients to the tree’s roots through the phloem (a layer of vascular tissue just under the bark) will be cut off, thus creating a snag.

There are likely a couple of local artists who might like to show of their skills with a chainsaw at the arboretum. In this way, the arboretum might gain beautiful sculptures, and the sculptors may gain valuable business.

Stumperies have become magical places at several local public gardens including the Morris Arboretum. Here, they might be able to tell more of a story if people are shown that the stumps come from the ash trees. There are several places in the arboretum where ashes are clumped in a way that the roots could be lifted into interesting statements about tree root growth.

Ash wood has been used for lumber for a very long time. Traditional uses for both White and Green Ash include baseball bats and tool handles, flooring, and other millwork. It is light weight, sturdy, and takes well to turning and steam bending. It is also attractive and fairly inexpensive, similar to oak in both appearance and price. The wood is only slightly susceptible to decay, so if used outdoors, care must be taken to treat any wood that should maintain its function for a long time (The Wood Database, 2016).

This wood would have to be treated every few years, but would likely make very beautiful furniture such as benches.

The trunks of these trees, if left on, could also be used for seating, especially if a chainsaw is used to shape benches.

For the arboretum, I would suggest using the wood untreated wherever possible – to line pathways, etc. – and treated when needed for sign posts, trellises, signage, etc.

It is important to know that the microbiotic processes that occur in freshly chipped mulch can temporarily take nitrogen from the soil. This occurs as the carbon in the wood is broken down. After a few weeks, any mulch used should return any of that used nitrogen back into the soil (with interest and organic matter!), but in the mean-time it will be very effective at stopping seed germination. The temporary loss of nitrogen would also mess with young and herbaceous plants, so freshly chipped mulch should only be used around established woody plants or on areas without plants (paths and play areas).

Design

LANDSCAPE FEATURES AND PLANTING PLANS RAIN GARDEN PLANTING PLAN A

Arboretum sign

Monarda The Emerald Ash Borer. In actuality, the length of an adult beetle is just shy of a pennyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s diameter.

Celtis occidentalis

stones behind weir to stabilize soil Heliopsis

Magnolia virginiana

Vaccinium spp. Quercus bicolor

Nyssa sylvatica Betula nigra 70% BASE FOR INTERPLANTING Chelone glabra

Sambucus canadensis Hybiscus moshcheutos Cornus spp.

Elymus hystrix

Andropogon gerardii

Carex pensylvanica

Design

RAIN GARDEN PLANTING PLAN B

RAIN GARDEN PLANT LIST Salix purpurea

Cornus spp.

Sambucus canadensis

Hibiscus moscheutos

Cornus spp.

Onoclea sensibilis

Rhus typhina Philadelphus coronarius Veronicastrum virginicum

Sambucus canadensis Taxodium distichum Nyssa sylvatica

Vaccinium spp.

grass Andropogon gerardii big blue stem grass Elymus hystrix bottlebrush grass grass Panicum virgatum switchgrass perennial Asclepias incarnata swamp milkweed perennial Chelone glabra white turtlehead perennial Eupatorium fistulosum Joe Pye Weed perennial Eutrochium purpureum Joe Pye Weed perennial Heliopsis helianthoides oxeye perennial Iris versicolor northern blue flag perennial Monarda fistulosa purple bergamot perennial Onoclea sensibilis sensitive fern perennial Pennstemon digitalis white beardtongue perennial Rudbeckia laciniata green-headed coneflower perennial Verbena hastata blue vervain perennial Veronicas trum virginicum culver's root perennial Yucca filamentosa Yucca shrub Cornus racemosa gray dogwood shrub Cornus amomum silky dogwood shrub Hibiscus moscheutos swamp rose mallow shrub Ilex glabra inkberry shrub Morella pensylvanica bayberry shrub Philadelphus coronarius mockorange shrub Rhus typhina staghorn sumac shrub Salix purpurea willow shrub Sambucus canadensis common elderberry shrub Vaccinium corymbosum highbush blueberry shrub Vaccinium angustifolium lowbush blueberry shrub Gaylussacia baccata huckleberry tree Betula lenta sweet birch tree Celtis occidentalis hackberry tree Larix laricina tamarack tree Magnolia virginiana sweetbay magnolia tree Nyssa sylvatica black gum tree Quercus bicolor swamp white oak tree Taxodium distichum eastern baldcypress

Sambucus canadensis

70% BASE FOR INTERPLANTING

Eupatorium fistulosum

Carex grayii Andropogon gerardii Penstemon digitalis Chelone glabra Carex pensylvanica

Design

EDIBLE WOODLAND PLANTING PLAN

EDIBLE WOODLAND PLANT LIST

interplanted Alliums Carya ovata

Castanea pumilla Juglans nigra

Gaylussaciea interplanted Oxalis

Morus rubra Juglans cinerea (butternut) Carya ovata Rhus typhina Sambucus canadensis

perennial Allium trucoccum Ramps perennial Allium canadense scallion, wild onions perennial Fragraria virginiana strawberries perennial Matteuccia struthiopteris ostrich fern perennial Oxalis dillenii slender yellow wood sorrel perennial Oxalis montana mountain wood sorrel perennial Oxalis violacea violet wood sorrel shrub Arctostaphylos uva-ursi bearberry shrub Castanea pumila chinquapin shrub Gaultheria procumbens wintergreen shrub Gaylussacia baccata huckleberries shrub Rhus typhina staghorn sumac shrub Rubus phoenicolasius wineberry shrub Rubus fruticosus blackberries shrub Rubus occidentalis black raspberries shrub Rubus ideaus raspberries shrub Sambucus nigra ssp. Canadensis elderberry shrub Vaccinium corymbosum highbush blueberry (multiple varieties) shrub Vaccinium angustifolium lowbush blueberry tree Carya tomentosa mockernut tree Carya ovata shagbark hickory tree Carya illinoinensis pecan tree Juglans cinerea butternut tree Juglans nigra black walnut tree Morus rubra Mulberry tree Pinus strobus eastern white pine vine Vitis labrusca Concord' fox grape

Rubus spp.

Matteuccia struthiopteris

Gaultheria procumbens Arctostephylos uva-ursi

Design

INTERPRETATION SMALL SIGNS, BIG IDEAS

The interpretation of the arboretum is already underway. The basic navigational signage, welcome signs, basic map, and basic trail names and markers, are already up. The arboretum’s next step is to add explicit educational components to the trail network so that visitors can learn to read the landscape at their own pace. A key component of landscape interpretation involves the signs that are used to convey plant names. The ingredients of such communications should at minimum contain common name and Latin name. Often it is desirable to include the provenance of the accession and accession date or approximate age of the species. Ethnobotanical uses for the plant is also sometimes included on a display tag, though this might depend on what collection the plant is part of. At both the first and second community meeting, there was some tension between wanting high-tech solutions with minimal physical signage (audio tours based on GPS location, etc.), and wanting low-tech solutions that encourage visitors to ditch all technology, to unplug and be present in nature. I see the pro’s and con’s to both systems, and see the design challenge to be one that includes a full experience for both types of visitors, with neither strategy intruding upon the other group’s enjoyment of the space.

educate, but also the impact of the used materials. Traditional (or perhaps typical) arboretum signage is made by a third party specialist – all that the staff at the arboretum needs to do is send in the desired information, and then place the tags in the garden. In some cases, only the materials are ordered, and the tags (such as copper-plated accession tags) are embossed by hand by staff members during cold or rainy days. I speak from experience, having produced many of these tags myself as part of my work at multiple public gardens. I am proposing something a little more radical, and something that is a similar labor of love. For the proposed designs, most of the materials come from within the community. The wood will have never left the arboretum, and the metal can be diverted from the community’s waste stream. The only materials required beyond this are minimal: screws, paper, lamination, and the tools for production.

In attempting to reconcile these two types of interpretation, I designed the following sets of templates to present to the GreenAllies board and the director of the Althouse Arboretum. From these designs, it is my hope that one will be chosen and used throughout the arboretum, starting this summer. Prioritized in these designs was not only consideration for their aesthetics and their ability to 52

Design

CONCLUSION LARGER SIGNS, ‘AHA’ MOMENTS

There are some landscape concepts that will require a more in-depth conversation, as compared to the simple naming of a species and provenance. I have provided some of them, on the topics discussed in this document, but others can and should be able to contribute additional knowledge of the site for interpretation. In order to enable this sharing, I propose that the research undertaken by others (student projects, community knowledge) can be put together in a template (see below), and printed and laminated at a nearby Kinkos or Staples. These sheets can then be inserted into the landscape interpretation sign holders, and be good to go. Most immediately ready to be interpreted are ideas like: -site’s history as a farm property in the 1800s, -site’s natural history (in several places) -the wildlife that will be seen at the pond and bird blind, -wildflowers + wild bees, bumble bees, and honey bees

Over the course of this text, I have shown how landscape architects (or students of the profession) can be valuable partners for botanic gardens undergoing master planning and strategic planning efforts. There are significant benefits that come out of the effort to produce even a traditional “static” master plan, for example: community meetings and the open sharing of knowledge between involved parties and potential partners. In addition, landscape architects can help to coordinate the needs of the arboretum community and the needs and realities of the site itself. In this case, the most pressing overall design needs were those dictated by budget, and the impending threat posed by emerald ash borer. Realizing that this document is most pertinent at a specific point in time, I emphasize the need for an ongoing relationship between the arboretum and design professionals (and students). As the arboretum grows and moves to establish the identity of specific areas, there will be room for students to design more detailed areas of the property.

-permaculture, horticulture and communities

Conclusion

APPENDIX A: BASIC RISK ASSESSMENT FOR TREES AT THE ALTHOUSE ARBORETUM

Given the scale of the Althouse Arboretum, it is essential that a professional arborist evaluate the trees on site regularly. Ideally, the collection warrants a full-time arborist on site (especially if that arborist is also a skilled horticulturalist). But in the mean-time, between certified arborist evaluations, the following offers useful guidance for spotting some issues that might need professional intervention. Hangars – hangars are branches or tree limbs that have detached from the tree (usually caused by wind or storm damage), but which have not fallen to the ground. Instead, they have caught on other branches in the canopy. These are hazardous because they are unpredictable and thus should be dealt with quickly, especially if they are over a path (where people walk, these people are called “moving targets”), parking lot, or shed (a “stationary target”). The property should be walked after every storm or windy day to check for these. Hangers can sometimes be difficult to spot. One trick to catch them is to look for patches of canopy that are especially dense since the branch structure keeping the leaves separated have collapsed. The hangars that are found should be brought down by using a pole saw/pole pruners, or by catching it with an arborist’s throw line. Leaning – leaning trees, especially those which lean toward or over pathways or roadways, or over static targets such as sheds or buildings, can pose danger to life and/or property. In the arboretum, trees may lean normally in response to available light levels (those at the edge of a group may lean away from the shadows in the middle). These trees are usually bent or curved toward the light. However, if there is a pole-straight tree that grew vertically but has started leaning sideways, this may

be an indicator of root rot or other structural issues which need to be evaluated by a professional. Plate lift – leaning is sometimes accompanied by plate lift, which is where the trunk flare tears away from its surrounding roots and lifts up. Extreme examples of this are trees that topple after wind storms, entirely exposing the roots under the trunk of the tree. Some of these lifts are less extreme, exhibiting only a partial lift at a shallow angle. These may not be stable and should be looked at by a certified arborist.

branches reaching over paths where people walk, or over valuable structures, it would be a good idea to have them looked at by a certified arborist!

Basal wounds – these are wounds to the main trunk of the tree, often below four feet, and often caused by human activity: weed eaters, pressure from gator tires, clipped by a tractor, or carved into by a thoughtless teen wielding a pocketknife. Many of these wounds are insignificant to the health of the tree, but if they are repeatedly inflicted, or if they progress beyond what was caused by human activity, they should be looked at by an arborist. Wildlife Damage: sapsucker, woodpecker, EAB, etc – wildlife damage is most often a sign that the tree has begun to decline and may be hazardous. Sapsuckers and woodpeckers dig into the bark of trees in order to get at grubs that are living in the tree. Insects often attack trees whose defense is already weakened, whether by age or an invading fungus. For example, on my undergraduate campus I witnessed sapsucker damage on a sugar maple. The birds were after grubs that had been attracted to the tree as it was declining due to fungal pathogen in the soil – anthracnose. The tree was next to power lines, and was removed the following season after it was evaluated by a certified arborist. Deadwood – deadwood is not always structurally unsound, but if there are large, heavy

Appendix A

APPENDIX B: BASIC HORTICULTURAL ILLUSTRATIONS

APPENDIX C: SATELITE CAMPUS SKETCHES

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Appendix C

APPENDIX D: COMMUNITY MEETING MINUTES COMMUNITY MEETING 1:

Althouse Arboretum Meeting Monday, January 9, 2017 6:30 to 8 pm 13 Attendees: Rich, a member of the board of directors for the Green Allies, Nancy, Community Coordinator 3 community members/volunteers 8 Pottsgrove high school students, 2 of whom are in or just graduated college, 3 of whom have interned at the arboretum last year What is the community’s role in the community? Preservation, interpretation of the land, education for all ages, community, leadership building, safe spaces. Does the arboretum have competition in the area? Some. Events like Fright night and the Easter Egg Hunt are somewhat generic and local churches, etc often organize similar events. Other nature trails in the area exist but are not as long or well kept: Moorwood County, Schuyllkill River Trail. Passive Educational walks/trails in the area: -Bowman’s Hill Wildflower preserve is “too far” for it to be a significant pull away from the Althouse Arboretum -Hopewell Historic Center focuses on regional history only, not landscaping. What is unique about the arboretum? Student run events, community participation in volunteering and maintenance, National Network to utilize

What activities do wish the arboretum could support? More Parking classrooms concerts, maybe in the meadow More storage indoor space Cabins/group camping interpretive walks What designed changes would you like to see at the arboretum? -give people a reason to walk in the back/preserved wooded area -integrate technology for a natural walk, less obtrusive signs (but this might not work for people not so attached to their cell phones -this lead to a discussion about geocaching (there are two geocaching boxes on site now) -Gift shop (planned) Who do you see the future users are for the arboretum? -local, though there are people who come up to the area from the city to shop at the local outlets (on Rt. 422) -Potential regional users by the inclusion of arboretum activities on regional calendars. Do you think the arboretum community can support the arboretum financially? -potential funding from user fees (maybe camping) Some school groups pay for nature outings (the Goddard School) – this lead to a discussion of the HeadStart program as a potential partner. -mostly Grant funding right now What is most successful about the arboretum that could be expanded in the future?

-student leadership for programs, open public events -fundraising at the open public events: Night Hike, Easter Egg Hunt -summer camps

about 20 acres. -Ken is also talking to Cornell professor Josh Cerra about incorporating a climate change garden at the arboretum

What do you see as the design needs of the arboretum? -how best to utilize the “developed” and “preserved” areas of the arboretum -clarity of the trail areas – hard to see the trail in the bouldered areas -design feel should be like a “naturalized public garden” with educational spaces -native plants grouped in one area for educational garden -“native” probably defined as “functionally native” – useful for pollinators, etc -12 month garden -support plants for wildlife with interpretation -edible forest area -irrigation needs for establishment period -path-and-node design for group walks, rather than all plants along path -previous zen gardens? Idea was for one zen garden for each element (earth/air/fire/water). Maybe just one including all the elements? -chloe’s corner – the space where three paths meet in the preserved area – could be designed for stillness/reflection -ash tree demise – there are 248 ashes in the preserved area. Locating specific trees for preserved examples and finding ways to use the sunlight/ micro-climate changes caused by the ash tree openings/removal Other notes -the township wants the Althouse Arboretum to manage the Prout farm property located nearby, Appendix D

COMMUNITY MEETING 2:

Althouse Arboretum Meeting Saturday April 1st, 2017 5 to 6 pm Present were Ken, Nancy Baker, Wendy Gaynor (a community member, and a member of the local area food bank), Elwood Taylor (the Planning Board’s Chairman), a local student representative, and Daniel Weitiosh, in addition to myself. The second community meeting started with introductions. We then went through the draft document of my work and designs to date. This included the introductory maps including the Arboretum’s unique position as a woody plants collection focusing on native plants in the Triassic lowlands ecozone in the Piedmont, the watershed connectivity map, and the campus maps. Generally, there was excitement about the map showing the unique placement of the arboretum. There was some interest in the watershed map as a potential tool for interpreting water system connectivity, especially if the ponds campus were to be formally under the jurisdiction of the Althouse Arboretum. The campus map was also of interest. Ken and Elwood pointed out several corrections that needed to be made to the boundaries of the outlined parcels. They and Nancy then described the properties and their challenges more fully: access to the ponds is limited. The back woods on the ponds property have no formal trails, but there are some that have been left by RTVs and dirt bikes on the upper wooded hill, there are no bridges crossing the stream, and one of the lakes is only ½ on public property. The discussion then moved on to the necessity of geo-locating the ash trees, which was done early 62

on the same day and continued into the next day. The diagrams of EAB infestation and the resulting canopy opening were examined, clarified as a major issue for the arboretum in the near future. Dan pointed out that there are signs that the borer is already present on site (woodpecker damage and canopy loss) near stationary targets, prioritizing some trees for immediate removal.

the system at Delaware Valley University where students and volunteers maintain a few acres of land for small-scale commercial-type production which is then donated to a food bank. The more traditional community gardening plots would also have plenty of room on the 17-or so acres of the property. There was a lot of excitement about this idea.

We then discussed the concepts that I was working with (products of the first community meeting) to propose new plantings and features that would take advantage of the extra light on the forest floor, making the best of the changes wrought by EAB. Most of these went over quite well, but the community members had a hard time visualizing what the physical implementation would look like.

Ken also brought up the idea of a high-tech walking tour with audio or QR codes that could be used to get more information out of the landscape than could be found on signage (and would be less obtrusive than signage). Some people loved this idea, and some people (including myself) have reservations about encouraging the intrusion of technology into the garden and other natural areas which generally encourage one to “unplug.” I mentioned that this is not a unique divide: the public garden world as a whole struggles to find a balance between these two mentalities. It was decided that both physical signs and tech should be present in a tasteful way where one does not intrude on the experience of the other, and so that the experience of the arboretum is open to many types of people; dynamic rather than static. I mentioned that this was a perfect example of the design intent we thought of at community meeting one: to design for people of all sizes and abilities (physical, cognitive, etc).

Ken then asked about the upcoming work (not yet produced) for specific plans that could be implemented ASAP for their transition to an accredited arboretum. He emphasized that he wants to be able to give projects to interns that will be working at the arboretum this summer. I replied that the work was so far focused around displays of certain elements tailored to K-12 curricula: water and nutrient cycles, life cycles (butterflies), habitat, soil science, and the food system. It seemed clear to me that it would be especially easy to bring certain curricula to the satellite campuses: water systems and stream bank/ecological restoration to the ponds campus, food systems, nutrient and life cycles to the Prout Farm property where we could develop community gardens, horticultural education and workshops, a permaculture display, and other elements. Wendy in particular loved this idea and brought up a potential partnership with the food bank for extra crops. I mentioned

Ken also brought up his desire to see the arboretum facilitate citizen science through various methods, including gathering photographs of the same areas over time. Either Ken or Daniel brought up the idea of a physical component of the landscape that would standardize the angles from which photos could be taken. Ken suggested that a twitter handle could be used to organize the

photographs. I then asked if there was one thing/idea that they would like to see arboretum visitors leave with, what would it be? This seemed to stump them, but I suggested thinking about it as “what would visitors’ ‘aha’ moments be about?” Wendy was hoping for food systems, others were just hoping that there would be an ‘aha’ moment. This indicated that the themes were up to me/the class to distill, and that they would likely be about the plant collections we decide to develop. I suggested that they were already on their way towards one “aha” moment via the Penn’s Woods trail, focusing on the changes in the woods since the colonial era. I viewed this as looking at the changes that humans/colonialization have had on plant communities, and suggested that it might be interesting to play with this relationship by including in the collection the chestnuts that are being bred to resist the chestnut blight that demolished the chestnut population/ the “other side” of our abilities to impact our surrounding ecology (albeit the weaker side): the ability and desire humans have to conserve/preserve certain species. Also there is a potential to interpret our desire to resist change, the ethical implications of human intervention in the landscape, and the extraordinary costs of reversing our impacts. Most of the community members then said that I had just given them an “aha” moment, so it should work for the community. They said that this seemed to be good progress and that they were excited to see the rest of our work. Nancy was especially interested in the collections policy, and provided resources for plants that grow in the area (an excel document of about 300 plants growing on her property). Great! I mentioned one last thing before wrapping up, Appendix D

APPENDIX E: THE ALTHOUSE ARBORETUM DEVELOPMENT PLAN COMPILED BY STUDENTS OF THE PUBLIC GARDENS MANAGEMENT CLASS AT CORNELL UNIVERSITY which was my desire to provide some planting plans for key areas including the “edible forest walk” that Ken and I have discussed since my first visit to the property, and a rain garden which would have to be diverted from the roadside ditch and could be placed just downhill from the property. I thought this could make a very nice entry way, and would add a lot to the plantings currently along the road. We discussed that it would necessarily have to be dug out of the right-of-way, and away from public roadside management workers. This idea was also well received.

GRANTS General 1. Offered by: UGI Utilities Inc. Grant Name: Contribution and Sponsorship Requests Application Due: ongoing Link to Grant: Website: https://www.ugi.com/community/community-outreach/ request-a-contribution-sponsorship/ Application form: http://info.ugi.com/acton/ form/8354/0067:d-0001/0/-/-/-/-/index.htm

Elwood then mentioned right before the meeting ended that before his term was up, especially after what we discussed at this meeting in regard to the satellite campuses, that he would try to get the Arboretum an agreement with the township that was similar to the one already existing for the main campus so that they are a “sure bet” and more intensive displays can be planned for those areas without the worry that they’ll be lost the next year.

Keywords: funding for eligible 501(c)(3) organizations within our service territories. Grant amount: Request an amount Date Awarded: allow 6 weeks to review request

2. Offered by: PECO Grant Name: Variable/ Charitable contributions Application Due: Ongoing, applications after Nov. 1 2016 will be reviewed for 2017 funding Link to Grant: CharitableContributions.aspx

https://www.peco.com/SafetyCommunity/Community/Pages/

Keywords: Grants focus on education, environment, arts & culture, and neighborhood development Grant amount: Unknown, likely on lower end Date Awarded: Variable Other Info: One grant per 12 month period per organization

Appendix E

3. Offered by: Exelon Corporation - (PECO is a company within Exelon) Grant Name: Community Grants Application Due: Need to create an account- appears ongoing Link to Grant: http://www.exeloncorp.com/community/grants Keywords: Community grants for education, environment etc. One grant per 12 month period Grant amount: Unspecified Date Awarded: Unspecified

Trust, Aqua remains a strong advocate of the environment and considers additional nonprofit requests based on current commitments and budget. Inquiries about the application process should be directed to: Director of Corporate Giving Corporate and Public Affairs Aqua America, Inc. 762 W. Lancaster Avenue Bryn Mawr, PA 19010 Grant amount:

4. Offered by: Pennsylvania American Water

Date Awarded:

Grant Name: Community Grants Application Due: Accepting now (online form/ application can be found at link below) Link to Grant: https://amwater.com/paaw/news-community/community-involvement/grantapplication-form Keywords: Financial Contribution to Project or Program, Financial Contribution to Event (e.g. watershed clean-up), Contribution of Property, Equipment or Materials, Contribution of Volunteer Labor, Sponsorship. Investment Focus Areas: Water and Healthy Living, Water and the Environment, Environmental Education, Community Sustainability Grant amount: Unspecified - request an amount if over $5,000 must submit budget Date Awarded: Unspecified

Agriculture/gardening 6. Offered by: Scotts MiracleGro Grant Name: Grassroots Grant Application Due: Currently closed, program updates posted in spring Link to Grant: https://scottsmiraclegro.com/responsibility/gro1000/ (Bottom of the page) Keywords: “Any non-profit organization that is helping to foster community spirit and public service is eligible to apply. Grassroots Grants are awarded to local communities to help bring pollinator habitats, edible gardens and public green spaces to neighborhoods across the United States.” For community gardens and greenspaces Grant amount: Up to $1,500

5. Offered by: Aqua America

Date Awarded: Currently unspecified

Grant Name: Application Due: Link to Grant: https://www.aquaamerica.com/about-aqua/corporate-giving.aspx Keywords: Aqua has a strong commitment to enriching the lives of those who live and work in the communities we serve. Over the years, Aqua has formed important partnerships with community-based nonprofit organizations within the company’s territory. Through funding from the Aqua Charitable 66

7. Offered by: FISKARS Grant Name: Project Orange Thumb Application Due: Late in the year/ Fall

Appendix E

Link to Grant: http://www2.fiskars.com/Community/Project-Orange-Thumb

component to demonstrate program outcomes and impact

Keywords: Project Orange Thumb is a community garden grant program that provides tools and resources to help communities reach their goals for collaboration, neighborhood beautification, and healthy, sustainable food sources.

Grant amount: Up to $5,000 Date Awarded: N/A

Grant amount: Currently unspecified Date Awarded: Spring after application Infrastructure 10. Offered by: The Home Depot Arboriculture

Grant Name: Community Impact Grants

8. Offered by: American Conifer Society

Application Due: Ongoing - couldn’t find any specific date

Grant Name: Jean Iseli Memorial Grant

Link to Grant: https://corporate.homedepot.com/grants/community-impact-grants

Application Due: June 2nd

Keywords: For purchase of tools, materials, or services for community volunteers to use

Link to Grant: http://conifersociety.org/organization/grants-merit-awards/jean-iseli-memorialgrant/

Grant amount: Up to $5,000 in Home Depot gift cards

Keywords: “The American Conifer Society annually awards a $4,000 grant to a public garden, arboretum or horticultural institution that has demonstrated its support of the development, conservation and propagation of conifers with an emphasis on dwarf or unusual varieties.” Can be used to purchase conifers, for signs etc. More info online

Other Info: Instructions/ forms online

Date Awarded: Ongoing

Grant amount: $4,000

Interpretation

Date Awarded: Announcement of recipient 60-90 days after due date

11. Offered by: Admini Trust LLC Grant Name: Stanley Smith Horticultural Trust

9. Offered by: Tree Fund Grant Name: Arboriculture Education Grant Program Application Due: Jan 1 - April 1 (Although deadline has passed, may be offered next year) Link to Grant: http://www.treefund.org/grants/education-program-grants/arboriculture Keywords: The Arboriculture Education Grant Program supports the development of unique, creative or innovative educational programs and materials to foster interest in and enthusiasm for urban and community forests. Successful project requests must: Relate to arboriculture, urban forestry or related disciplines. Include a hands-on, interactive or experiential component. Include a sound evaluation

Application Due: August 15, 2017 - submit Letter of Inquiry before invitation for full proposal (Accepting applications now) or

Link to Grant: http://www.adminitrustllc.com/stanley-smith-horticultural-trust/for-grantseekers/ http://www.adminitrustllc.com/stanley-smith-horticultural-trust/

Keywords: For Signage, development of programs and projects, physical improvements, access, equipment, publications, (under some circumstances - general operations and/or salaries) Grant amount: Request an appropriate amount for project, Max $25,000 Date Awarded: Notification and payment in Late November Appendix E

Other Info: Examples of other projects funded are on website, as well as instructions. Applications submitted online. Grants typically awarded to botanical gardens, arboreta and universities

faqs Note: In line with the mission of Althouse, we believe that a partnership with the local school district could further the message of food justice.

Education 12. Offered by: EPA (United States Environmental Protection Agency)

15. Offered By: Kids Gardening.org

Grant Name: Environmental Education Grants

Grant Name: Youth Garden Grant 2018

Application Due: “The Environmental Education Grants Program will not be issuing a Request for Proposals in Fiscal Year 2017 until the EPA receives a budget appropriation. We do not anticipate receiving an appropriation until at least the end of April.” Link to Grant: https://www.epa.gov/education/environmental-education-ee-grants Keywords: “fund locally-focused EE projects that design, demonstrate, and/or disseminate environmental education practices, methods, or techniques,” “EPA will provide financial support for projects that promote environmental stewardship and help develop informed, knowledgeable and responsible citizens in the community(ies) in which the project is located.” Grant amount: Variable Date Awarded: TBA Other Info: More information located online, Typically competitive Community Wellness 13. Offered by: Aetna Foundations Grant Name: Cultivating Healthy Communities Grant Program Application Due: April 13th, 2017 (Just expired!) Link to Grant: Subscribe to receive funding updates

Link to Apply: https://www.kidsgardening.org/garden-grants/ Notes: The deadline for 2017 funding has already passed. Last years grant was due by December 15, 2016. Winners were announced January 13, 2017. Size of Award: Small. Largest award is valued at $750

16. Offered By: USDA Food and Nutrition Service Grant Name: Farm to School Grant Program Link to Apply: https://www.fns.usda.gov/grant-opportunities/farm-to-school Fact Sheet: Loans.pdf

https://www.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/f2s/FactSheet_USDA_Grants_and_

Deadline: December 2017 Notes: The confluence of the desire for a community garden, emphasis on educational programing, and the free lunch program at the local school make this an appealing grant to bring healthy food into the community. Support Service Grant links non-profit to school district

17. Offered By: Garden ABCs 14. Offered by: Annie’s Grant Name: Annie’s Grant for Gardens Application Due: http://www.annies.com/giving-back/school-gardens/grants-for-gardens/grant70

Link: https://www.gardenabcs.com/grants.html Note: This is a list of possible grants that would fit some of your community garden needs https://www.wildones.org/seeds-for-education/sfe/

Appendix E

Assessment/Development 18. Offered By: Institute of Museum and Library Services and the American Alliance of Museums Program Name: Museum Assessment Program (MAP)

Watershed Protection This area is largely focused on scientific research or other direct efforts to improve or protect watersheds. One could possibly use funds to purchase land near Althouse Arboretum to protect a forest with an easement, the mission relevance may be challenging to establish.

Application Due: July 1, 2017 Link to Program: http://www.aam-us.org/resources/assessment-programs/MAP/apply Overview: The Museum Assessment Program (MAP) is “designed to help museums assess their strengths and weaknesses, and plan for the future”. Notes: There are three different assessment categories that you can apply for: organizational, collections stewardship, and community engagement. The program is designed to help strengthen operations in one of these areas by guiding the organization through a detailed self-assessment.

The William Penn Foundation We’re sad to report that most funding opportunities at the William Penn Foundation are not available to support Althouse Arboretum’s endeavors.

The foundation breaks their funding pursuits into 3 major arenas (i.e. Creative Communities, Great Learning, and Watershed Protection), each with a few subgroups.

Creative Communities Arts and cultural organizations Explicitly no funding for gardens Arts Education: Requires 1 teaching artist on staff Great Public Spaces: They fund “no projects outside the cities of Philadelphia and Camden”. New Audiences/ New Places: No projects outside of Philadelphia

Great Learning All 5 sub categories require applicants demonstrate a clear benefit to K-12 students in Philadelphia.

Appendix E

MEMBERSHIP PROGRAM ROADMAP

What is a membership program? A membership program can provide a garden with grounds for support, education and advocacy. It consists of individuals who pay an annual fee to show support and receive benefits in return. Members serve an important role as the donor base for fund-raising and can even assist the organization in other ways such as garden volunteers, tour docents, etc.

Development 1. Decide on marketing of membership â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Why should people support Althouse? One of the first steps to developing a membership program is identifying the qualities of Althouse that make it unique and worth supporting. These qualities can be used to advertise the membership program, make it relevant and convince individuals to support the arboretum by obtaining a membership.

A very important part of a membership program is the benefits individuals receive when they become members. Benefits will depend on what Althouse is willing to provide without taking too much of a financial hit. Some of these benefits can include: -

Discounts on classes, events, etc.

Discounts at local businesses. This is a benefit provided by Cornell Botanic Gardens. Members receive 10% off purchases from a number of garden centers around town. You will have to coordinate with local businesses to make this a viable benefit. Reciprocity from American Hort Society. This allows members to receive free entry at a number of other gardens around the nation. Information can be found here: http://ahsgardening.org/ gardening-programs/rap/program-information-for-gardens Application can be found here: https://riverfarm.wufoo.com/forms/p1d89d0w1xfo5b6/ -

Member-only events at the arboretum

For Althouse, some of these qualities may include: -

Major attraction in Pottstown, PA

Promoting healthy living

Revitalizing the community

Promoting community involvement

Free admission, need support to maintain the arboretum/programs

A good example of this comes from Cornell Botanic Gardens. At the bottom of each of the emails they send out there is this small blurb. This blurb makes it clear what an important role members play in keeping the garden running:

Using Cornell Botanic Gardens as an example again, the benefits they offer to all members are:

It would be helpful to visit some websites of start-up gardens the size of Althouse to see how they structure their membership program.

3. Decide on membership levels Some gardens have membership levels, so people pay more for a higher level and thus more benefits. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s up to the arboretum to decide on the number of levels, giving levels, and what members receive at each level. 2. Decide what can be exchanged â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Membership benefits

Appendix E

The breakdown of membership levels at Cornell Botanic Garden looks like this:

On site (at the arboretum) -

Direct mail Garden publications Website Newsletters

An examples of an effective advertisement for the Utah State University Botanic Garden:

4. Soliciting members â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the best way to reach new members? There are a number of ways to solicit members. The first thing to think about is Althouseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s audience and what will be the most effective way to reach them. Having a clear message that reinforces how memberships help support Althouse is important, as well as colorful and eye-catching advertisements. Some of the most popular ways to advertise a membership program include:

How to Grow a Membership Program 1. Increase giving/asking for bigger gifts This consists of asking members to up their level of giving each year

*Note the mention of benefits in this advertisement

2. Seeking out corporate or larger donors and aligning them with appropriate benefits Could include local businesses

Appendix E

DEMOGRAPHIC DATA

Source: US Census Pottstown Demographic Breakdown Looking at the demographic data of Pottstown, there are a few points of interest that can be used when applying for funding on both local and national levels. Of course, there is a lot of crossover with these points. By profiling the demographics, it helps us understand the community Althouse is serving and where efforts (educational, health, etc.) can be focused.

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATION

American Public Garden Association (APGA)

Institutional membership in the American Public Garden Association is an essential asset for both new and established public gardens. This nationwide professional network offers many benefits including:

Points for national funding Income - Median household income $43,075 (lower than the national average $53,889) - 21.7% of the Pottstown population is living in poverty (higher than the national average 13.5%) Population - 22,664 people - 72.1% white, 19.5% black, 8.0% Hispanic/Latino, 4.4% two or more races, 0.9% Asian, 0.3% American Indian/Alaskan Native, 0.1% Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander Education - High school education 84% (lower than national average 86.7%) - Bachelorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s degree or higher 17.2% (lower than national average 29.8%)

1. Professional Sections One networking approach through the APGA includes includes joining any of their discipline-focused professional sections. These groups help direct questions and collaboration to individuals and gardens most involved with each subject. Consider beginning with Small Gardens, Education, and Development and Membership.

2. Career Center There is no better place to find new staff members who already possess public garden

experience

3. Industry Specific Discounts Many garden-specific softwares, development tools, and publications can be acquired at a discount.

This data shows that there is a lower per capita income, a lower percentage of high school/college graduates, and a higher percentage of people living in poverty than the national averages. Althouse is providing the a free resource (focused on education, healthy living, etc.) to the community and underserved populations, which can be a key talking point when applying for funding.

Points for local funding Age - Under 5 years old 7.7%, under 18 years 23.8%, 65 or older 13.4% This data shows that children make up a good portion of the population in Pottstown. Althouse serves as a place for these children to explore and learn, which I am sure the board is aware of via the Green Allies program. This could be a key talking point when trying to develop a membership program -- and families with children may be a great resource, or target population, for that.

Appendix E

APPENDIX F: THE COLLECTIONS POLICY INTRODUCTION

Althouse Arboretum Collections Policy April 2017 The purpose of this policy is to guide the direction, development, and management of the living collections of Althouse Arboretum to ensure alignment of the horticultural and collection practices of the Arboretum with the mission of providing opportunity for ecology-based education, encouraging environmental leadership, and empowering students and the community with the tools to be proactive stewards of their natural heritage. To this end, the policy seeks to clarify for Arboretum staff, students, and volunteers the accessioning, documentation, labeling, evaluation, maintenance, and deaccessioning of plant material to establish consistent and coherent records.

This policy should be reviewed annually and revised as needed by the director and advisory board to meet the growth of the Arboretum. Enforcement of this policy is the responsibility of the Arboretum Director, Curator, and/or Director of Horticulture.

PURPOSE OF THE COLLECTIONS

SCOPE OF THE COLLECTIONS

ACQUISITIONING

The primary living collection of Althouse Arboretum protects and showcases a sampling of the plant species comprising a local ecological community typical of the Northern Piedmont. The collections highlight the characteristic and evolving ecology of the Pottstown area of southeastern Pennsylvania, its post-agricultural succession, and the responsiveness of natural systems to human influence, both destructive and beneficial. The collections and their management support the Arboretum’s mission to encourage students and the community to engage more thoughtfully with the natural world and consider their responsibility to act as informed stewards.

At any point in time, the collections are to include a minimum of 35 taxa suitable to the growing conditions of the site and representative of its native, natural history and its dynamic ecology. These taxa should be grouped into different collections based on location within the site and educational intent.

The acquisitioning of new plant material serves to diversify the Arboretum’s collections and further its mission and vision. All future acquisitions must be able to withstand the local Pottstown climate, be well-adapted to their site with minimal care, and selected for ecological, educational, and/ or aesthetic value. To that end, all perennial and woody materials should be hardy to Zone 6b (able to withstand minimum temperatures of 0°F to -5°F), and moderately drought tolerant. Specimens should be disease and pest-resistant and have good form in order to prevent excessive maintenance and cost; plants that are prone to failure or invasive growth habit are to be avoided.

The primary collection is to be comprised of trees and shrubs of wild origin, endemic to the site of the Arboretum. This collection illustrates the existing state of the local ecosystem, with an emphasis on the inherent diversity of the local region.

Secondary collections will be those featured in designed plantings, including designs to be implemented around buildings and parking, in designated garden areas, and on satellite campuses. These collections may focus on less persistent plant types, taxa not adapted to the shade of a woodland, aesthetics, agriculture and ethnobotany, or fill out gaps in educational offerings as the director or curator deem fit.

Where possible, any future acquisitions should be native species. For the Arboretum’s purposes, this will be defined as having existed in the region as of the 17th century. Exceptions will be made for rare and unusual plants, plants of educational or functional ecological landscape value, or any other attributes that serve to further the Arboretum’s mission and vision. Plants may be acquired through field collection, donated as gifts, purchased from nurseries, or propagated on site from purchased material. In the case of field collection, plant propagules should be collected in such manner as to minimize harm to the wild population and its surrounding ecological community.

Acquisitions must adhere to all applicable laws, regulations, and conventions, such as the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species (CITES), regarding the harvesting, sale, or transport of protected taxa. The Arboretum will not acquire any specimen if doubt exists with

Appendix F

respect to its provenance, ethics of collecting, or legality of acquisition. This applies to plants gifted to the arboretum as well as those to be acquired by other means.

ACCESSIONING

RECORDS AND LABELING

All woody and perennial acquisitions should be accessioned and labeled immediately after receipt to ensure record accuracy and consistency. For each new taxon, a status change form should be filled out and submitted to the record keeper(s). Records should additionally include source of acquisition, location within the Arboretum, condition, size and/or quantity of specimens if acquired as a group of the same species/cultivar.

Accessions within the collections of the Arboretum shall each have the following data recorded in the Collection Database:

It is not feasible to accession all previously existing specimens individually due to their volume and the size of the property. Pre-existing specimens of a significant size (defined for our purposes as having a diameter at breast height of greater than 12” for deciduous trees and 15” for evergreens), as well those in prominent locations, should take priority in the accession process. All accessioned material must be labeled for display.

Botanical name — various websites can be used to confirm the identity of a species, but the International Plant Names Index (http://www. ipni.org/) should be used as the primary reference for currently accepted nomenclature Common name(s) — it is not necessary to include all common names in the database; any that are relevant to the cultural and natural history of the site may be included

Accession labels should include accession number, botanical name, common name, location, and – if the specimen was a gift – donor’s name. The location of each accession should be mapped using consistent, free-to-use, mapping software, such as Google Earth, and any GPS enabled device, such as a smartphone. This will serve both as a visual component of the records and as the source for geographic information. Instructions on translating geographic coordinates between Google Earth and a text-based, database format can be found in Appendix A (Using Readily Available Software to Geolocate Specimens).

Date of acquisition Source — as mentioned, this may be from field collection, gifts, purchases, or propagation Date of accession Accession number — includes the year and timing of accession relative to other accessions of the same year, and an identifying letter if more than one of the same species or cultivar are acquired at the same time. For example, the number 1725-B would indicate that a specimen was the 25th accession made in 2017, and that it is one of at least two genetically identical plants. Size and condition of specimen Location Maintenance History Additional Notes — if a particular specimen is a donation or a memorial, or has some other association of note

Appendix F

CARE

As an educational facility that models environmental stewardship, the Arboretum shall utilize sustainable care practices to maintain its collections. Environmental impact is minimized by the use of appropriate plant selections, proper cultural practices and integrated pest management (IPM) strategies wherever possible.

Given the diversity of the collections, appropriate levels of care may vary between different areas. Natural areas can generally be expected to receive a lower level of maintenance than cultivated plantings; ecologically significant, rare, and unusual specimens will be prioritized over more readily available or ecologically insignificant ones. Appropriate maintenance and emergency procedures may be changed at any time at the discretion of the Director and Curator.

All collections should receive the following essential care as needed: Label maintenance — Individual plant labels should be legible and clearly visible. Weed removal — As a general rule, cultivated areas should be kept 80-90% free of weeds to ensure plant health and presentability to the public. Mulch and groundcovers may be used where appropriate. Pest monitoring and removal — All areas should regularly be scouted for pest damage. Any materials subject to significant animal browsing should be fenced or treated with animal repellant as needed. Any other pests must be removed once 84

a tolerable threshold has been surpassed, either mechanically or chemically, in accordance with IPM methodology. Fertilizer — Plantings should be top-dressed and amended as needed, using organic materials where possible. Irrigation — New plantings should be watered frequently until fully established; all other specimens should be irrigated as needed. Raking — Should be performed in cultivated areas for aesthetic value and to prevent overwintering of pests and diseases in leaf litter. Pruning — Crossed, diseased, dead or conflicting branches should be removed in order to increase circulation and prevent plant failure; additional pruning may be performed in order to promote flowering and desirable form. Staking/Cabling — Stakes and cables may be used where necessary in order to prevent tree failure and maintain proper form. Invasive removal — All areas should be regularly monitored for invasive species. Invasive material must be removed immediately and properly disposed of to prevent further spreading. (See Invasives Management section).

DEACCESSIONING

INVASIVES MANAGEMENT

Material should be removed and deaccessioned if it is dead, no longer desirable, or fails to meet any collection standards. This should be documented as soon as possible to maintain record accuracy. As with every new accession, for each specimen removed, a status change form should be filled out and submitted to the record keeper(s). These records should include plant name and location, number of specimens removed, condition and/ or reason for removal, and date of removal and any other pertinent information regarding removal (i.e., if external parties are involved in removal or disposal for future reference). These records should be kept as a separate sheet in the primary records system.

As the focus of the Arboretum is on the native ecosystem of the site and broader Pottstown area, it is important to demonstrate a commitment to an avoidance of acquiring invasive flora and the removal of known invasives. In accordance with federal and state laws, any plant categorized as noxious and invasive by the USDA or the State of Pennsylvania should not be acquired.

Many plants not addressed by legislation are still known to be invasive, including certain species identified as native regionally or nationally. Prior to the introduction of a new taxa, federal, state, and county-level databases of known invasive species should be consulted (plants.usda.gov, www.dcnr. state.pa.us/forestry/plants/invasiveplants, www. invasivespeciescouncil.com, www.bonap.org, etc.), as well as the experiences of other local botanic gardens and arboreta that may be of help in predicting the local behavior of a new acquisition.

INVENTORY Regular inventory is essential for record accuracy and should be performed once every 1-3 years. During the inventory process, staff should note the name, accession number, size, location, overall appearance and condition of plants in the field and submit this to be recorded in the database by record keeper(s). Any taxonomic changes should be noted as soon as staff members are aware of them, and names should be updated both within the database and on plant labels.

Plants identified as invasive and exotic should not be acquired without thorough consideration and review of their potential ecological effects. If there are desired taxa with known invasive tendencies, the director of horticulture or curator shall compile and present for review by the director and advisory board a written document exploring research on invasive behavior and effects of the desired plant, planned care, management, and disposal practices to control for invasiveness, and justification for acquisition on grounds of educational or ecological merit.

Established invasive plants on site should be

Appendix F

APPENDIX A — USING READILY AVAILABLE SOFTWARE TO GEOLOCATE SPECIMENS managed in a manner to limit their spread, up to and including complete removal. Introduced acquisitions that prove to become invasive should be managed accordingly. The disposal of any invasive plant material should be carried out according to best practices to minimize the reproduction or regrowth of the plant, eg. when in seed, the removed plant should not be disposed in a compost pile if the composting mechanism cannot guarantee destruction of the live seed. The management of invasive species on site should, as often as possible, be focused on forwarding the educational and conservation mission of the Arboretum.

Attached as Appendix B (Invasive and Potentially Invasive Flora) is a partial list of taxa to avoid which are known to be invasive or have the potential to be invasive in Pennsylvania, as well as references from which this list is derived.

Use GPS devices to track your route and mark tree locations

Click Tools > GPS. The “GPS Import” window opens.

Most smartphones are equipped with GPS capabilities. When geolocating accessions, a phone with GPS capability can be used with various free or low-cost apps, such as GPS Hiker, to record coordinate data.

Choose how you want the data displayed.

GPS Hiker Interface Import GPS data to Google Earth 1.

Import a data file

Export your record from the device, and Drag the file into Google Earth Use GPS Hiker as the example, you can send the record to your computer or email address. The file format is .gpx There are other file formats that can be read by Google Earth. Check the link: https://www. gpsbabel.org/capabilities.html Choose how you want the data displayed. To save the data, drag the file into the “My Places” folder. 2.

Import from your device.

Make sure any needed GPS device drivers are installed on your computer. Open Google Earth. Turn off the GPS device and connect it to your computer. Turn on the GPS device.

you have to arrange your worksheet in a specific way. It should contain at least 3 columns: latitude, longitude and your data - for example depth. Change the title of the data column to Name.

Click Import.

Save to KML file 1.

Once you have the data in Google Earth

Click File > Save > Save Place As

Make sure the “Save as type” is .kml

4. Open the .kml to make sure that the file saved correctly

There are several utilities out there that will convert your Excel file to KML for you. I like Earth Point’s offering at http://www.earthpoint. us/ExcelToKml.aspx. Some others are listed below.To use the Earth Point tool: 1. Look for the Choose File button on their web page, and browse to your Excel file. 2. Click “View on Google Earth”. The Earth Point utility will save your file as a KML file. 3.

Convert KML to Microsoft Excel 1. Open a KML file using MS Excel (go to “File”, select “Open”, choose “All Files” as the format and find your KML file). Being an XML file, KML can easily be opened by Excel 2007 and newer versions. 2. After the file is opened (it should look like in the image below), go to the “File” menu and click on “Save As” to save it as .xlsx file.

Open Google Earth on your PC.

4. From the Google Earth File menu, open the file you have just saved. Your data will be overlaid as labelled points. 5.

Save it as .kml file.

Other Excel to Google Earth Tool: I Programmer:

3. Read the coordinate Information from that excel file and recreate an excel file with only useful data for record.

http://www.i-programmer.info/projects/131mapping-a-gis/1314-excel-to-kml-a-vba-program. html

Convert Microsoft Excel to KML (if needed): Before you can convert your Excel file to KML,

Appendix F

APPENDIX B â&#x20AC;&#x201D; INVASIVE AND POTENTIALLY INVASIVE FLORA Herbaceous Plants

Lythrum salicaria

Aralia elata

Humulus japonicus

Aegopodium podagraria

Ornithogalum nutans

Broussonetia papyrifera

Lespedeza bicolor

Allaria petiolata

Ornithogalum umbellatum

Morus alba

Lespedeza cuneata

Anthriscus sylvestris

Pastinaca sativa

Paulownia tomentosa

Ligustrum japonicum

Cardamine impatiens

Perilla frutescens

Phellodendron amurense

Ligustrum obtusifolium

Carduus nutans

Persicaria longiseta

Phellodendron japonicum

Ligustrum sinense

Centaurea jacea

Ranunculus ficaria

Phellodendron lavellei

Ligustrum vulgare

Pyrus calleryana

Lonicera japonica

Centaurea nigra Centaurea stoebe

Grasses

Tetradium daniellii

Lonicera maackii

Chelidonium majus

Bromus sterilis

Ulmus pumila

Lonicera morrowii

Cirsium arvense

Bromus tectorum

Cirsium vulgare

Microstegium vimineum

Shrubs and Vines

Lonicera standishii

Conium maculatum

Phalaris arundinacea

Akebia quinata

Lonicera tatarica

Coronilla varia

Phragmites australis ssp. australis

Ampelopsis brevipedunculata

Persicaria perfoliata

Datura stramonium

Sorghum bicolor ssp. Drummondii

Berberis thunbergii

Pueraria lobata

Epilobium hirsutum

Sorghum halepense

Berberis vulgaris

Rhamnus cathartica

Buddleja davidii

Rhodotypos scandens

Epilobium parviflorum

Lonicera x bella

Fallopia japonica

Trees

Celastrus orbiculatus

Rosa multiflora

Fallopia sachalinensis

Acer ginnala

Elaeagnus angustifolia

Rubus phoenicolasius

Galega officinalis

Acer platanoides

Elaeagnus umbellata

Spiraea japonica

Heracleum mantegazzianum

Acer pseudoplatanus

Euonymus alatus

Viburnum dilatatum

Hesperis matronalis

Ailanthus altissima

Euonymus fortunei

Viburnum opulus var. opulus

Iris pseudoacorus

Albizia julibrissin

Frangula alnus

Viburnum plicatum

Lysimachia nummularia

Alnus glutinosa

Hedera helix

Viburnum sieboldii

Appendix F

APPENDIX C — CONSIDERING GENETICALLY MODIFIED ORGANISMS Vincetoxicum nigrum Vincetoxium rossicum Wisteria floribunda Wisteria sinensis

References: Appendix to Policy Directive 2004-02, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, October 2004. http://www.nj.gov/dep/ commissioner/policy/pdir2004-02.htm

DCNR Invasive Plants, Pennsylvandia Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/forestry/ plants/invasiveplants/

With consultation and permission of the curator, the Althouse Arboretum could acquire and display genetically modified plants while complying with the regulations in the United States. However, the arboretum should carefully decide the dedicated area to those species. Assessment should be conducted to make sure that introduced, genetically modified plants will not negatively affect the native ecosystem. The Arboretum should make all attempt to preserve the genetic diversity of wild flora; the introduction of genetically altered cultivars should be considered carefully with regard to interactions with wild populations.

Political and Economic Background

GMOs (genetically modified organisms) are regulated under the Coordinated Framework for Regulation of Biotechnology, published in 1986. Compared to other countries, the U.S. regulation on GMOs is favorable in their development. The US approach to regulating GMOs is premised on the assumption that regulation should focus on the nature of the products, rather than the process in which they were produced. GMOs are part of the biotechnology industry, which is now an important component of the American economy.

Mission-Related Justification

Implementing a collection which includes some genetically modified plants not only enables the Althouse Arboretum to support the research of rescuing species that are historically and 90

ecologically significant to the region, but also better serves the mission by educating the public and fostering student interest in environmentalrelated issues and careers. Displaying genetically modified plants provides opportunity for the public to learn about cutting-edge biotechnology, raises students’ interest in possible solutions for protecting the biodiversity in a changing climate, and helps serve the mission of empowering students to make a difference in the world. An area or test plot dedicated to any acquired GMOs could be implemented into the public environmental education programs and summer camps curricula.

CASE STUDY: BLIGHT-RESISTANT AMERICAN CHESTNUT

The American Chestnut (Castanea dentata), a hardwood deciduous tree native to the eastern North America, was once the most abundant species and an essential component of the Appalachian forest ecosystem. A late-flowering and extremely productive tree, the American chestnut tolerates frost, which made it one of the most important food sources for a variety of wildlife. Rural communities depended on chestnut harvesting for feeding livestock. Chestnut lumber was a major component of the rural economy, thanks to chestnut’s lightweight and highly rotresistant wood. However, a fungal pathogen accidentally imported to the U.S. during the early 20th century had eliminated the American chestnut by 1950s.

organizations, universities, and volunteers to restore this culturally and ecologically important species. Successes with traditional cross-breeding of the American chestnut with blight-resistant chestnut, genetic modification of the American chestnut, and advances in hypovirulence research (which reduces the viciousness of the blight-inducing fungus) suggest that great progress has been made towards the development and reintroduction of an American chestnut with good blight resistance.

For the Althouse Arboretum, which has a focus on the collection and display of native trees and the education of students regarding environmental issues, participating in the research of restoring the American chestnut can be particularly relevant to its mission. Introducing the genetically modified or new hybrid American chestnut to the Arboretum will provide opportunities for visitors to learn about the important role this species used to play in the forests of eastern North America, the interrelations of different species in the ecosystem, species invasion, and both traditional and modern biotechnology. In addition, planting American chestnut tree could also enhance the current condition of the natural area of the arboretum. In accordance with environmental inventories of the Althouse Arboretum, it is recommended in the disturbed areas that non-native species be reduced and controlled. Given the fast growth rate of American chestnut and the size of the tree, restoring the American chestnut may help to shade out invasive plants in sunnier areas, especially near the Penn’s wood trail, which is dedicated to the restoration of native forest.

Many efforts have been made by leading

Appendix F

GLOSSARY OF TERMS

Acquisition

Seeds and Seedlings could be acquired through participating in chestnut tree restoration programs, purchasing plant material when made available, or as a gift from other arboreta. Possible partners to work with include American Chestnut Foundation, which has engaged in the research and education of chestnut restoration since 1983, and SUNY ESF, which has launched the Ten Thousand Chestnut Challenge and multiple projects in order to bring the species back to Eastern America. There are also more than 100 chestnut orchards in Pennsylvania, some of which are part of the local arboreta. For example, the Tyler Arboretum in Media, PA, has housed an American Chestnut Nursery since 1997 as part of the work of the American Chestnut Foundation.

accession – a unit of the collection, as a single specimen or a group of genetically identical specimens, i.e. clones.

accessioning – the process of adding specimens to the collection.

accession number – a unique number assigned to an accession in the collection, composed of the year of accession, sequential number (of accessions of that year), and - in the case of multiple clones comprising an accession – an indicator of the specific individual within the accession.

cultivar – a cultivated variety of a exhibits distinct features from other the same species, the genetic quality is normally maintained through propagation.

Education — The Arboretum serves as an outdoor classroom for nature-based learning. Its living collection is a resource for study and observation, not only of individual specimens, but of a dynamic ecosystem, responsive to human and natural influence. Conservation — The Arboretum aims to conserve the native biota on site through good land stewardship, the reduction of ecological harm from locally invasive plants, and the introduction or reintroduction of taxa appropriate to the existing and projected ecological community.

plant that plants of of which vegetative

deaccessioning – the process of removing specimens from the collection (which does not necessarily include removing the specimen from the Arboretum).

natural heritage – the natural resource of biodiversity, ecological structure and health, passed from one generation to the next

taxon (plural taxa) – a taxonomic unit of any given rank, i.e. species, genus, family, etc.

Appendix F

APPENDIX G: AN INCOMPLETE LIST OF WOODY PLANT SPECIES ON SITE

Acer rubrum red maple Acer saccharum sugar maple Ailanthus altissima tree-of-heaven Carpinus caroliniana hop hornbeam Carya tomentosa mockernut hickory Carya ovata shagbark hickory Castanea mollisima Chinese chestnut Celtis occidentalis hackberry Cercis canadensis eastern redbud Cornus florida flowering dogwood Cornus florida ‘Cherokee Princess’ flowering dogwood Corylus americana American filbert Fagus grandifolia American beech Ilex opaca American holly Illicium floridanum Florida anise Juglans nigra black walnut Lindera benzoin spicebush Liriodendron tulipifera tulip poplar Liriodendron tulipifera tulip poplar Picea abies Norway spruce Prunus serotina black cherry Quercus alba white oak Quercus rubra red oak Rhododendron maximum rosebay rhododendron Salix matsudana corkscrew willow Sassafras albidum sassafras Taxus baccata English yew Tsuga canadensis Canadian hemlock Ulmus parvifolia lacebark elm Viburnum rufidulum rusty blackhaw viburnum

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jenvp.2010.09.003 Fike, J. (1993). Tuliptree - beech - maple forest These woods occur on fairly deep, not strongly acidic soils, at a mid-to lower- slope position. The most consistent tree species for this often very mixed type are, (57), 1993. Lambert (Daniel Orion), D. (2016). Role of the designer in play. Natural Resources Conservation Service USDA. (2017). Web Soil Survey. Retrieved from https://websoilsurvey.sc.egov.usda.gov/App/ WebSoilSurvey.aspx Panchen, Z. A., Primack, R. B., Aniśko, T., & Lyons, R. E. (2012). Herbarium specimens, photographs, and field observations show philadelphia area plants are responding to climate change. American Journal of Botany, 99(4), 751– 756. https://doi.org/10.3732/ajb.1100198 Township, U. P. (2009). Property Description :, 2008–2009. Upper Pottsgrove Township. (n.d.). 3 Natural and Historic Resources. In Pottstown Metropolitan Regional Comprehensive Plan (pp. 27–44). USFS. (2013a). Ash Tree Mortality. Retrieved from https://www.nrs.fs.fed.us/disturbance/ invasive_species/eab/effects_impacts/ash_ mortality/ USFS. (2013b). EAB Ecological Effects. Retrieved from https://www.nrs.fs.fed.us/ disturbance/invasive_species/eab/effects_ impacts/effects_of_eab/ WEB SOIL SURVEY, US EPA ECOZONE GIS INFO, OTHER MAPPED DATA. 95