The creation of The Oregon Garden is one of the rare examples in the history of public policy where seemingly opposing forces - private individuals interested in public gardens and government agencies in charge of sewage treatment - came up with a solution that served the interests of both.

In the early 1990s the rural village of Silverton, Oregon, had big problem. It's sewage system was failing to meet regulations and the government was putting up a big stink by threatening to levy huge fines until the village fixed the problem.

Meanwhile, for years the Oregon Association of Nurseries had been looking at a number of sites for a public display of their commercial production in an idealized setting that would be a showcase for their customers (growers, nurserymen, landscape architects) but also the general public who might be inspired to improve their gardens. But gardens in the West require water and an inexpensive and unrestricted supply is optimal. Yet, here in Silverton was a potential source of water - treated, of course - that could make their project grow.

Committees met, plans were drawn, acreage was acquired, bonds issued, checks written and before long the dream was realized. Today Silverton has new wastewater treatment facilities that send up to a million gallons of treated effluent to an array of more than twenty terraced and connected ponds that were excavated from a gently sloping 250 acre hillside. That network eventually delivers a limitless supply of treated irrigation to an 80 acre group of variously themed plantings that today make up the Oregon Garden.

In addition to more than 400 conifers (some of which were mature specimens donated by the major growers in the area) the designers included an impressive list of companion plants such as Japanese Maples, European Beech, assorted Dogwoods, Magnolias, Rhododendrons, plus smaller woodies along with grasses and flowering bulbs.

When The Oregon Garden opened in 1999 it had 250,000 visitors that year but in subsequent years attendance fell off, as did the economy. Also adding to the situation was that, apart of the OG, Silverton, an hour south of Portland, was not a destination. Fortunately, in 2006 Moonstone Hotel Properties, a developer and operator of small boutique hotels with a garden theme for guests, came to the rescue. Moonstone purchased 11 acres abutting the OG to build its resort and took over the operations of the OG although the Oregon Garden Foundation retains ownership.Less than two years after the opening of The Oregon Garden Resort, the ACS National Meeting was held there to almost universal acclaim. It was a perfect spot for this group: top-quality food and lodging located a short walk from one of the largest collections of dwarf and miniature conifers in the United States! The OG is truly one of the most stunning new gardens in the West.

The ACS Conifer Reference Garden at the OG

In the late 1990s volunteers, including many ACS members and nurseries in the region, started planting a 7/8th of an acre garden dedicated to dwarf and unusual conifer cultivars. In 2008, with the help of an ACS grant, an expansion plan was drawn up for the conifer garden that will triple its size. Many of the plants that have been going in are donations from Oregon and Washington nurseries that have been solicited, installed and cared for by ACS member volunteers.

Below, scenes from The Oregon Garden, photographed by ACS' Janice LeCocq and Joe Carli. More from Jan's visit in September of 2012 are on the blog she and ACS's Sara Malone produce, Form and Foliage.

Addendum 2020: TOG has had some recent challenges, which you can read about in this article from the Salem, OR, Statesman Journal

Mere minutes from downtown Portland, Hoyt Arboretum is a living museum, a historical landscape, an outdoor laboratory, and a curated woodland – all in one park. Straddling 189 ridgetop acres in Washington Park, the Arboretum is home to over 6,000 trees including large PNW natives and a curated global collection planted along 12 miles of trails.

Hoyt Arboretum was established in 1928, the master plan for collections and development was created by John Duncan in 1930, and the first trees were planted in 1931. Particular care was given to a range of conifers, and today, Hoyt’s collections of redwood, spruce, pine, fir, and cedar have grown to impressive heights. The “Duncan Plan” was fulfilled by 1954, and those plantings are cared for and protected alongside new plantings from the revised “Family Plan” in 2002. This collections policy remains in effect today, and places priority on ex-situ conservation of rare and endangered species.

The current collection represents over 1445 species plus 770 cultivars of woody plants from six continents. The conifer section alone contains 240 species which includes many endangered and rare species such as Torreya taxifolia, Cupressus dupressiana, and Picea brewerianaare. Also of note is Hoyt Arboretum’s signature Metasequoia glyptostroboides,which was the first of the trees received from the 1947 seed collection trip to set cones, making it the first to do so in North America in 35 million years!

Hoyt Arboretum is home to other notable collections including maples and magnolias which are nationally accredited by the Plant Collections Network of the American Public Gardens Association. Hoyt Arboretum’s collections are widely recognized for their quality and breadth, the garden’s long-term commitment, a favorable local environment, and institutional expertise.

Since 1986, Hoyt Arboretum has been managed in partnership between Portland Parks & Recreation and Hoyt Arboretum Friends. Through significant fundraising and a robust volunteer

program, Hoyt Arboretum Friends staff and volunteers enhance visitors’ on-site experiences. They provide a range of educational opportunities for all ages around the Arboretum’s tree collections, engage in important advocacy in support of the park, and raise critical funds for capital improvements like the Stevens Pavilion, Redwood Deck, and Visitor Center.

Hoyt Arboretum does not charge an admission fee and is open and accessible 365 days a year. From the budburst of spring through summer fruit, fall’s fiery kaleidoscope and winter’s pops of color, there’s always something to see. Maps, books, and knowledgeable staff and volunteers can be found at the Visitor Center which is open daily from 10am-4pm. There are also 2 miles of accessible, paved trails so everyone may experience this unique Arboretum.

Learn more at hoytarboretum.org

Pictures:

Redwood Deck

Redwood Trail

Dawn Redwood

Hikers on Wildwood Trail

Fall Color

Winter garden

Overlook Viewpoint

Stevens Pavilion

Visitor Center

Magnolia Trail

The ACS Reference Garden program is a partnership between the Society and established gardens that feature exemplary conifer collections. Of the many ACS Reference Gardens across the country few examples of this partnership are better executed than this one, because the crown jewel of the Arboretum, the Coenosium Rock Garden, was conceived and largely designed and planted by Bob and Dianne Fincham, ACS founding members.

This small college has an arboretum and a dwarf conifer collection that is on a par with those at large universities and is a testament to the strength of the horticultural program and the dedication of Arboretum Coordinator Van Bobbitt and his students over the years. Tucked into the north end of the campus, the arboretum has been called ‘West Seattle’s Hidden Treasure.’ With its status as an ACS Reference Garden, perhaps it will be less hidden going forward!

The SSC Arboretum, on six acres at the north end of campus, functions as a living laboratory for the Landscape Horticulture program, which first proposed the development of an arboretum in 1972. A student petition spurred the Seattle College board of trustees to approve the concept six years later.

The site includes impressive views of downtown Seattle and is adjacent to the West Duwamish Greenbelt, the largest contiguous forest within the city of Seattle. But the site also posed a major challenge—terrible soil. A gravel pit once covered much of what became the SSC campus, and to make matters worse, the college’s heavy-equipment-operation classes used the area as a training site. Their machines further compacted what was already described as “unusable clay.”

With the help of Seattle Metro, SSC improved the soil before the garden was planted. Metro provided labor and machinery and the land was graded and covered with18 inches of sewage sludge and seeded ryegrass, which was later tilled in. Despite this amendment and the addition of topsoil as each new garden was developed, much of the arboretum continues to suffer from heavy, poorly drained soil. It is impressive that the college has been able to produce a garden of this quality with such poor soil. This should give hope and inspiration to those of us that struggle with difficult sites in our own gardens!

In spite of a shoestring budget and those challenging soil conditions, the arboretum has grown, especially due to the efforts of former horticulture instructor Steve Nord. Through the years, though, the arboretum has benefited from the strong financial and in-kind support of many individuals, businesses and service organizations, particularly in the West Seattle community.

Since the SSC Arboretum’s primary mission was to serve as an outdoor classroom and laboratory for horticulture students, all of the gardens in the arboretum have been installed by students in SSC landscape construction classes. Much of the irrigation system was developed by students under the guidance of their instructors. Pruning and landscape-management classes help maintain the arboretum. The garden renovation classes have updated many gardens in recent years. And there’s not a day in the academic year when you won’t find students using the arboretum for study or hands-on learning. The

SSC Arboretum contains two conifer gardens and a sequoia grove:

Sequoia Grove. Specimens of giant sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum), coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) and dawn redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides) reside here.

Milton Sutton Conifer Gardens. This garden has two distinct parts that straddle a gravel road. One side is built adjacent to a dry streambed and combines many larger conifers with complementary shrubs and ground covers to create a woodland feel. Across the road is a collection of dwarf conifers interplanted with heaths and heathers. It is one of the most colorful sections of the arboretum in the winter. The Milton Sutton Conifer Garden also includes an impressive collection of Tsuga canadensis cultivars that was written up in Conifer Quarterly (Winter 2007) by former student Peter Maurer.

Coenosium Rock Garden. Dedicated in June 2005, this is arguably the best public collection of dwarf conifers in the region. It also contains a scree garden, many non-coniferous alpine species, and a naturalistic water feature. Dianne and Bob Fincham first conceived this garden with Steve Nord. The Finchams wanted to develop a garden that would help both students and the gardening public appreciate of the value of dwarf conifers. After Nord retired, the Finchams, landscape construction instructor Steve Hilderbrand, Yuki Kato—a landscape design student from Japan—and horticulture instructor Van Bobbitt developed a plan for the future. It took six years to complete with landscape construction classes tackling a new phase each year. The Finchams generously donated all of the conifers in the Coenosium Rock Garden from their nursery. Their friend, Rick Lupp, owner of Mount Tahoma Gardens—an alpine specialty nursery—donated a large number of alpine plants. Hilderbrand and his students worked overtime in spring 2005 to have the garden completed by its dedication in June. The dwarf conifers offer year-round appeal, due to their various forms, textures and colors—blues, greens and golds. Many offer seasonal color changes, such as Thuja orientalis 'Morgan': yellow-gold most of the year, it turns an intense orange-bronze with the arrival of colder temperatures in November, and returns to yellow-gold with March’s warming temperatures.

What does the future hold for the SSC Arboretum? The Coenosium Rock Garden filled the last undeveloped land in the arboretum. Major renovations of older gardens are being considered. About half of the original arboretum site will be occupied by the Seattle Chinese Garden, being built by the Seattle Chinese Garden Society, which will be one the largest Chinese gardens in North America. Combined with the Landscape Horticulture Program’s greenhouse, nursery and garden center, South Seattle College should be a major destination for gardeners. The future looks exciting, and the ACS Reference Garden status should prove beneficial to both partners going forward.

The garden is open to the public seven days a week from dawn to dusk.

Ed. Note: This material was adapted from an article by Van Bobbitt, SSC Horticulture Instructor and Arboretum Coordinator in the Fall 2005 issue of the Washington Park Arboretum Bulletin. In September 2013, Bob Fincham conducted a tour of the garden for ACS members Jan LeCocq and Sara Malone who wrote about it in their blog Form and Foliage.