Robert L. Shepherd Desert Arboretum

Last updated

The Robert L. Shepherd Desert Arboretum, properly known as the Santa Clara City Arboretum is a desert arboretum located in Santa Clara, Utah, United States. It was established by Robert L. Shepherd, local artist. The arboretum includes interpretive paths around lava flows and through the desert.

Arboretum botanical garden containing living collections of woody plants intended at least partly for scientific study

An arboretum in a general sense is a botanical collection composed exclusively of trees. More commonly a modern arboretum is a botanical garden containing living collections of woody plants and is intended at least in part for scientific study.

Santa Clara, Utah City in Utah, United States

Santa Clara is a city in Washington County, Utah, United States and is a part of the St. George Metropolitan Area. The population was 6,003 at the 2010 census, up from 4,630 at the 2000 census.

Lava Molten rock expelled by a volcano during an eruption

Lava is molten rock generated by geothermal energy and expelled through fractures in planetary crust or in an eruption, usually at temperatures from 700 to 1,200 °C. The structures resulting from subsequent solidification and cooling are also sometimes described as lava. The molten rock is formed in the interior of some planets, including Earth, and some of their satellites, though such material located below the crust is referred to by other terms.

Contents

As of 2012, the arboretum is closed to the public and is undergoing restoration after a series of wildfires. [1] [2] Non-native tamarisk trees had taken over the riparian area along the Santa Clara River and had choked out the native vegetation and then burned. The city is working with volunteer crews to eradicate the tamarisk trees and restore the riparian area. [1] [3]

Wildfire uncontrolled fire in an area of combustible vegetation that occurs in the countryside or a wilderness area

A wildfire or wildland fire is a fire in an area of combustible vegetation occurring in rural areas. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire can also be classified more specifically as a brush fire, bushfire, desert fire, forest fire, grass fire, hill fire, peat fire, vegetation fire, and veld fire.

The Santa Clara River is a 52-mile-long (84 km) river whose three forks join above Pine Valley in the Pine Valley Mountains in Washington County, Utah, United States. It flows west, then south, then briefly southeast before joining the Virgin River just south of downtown St. George. It is southern Utah's largest tributary to the Virgin River.

Related Research Articles

Willow flycatcher species of bird

The willow flycatcher is a small insect-eating, neotropical migrant bird of the tyrant flycatcher family. There are four subspecies of the willow flycatcher currently recognized, all of which breed in North America. Empidonax flycatchers are almost impossible to tell apart in the field so biologists use their songs to distinguish between them. The binomial commemorates the Scottish zoologist Thomas Stewart Traill.

<i>Tamarix</i> genus of plants

The genus Tamarix is composed of about 50–60 species of flowering plants in the family Tamaricaceae, native to drier areas of Eurasia and Africa. The generic name originated in Latin and may refer to the Tamaris River in Hispania Tarraconensis (Spain).

Virgin River river in Nevada, United States

The Virgin River is a tributary of the Colorado River in the U.S. states of Utah, Nevada, and Arizona. The river is about 162 miles (261 km) long. It was designated Utah's first wild and scenic river in 2009, during the centennial celebration of Zion National Park.

<i>Ulmus thomasii</i> species of plant

Ulmus thomasii, the rock elm or cork elm, is a deciduous tree native primarily to the Midwestern United States. The tree ranges from southern Ontario and Quebec, south to Tennessee, west to northeastern Kansas, and north to Minnesota.

Bailey Arboretum

Bailey Arboretum is a 42-acre (17 ha) arboretum located in Lattingtown, New York, a small village on the North Shore of Long Island. It opened to the public on Aug. 5, 1969 after being donated to Nassau County in 1968 by the heirs of Mr. and Mrs. Frank Bailey. Through an agreement with the Village of Lattingtown, admission to the arboretum was limited to 200 people at any one time.

<i>Ulmus crassifolia</i> species of plant

Ulmus crassifoliaNutt., the Texas cedar elm or simply cedar elm, is a deciduous tree native to south central North America, mainly in southern and eastern Texas, southern Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana, with small populations in western Mississippi, southwest Tennessee and north central Florida; it also occurs in northeastern Mexico. It is the most common elm tree in Texas. The tree typically grows well in flat valley bottom areas referred to as 'Cedar Elm Flats'. The common name 'cedar elm' is derived from the trees' association with juniper trees, locally known as cedars.

Morton Arboretum non-profit organisation in the USA

The Morton Arboretum, in Lisle, Illinois, is a public garden and outdoor museum with a library, herbarium, and program in tree research including the Center for Tree Science. Its grounds, covering 1,700 acres, include cataloged collections of trees and other living plants, gardens, and restored areas, among which is a restored tallgrass prairie. The living collections include more than 4,100 different plant species. There are more than 200,000 cataloged plants.

<i>Ulmus pumila</i> species of plant

Ulmus pumila, the Siberian elm, is a tree native to Central Asia, eastern Siberia, the Russian Far East, Mongolia, Tibet, northern China, India and Korea. It is also known as the Asiatic elm and dwarf elm, but sometimes miscalled the 'Chinese Elm'. It is the last tree species encountered in the semi-desert regions of central Asia. Described by Pallas in the 18th century from specimens from Transbaikal, Ulmus pumila has been widely cultivated throughout Asia, North America, Argentina, and southern Europe, becoming naturalized in many places, notably across much of the United States.

Crozer Arboretum

Crozer Arboretum, now the Crozer Garden, is a 12-acre (49,000 m2) arboretum and garden park located at 1 Medical Center Boulevard, Upland, Pennsylvania. The grounds are open daily; admission is free.

<i>Ulmus minor</i> Christine Buisman

The Field Elm cultivar Ulmus minor 'Christine Buisman' was the first cultivar released by the Dutch elm breeding programme, initiated in response to the less virulent form of Dutch elm disease (DED), Ophiostoma ulmi, which afflicted Europe's elms after the First World War. 'Christine Buisman' was selected from a batch of 390 seedlings grown from seed collected in the Parque de la Quinta de la Fuente del Berro, Madrid, by Mrs Van Eeghen, a friend of elm researcher Johanna Westerdijk, in 1929 and named for the elm disease researcher Christine Buisman. Originally identified as Ulmus foliacea, it was later treated as Ulmus × hollandica by Melville. However, more recent research in Belgium using DNA markers has reaffirmed 'Christine Buisman' as a clone of U. minor.

<i>Tamarix ramosissima</i> species of plant

Tamarix ramosissima, commonly known as saltcedar or salt cedar, is a deciduous arching shrub with reddish stems, feathery, pale green foliage, and characteristic small pink flowers.

<i>Northern tamarisk beetle</i> species of beetle

Diorhabda carinulata is a species of leaf beetle known as the northern tamarisk beetle, which feeds on tamarisk trees from southern Russia and Iran to Mongolia and western China. This beetle is used in North America as a biological pest control agent against saltcedar or tamarisk, an invasive species in arid and semiarid ecosystems.

<i>Diorhabda elongata</i> species of beetle

Diorhabda elongata is a species of leaf beetle known as the Mediterranean tamarisk beetle (MTB) which feeds on tamarisk trees from Portugal and Algeria east to southern Russia. The MTB is used in North America as a biological pest control agent against saltcedar or tamarisk, an invasive species in arid and semi-arid ecosystems.

Permanente Creek river in the United States of America

Permanente Creek is a 13.3-mile-long (21.4 km) stream originating on Black Mountain in Santa Clara County, California, United States. It is the namesake for the Kaiser Permanente health maintenance organization. Named by early Spanish explorers as Arroyo Permanente or Rio Permanente because of its perennial flow, the creek descends the east flank of Black Mountain then courses north through Los Altos and Mountain View culminating in southwest San Francisco Bay historically at the Charleston Slough but now diverted via the Permanente Creek Diversion Channel to Stevens Creek and the Mountain View Slough in San Francisco Bay.

<i>Populus fremontii</i> species of plant

Populus fremontii, commonly known as Fremont's cottonwood or the Alamo cottonwood, is a cottonwood native to riparian zones of the Southwestern United States and northern through central Mexico. It is one of three species in Populus sect. Aigeiros. The tree was named after 19th century American explorer and pathfinder John C. Frémont.

Powers Butte Wildlife Area

The Powers Butte Wildlife Area is located along the east side of the Gila River, about twenty miles north of Gila Bend, in Maricopa County, Arizona. It was founded in 1982 and spans 1,120 acres.

ArbNet is an international arboretum accreditation and networking program. The ArbNet program is supported and coordinated through The Morton Arboretum, with partners American Public Gardens Association and Botanic Gardens Conservation International. ArbNet was developed to set industry standards, foster partnerships and collaborations, and provide guidelines for professional development for tree-focused gardens. Globally, over 150 arboreta have been accredited since 2011. There are four different levels of accreditation depending on the arboretum's stage of development, capacity, and potential for scientific and conservation-related collaboration. All levels require a strategic plan, a focus on woody species, public access, and participation in the ArbNet community. Level I arboreta achieve a basic level of accreditation whereas Level IV arboreta reach the highest level of arboretum standards.

References

  1. 1 2 "Santa Clara City Arboretum". City of Santa Clara, Utah. Retrieved 2012-12-25.
  2. "Santa Clara City Arboretum Restoration". The Conservation Registry. Retrieved 2012-12-25.
  3. "Santa Clara City Arboretum Restoration" (PDF). Utah Quality Growth Commission. Retrieved 2012-12-25.

See also

Coordinates: 37°08′11″N113°38′26″W / 37.13639°N 113.64056°W / 37.13639; -113.64056

Geographic coordinate system Coordinate system

A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are often chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position and two or three of the numbers represent a horizontal position; alternatively, a geographic position may be expressed in a combined three-dimensional Cartesian vector. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation. To specify a location on a plane requires a map projection.