May 21, 2009

Spring is a beautiful time to visit the Fresno State campus, which gained official arboretum status in the spring of 1979. An arboretum is a place where plants—especially trees and shrubs—are grown for exhibition and study. It is a living collection of woody plants in a park like setting or an oasis in the urban "sea."

It is also the sum of many different examples of landscaping. For our campus an arboretum is: the peaceful serenity of stately conifers and grass that defines the Peace Garden; the individual trees on the Maple Mall that are memorials to the American submarines and their crews lost at sea; the small Shade Garden near the Memorial Fountain; the Allen Lew Memorial Grove near the Thomas Administration Building; the Rose Garden and Iris Garden. It also includes the hidden spots to sit in the shade and relax, entry landscaping, and the Allergy Free demonstration garden behind the Smittcamp Alumni House.