Archives

• Arboretum Launches Longenecker Horticultural Gardens Online Collections July 31, 2024

  We frequently hear some variation of this question from visitors: “How do I find [describes a tree or bench] in the gardens?” Sometimes people are… Read more

• What's in Bloom? April 8, 2024

  This is a selective list of popular blooming horticultural plants in Longenecker Horticultural Gardens (LHG) and native plants in the Wisconsin Native Plant Garden (WNPG)… Read more

• Appreciating the 2023 Volunteers April 1, 2024

  The Arboretum is a gift from past generations to the present, and in the present we pass on this gift by stewarding the land for… Read more

• American Chestnut Conservation in Longenecker Horticultural Gardens October 31, 2023

  Some of the most asked-about specimens in Longenecker Horticultural Gardens are four mature American chestnut trees (Castanea dentata), a species that is virtually extinct in… Read more

• How Magnolia Flowers Weather an Unpredictable Spring April 28, 2023

  Despite the odds, this spring has had one of Longenecker Horticultural Gardens’ best magnolia flower displays in recent memory. The first flowers began to open… Read more

• Fall Planting of Rare Trees in Longenecker Horticultural Gardens January 3, 2023

  While most people think of spring as ideal for planting trees and shrubs, fall is also a great time to plant woody plant species. In… Read more

• The Longenecker Horticultural Gardens Lilac Collection August 30, 2022

  The Longenecker Horticultural Gardens lilac collection dates to the Gardens’ inception in 1935 and remains one of the largest collections in North America. While numerous… Read more

• Life Sciences Communication Class Partners with Arboretum to Tell Unique Tree Stories and Highlight Plant Blindness June 15, 2022

  In spring 2022, the Arboretum worked with Professor Kaiping Chen’s Life Sciences Communication (LSC) 375 Social Media Analytics class as a “client” exercise for UW–Madison… Read more

• Longenecker Lawns: More than Grass May 2, 2022

  While the trees and shrubs draw people’s attention in the Longenecker Horticultural Gardens living collections, the green expanse of lawn sets them off. These lawns… Read more

• Mid-October’s high temperatures come with a consequence for lilacs and other plants October 28, 2021

  While Madison’s residents soaked up the above-average October temperatures, the heat has given some plants mixed signals. Instead of entering dormancy for the winter, some… Read more

• Horticultural Garden Notes: Fall 2021 September 26, 2021

  Pollinator Monitoring in Panicle Hydrangea Collection This year marks the third summer of data collection for the Panicle Hydrangea Pollinator Monitoring Project in Longenecker Horticultural… Read more

• Horticultural Garden Notes: Spring 2021 May 3, 2021

  Goodbye to a Special Tree On March 1 we said goodbye to a special tree, a native white ash (Fraxinus americana) cultivar named ‘Autumn Purple’… Read more

• Winter Interest in the Horticultural Collection January 6, 2021

  Fall Color in Evergreen Conifers Some needle-bearing trees are deciduous – such as larch and bald cypress, which display impressive fall color – but most… Read more

• Police stumped by theft of rare tree in Wisconsin capital November 12, 2020

  MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Police are stumped by the theft of a rare pine tree from the University of Wisconsin Arboretum. The 25-foot Algonquin Pillar… Read more

• Growing the Longenecker Horticultural Gardens Collection September 1, 2020

  After a two-month hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, garden staff returned to work in mid-May amid a record number of visitors enjoying the garden’s… Read more

• Lilac Collection Celebrates 85 Years April 30, 2020

  On April 19, 1935, the first lilacs were planted in Longenecker Horticultural Gardens—known at the time simply as the Arboretum’s horticultural area. It was named… Read more

• Horticultural Garden Notes: Fall 2019 September 30, 2019

  Winter damage: The severe cold during winter 2018–19 (-29° F on January 31), coupled with extreme temperature fluctuations, resulted in significant damage throughout the Gardens. Read more

• Horticultural Garden Notes: Spring 2019 Update April 29, 2019

  In this spring’s notes: a long-standing drainage problem in Longenecker Horticultural Gardens has been resolved, trees and shrubs were damaged by animals and extreme cold this… Read more

• Garden Tours: Grow Your Plant Knowledge March 20, 2019

  Spring blooming trees and shrubs, summer wildflowers, fall color and towering prairie grasses are only some of the delights to be found in the Arboretum’s… Read more

• Horticultural Garden Notes: Collection Inventory, Fall Color and Hardy Larches, and Volunteers Power Through January 2, 2019

  Collection Inventory Field Check Over the course of the fall, garden staff conducted an inventory field check for the approximately 4,000 accessioned plants in… Read more