Archives

• Director’s Note, October 2020 September 29, 2020

  To the UW–Madison Arboretum Community, Conserving as much global biodiversity as possible requires three key elements. First, conservation requires knowledge—we need to understand what is… Read more

• Three ways to help save monarch butterflies and other pollinators September 21, 2020

  “Every fall, declining day length triggers one of the most incredible phenomena found in nature: the annual fall migration of monarch butterflies. Across North America,… Read more

• Arboretum 2020 Research Fellowship Recipients Announced April 30, 2020

  The Arboretum is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2020 Research Fellowships. Five graduate students were granted fellowships for projects that investigate… Read more

• The Arboretum: A Living Exhibit of Wisconsin April 1, 2020

  The UW–Madison Arboretum is an important resource for both the city of Madison and the University. Larry Meiller talks with the director about what goes on… Read more

• Update on Monarch Numbers March 18, 2020

  The forest area occupied by monarch butterflies in Mexico during the winter of 2019–20 was 2.83 hectares (a hectare is 2.47 acres, almost the size… Read more

• Climate change is playing havoc with Mexico’s monarch butterfly migration January 21, 2020

  No one knows when millions of monarch butterflies began crisscrossing North America, spending their winters clustered on the same… Read more

• The Impact of Urban Land Use on Aquatic Diversity November 4, 2019

  Equipped with waders and nets, members of professor Dan Preston’s UW–Madison aquatic ecology lab set out this summer to learn what is living in and… Read more

• Land Care Crew Visits Buena Vista Wildlife Area October 2, 2019

  Every summer, the Arboretum field crew visits another property and meets with their land managers to learn about the site’s history, management, challenges, and more. Read more

• Floating like Butterflies September 20, 2019

  Monarch populations have rebounded after years of decline. “What we want,” says Oberhauser, “is for the monarch numbers we’ve been seeing this summer to be… Read more

• Arboretum Hosts Native Gardening Conference September 15 August 5, 2019

  Learn Sustainable Gardening Practices and How to Use Native Plants in Home Landscapes The UW–Madison Arboretum will host its 2019 Native Gardening Conference, “Native… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: How Are the Bees Doing This Season? August 2, 2019

  August brings peak summer bloom and the first hints of fall. In the garden, we are weeding, edging, trimming plants along paths and trails, updating… Read more

• Workshops Engage Educators in Monarch Conservation August 2, 2019

  The Arboretum hosted two teacher workshops in July focused on monarch conservation and schoolyard ecology. From July 10 to 12, fifty-six K–12, early childhood, and… Read more

• AmeriCorps NCCC Volunteers Bring Dedication and Good Spirits to Madison July 1, 2019

  Just as the arrival of spring migratory birds enlivens the landscape, the arrival of the AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC) infuses enthusiasm and energy… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: Summer Begins May 30, 2019

  As June 2019 begins, cool wet spring conditions continue. June is Madison’s rainiest month; the long-term average monthly precipitation is 4.5 inches. The State Climatology Office… Read more

• Director’s Note, May 2019 April 29, 2019

  I am a fan of fortune cookies. I don’t really like the cookies themselves but have had surprisingly relevant fortunes over the years. In fact,… Read more

• To Spray or Not to Spray: Controlling Mosquitos Comes with a Cost March 25, 2019

  “When I moved to Madison from St. Paul, Minnesota, in the late summer of 2017, I was thrilled to see fireflies in my neighborhood, lots… Read more

• Monarch Butterflies: Spring Migration and Habitat Restoration March 4, 2019

  Monarch butterflies are getting ready for a big journey north to Wisconsin. Karen Oberhauser was a guest on the Larry Meiller Show to talk about… Read more

• The Vanishing Flights of the Monarch Butterfly February 20, 2019

  “Walking around my family’s property in upstate New York last summer, I noticed something I hadn’t seen in years: scores of monarch butterflies flying around the… Read more

• Land Care Report: Crew Tales from the Field January 2, 2019

  After a growing season filled with rain and mosquito bites, the Arboretum natural areas crew has been busy preparing for winter. Tree thinning and seed… Read more

• On the Trails: Volunteers Blaze Through Trail Improvements October 31, 2018

  Water can cause major trail damage, and we had a lot of rain this summer, with more than 25 inches of total rainfall. Flooding inundated… Read more