In addition to the 10 acre Fay Hyland Arboretum, established in 1934, the entire campus is now an arboretum, encompassing many areas of plantings of native and non-native trees and plants. Many of these plantings and gardens, including the Fay Hyland Arboretum, are constantly under study by students and researchers in such disciplines as dendrology, horticulture, and plant taxonomy.
Significant portions of the original layout of the campus, which first opened on September 21, 1868, were taken from a design by landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted. A second master plan, by Carl Rust Parker of the Olmsted Brothers firm, was adopted and implemented in 1932.
The university has created a
self guided walking tour of the campus which focuses on the plants, plantings, gardens and courtyards which comprise the arboretum. Beginning at the
Arboretum Plaque and Maine Bound Adventure Center Garden, the tour takes one to seventeen stops of interest throughout the campus, ending at the
Fay Hyland Botanical Garden, along the Stillwater River.
Garden Tour
Arboretum: A place where trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants are cultivated for scientific and educational purposes. (
Merriam-Webster Dictionary)
A distinctive feature of the University of Maine is that the campus as a whole is considered an arboretum:
In 2002 our campus was designated an arboretum. Trees, gardens and other green spaces weave buildings together, encourage social interactions, and are living laboratories for enjoying and learning about plants.
— Campus Arboretum Plaque
This tour is designed to explore the campus as an arboretum. Landscaping features, as well as specially designed gardens and courtyards, are indicative of UMaine’s campus plans throughout the university’s more than 150-year legacy as the state’s only public research university. They have a role in UMaine’s mission of teaching, research and community engagement, and are in part of the university’s commitment to sustainability and stewardship in one of the most beautiful states in the nation. In 2016, UMaine was listed sixth in the top 35 Great Value Colleges with Beautiful Campuses.
From U Maine