{"id":56176,"date":"2012-03-12T07:27:38","date_gmt":"2012-03-12T11:27:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/?p=56176"},"modified":"2012-03-16T11:39:43","modified_gmt":"2012-03-16T15:39:43","slug":"campus-arboretum-branches-out-with-six-new-tree-species","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/2012\/03\/campus-arboretum-branches-out-with-six-new-tree-species\/","title":{"rendered":"Campus Arboretum Branches Out with Six New Tree Species"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"From<\/a>
From left, Martin Miranda, Keith Joy (operating the backhoe), and Benjamin Pavon of EDI prepare for planting one of the new tree species on campus. (Sean Flynn\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

UConn\u2019s commitment to beautifying its campuses and being environmentally friendly has taken another step forward with the addition of six more trees to the already extensive arboretum on the Storrs campus.<\/p>\n

The new additions are the Hornbeam Maple (Acer carpinifolium<\/em>), Henry\u2019s Maple (Acer henryi<\/em>), Common Pawpaw (Asiminia triloba)<\/em>, Common Persimmon (Diospyros virginiana<\/em>), Varied Directions European Larch (Larix decidua \u2018Varied Directions\u2019 <\/em>), and the Uncle Fogy Jack Pine (Pinus banksiana \u2018Uncle Fogy\u2019<\/em>).<\/p>\n

Mark Brand, professor of plant science and landscape architecture<\/a> in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, and co-chairman of the University\u2019s Arboretum Committee, says the six additions are part of ongoing efforts to showcase interesting and diverse specimens.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
A new tree species, Pinus banksiana 'Uncle Fogy,' one of six being added to the UConn arboretum. (Sean Flynn\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cThe trees have been transplanted from the University\u2019s <\/span>Burr Teaching Nursery<\/a> at the Plant Science Teaching and Research Farm and the Waxman conifer collection<\/a> [named after long-time professor of plant science Sidney Waxman<\/a>],\u201d Brand says, \u201cand each is an important addition with a story of its own.\u201d<\/p>\n

Two of the trees, the Persimmon and the Pawpaw, are native to Connecticut and are becoming part of the University\u2019s developing collection of edible landscape plants. Although the fruit of the persimmon can be quite sour, that of the pawpaw is not only delicious, but is also rich in vitamins A and C and has important antioxidant properties.<\/p>\n

According to Greg Tormey, horticulturist in the department of plant science and landscape architecture, \u201cThe fruit tastes something like banana custard, and the main reason it is not more widely known is that it spoils quickly once harvested and is intolerant of shipping and handling. That\u2019s why you don\u2019t see them as much in larger grocery store chains.\u201d<\/p>\n

While travel may be problematic, the fruit of the pawpaw can be found in area farmer\u2019s markets throughout the summer and Tormey says it makes a promising addition to menus featuring locally grown produce.<\/p>\n

\"Workers<\/a>
Workers from EDI plant Diospyros virginiana (Common Persimmon), one of the six new species in the collection. (Sheila Foran\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The transplanted trees vary in size from 8 to 30 feet high and are an outgrowth of research projects carried on by several generations of plant science students. The history of each tree includes details of origin \u2013 some were received as seedlings from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), and some were propagated on campus \u2013 and the various traits that make them such valued additions to the collection.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe get about five or six plants a year that the USDA wants us to try growing,\u201d says Tormey. \u201cWe have a great micro-climate here [in Storrs], with good air drainage, so we\u2019re able to grow trees that might not thrive elsewhere, even in other areas of the state.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of the trees that does do well in Connecticut is the Hornbeam Maple, and the tree that has been transplanted originally came to UConn from the USDA in 1992 as a seedling. It\u2019s an interesting specimen because its oblong, striated leaves don\u2019t resemble those of other maple trees. The species is native to Asia, where it is often used as an ornamental plant due to its relatively small size.<\/p>\n

Another new addition is home grown, and comes from the Waxman collection. Varied Directions is a deciduous conifer that was developed by Waxman as part of his research here at UConn. It\u2019s a cultivar \u2013 propagated via stem cuttings \u2013 that forms a weeping, spreading plant with branches that radiate in irregular patterns. \u201cI love this particular tree,\u201d Tormey says, \u201cbecause not only is it home grown, it has a really interesting shape and it can look like a giraffe or elephant even without pruning. It\u2019s really a great plant that owes its existence to Sid Waxman.\u201d<\/p>\n

UConn\u2019s extensive collection of trees and ornamental shrubs serves to beautify the campus while also providing a living laboratory for students enrolled in plant science, biology, environmental science, and other related courses. A walking tour<\/a> highlighting 40 of the University\u2019s most interesting specimens has been prepared by the Arboretum Committee. In addition, more than 2,000 trees on campus have been tagged<\/a> with small metal discs and entered into a Geographic Information System which shows their exact location and other pertinent information.<\/p>\n

Locations for the six newly transplanted trees are:
\n<\/strong>Varied Directions European Larch \u2013 the slope outside the Tasker Building
\nUncle Fogy Jack Pine \u2013 beside Mirror Lake
\nCommon Persimmon \u2013 Great Lawn
\nCommon Pawpaw \u2013 Great Lawn
\nHenry\u2019s Maple \u2013 Waxman Display Garden, outside the Young Building
\nHornbeam Maple \u2013 Hillside Road<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The addition of six new species to UConn\u2019s already extensive Arboretum helps create an interesting landscape.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":56221,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_crdt_document":"","wds_primary_category":0,"wds_primary_series":0,"wds_primary_attribution":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"magazine-issues":[],"coauthors":[56],"class_list":["post-56176","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-01 11:13:14","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56176","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/users\/21"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=56176"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56176\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":56573,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56176\/revisions\/56573"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media\/56221"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=56176"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=56176"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=56176"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-issue","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/magazine-issues?post=56176"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=56176"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}