Within the physical boundaries of any Nebraska town or city, thousands (or even millions) of trees are growing in what is often referred to as a “community forest.” Whether by chance or design, usually some of both, most community forests end up being quite diverse over time. Trees and shrubs grow in yards, along streets and on pubic properties that would be the envy of any arboretum or botanical garden. For tree enthusiasts like me, it is not hard to start thinking of the community forest as an arboretum in itself. Knowing that an arboretum is simply a diverse collection of trees utilized for educational and/or scientific purposes, then it is only a matter of using the community forest as an educational resource that would make it an arboretum.
          Some Nebraska communities have already made efforts to designate their community forests as arboretums. In Crofton, for example, several areas of town, including parks and residential streets, have been designated as part of the Crofton Courts Arboretum. In Blair, two city parks, a middle school and Dana College cooperate in what is called the Blair Community Arboretum. And in Pender, a park, a baseball complex and the hospital make up the community arboretum there. All three community arboretums are now affiliated with the Nebraska Statewide Arboretum.
          There are many advantages to utilizing the community forest as an arboretum. The most obvious is the diversity of species and ages of trees scattered throughout a town that would be nearly impossible to replicate on a single site. There’s just no way to duplicate the big Ginkgo the Johnson family has inherited or the big white oak planted from an acorn at the school in the 1920s or the beautiful row of tree lilacs flanking Main Street. Other advantages of a community arboretum include:
          A backbone of mature trees gives the arboretum immediate prominence. It often takes years for trees in a new, single-site arboretum to reach a usable size.
          Most communities are well connected with streets and sidewalks, making walking and driving tours of community trees relatively easy.
          People will likely be more enthused about trees if they feel theirs are a part of something special and important. Such people will likely plant more trees and give trees better care.
          The costs of maintaining a community arboretum are spread among the many property owners involved, rather than a single entity.
          The squirrels and birds will be happier.

          For years, I’ve toyed with the idea of developing a community arboretum concept in Waverly where I live. I like to walk the community and over time I have become very familiar with many of the unusual trees around town. In fact I consider many of them my friends, including the sweetgum on Guildford Street, the American chestnut across from the grade school, the tuliptrees near the cemetery, the pecans on Folkestone Street, the huge cottonwood in Wayne Park and the old white oak near the grain elevators.
          I would like to see Waverly’s trees better publicized so that more people understand the value of this important resource. Perhaps a brochure for a walking/driving tour could be created that would identify many special trees and where they can be found. That way if someone wanted to know what a certain tree looks like all they would have to do is find it in the brochure and go visit it. Another idea would be to designate a tree of the month and honor the owners with a certificate and a feature in the local paper. Hopefully the envy factor would cause many other people to take more pride in their own trees.
          Of course there are many other ways a community forest could be put to use in an arboretum sense. Some of the ideas that have been suggested include:
          Assisting property owners in labeling trees that can be easily viewed from public sidewalks.
          Creating a photographic tour of a town’s trees that would be available in a brochure and/or online.
          Designating certain blocks or neighborhoods as important tree zones.
          Holding organized walking tours.
          Giving good tree stewards certificates of honor.

NSA Announces Community Arboretum Program
         The enthusiasm for improving Nebraska communities through tree planting and other landscaping efforts has been a hallmark of the state since its inception more than 135 years ago. Nebraska is now blessed with more than 500 diverse and valuable community forests within its borders. To help recognize the best of these community plantings and to help make many of them even better, NSA has developed a new “Community Arboretum Program” as a part of its affiliate site efforts. Any community in the state is eligible to seek affiliation as a “Community Arboretum” with NSA. The basic requirements for attaining this affiliation are:
          A listing or inventory of at least some of the important trees in the community.
          A plan for the care and perpetuation of the community’s public trees.
          Designation as a TreeCityUSA community by the National Arbor Day Foundation.
          Utilization of the trees as an educational resource through such things as labeling, public maps, tours, etc.
         Once a community meets the above requirements, they can be designated an official affiliated community arboretum of the Nebraska Statewide Arboretum. Such communities would pay $125/year affiliation dues and would in turn receive these benefits:
          Educational opportunities for community tree enthusiasts through NSA sponsored meetings, workshops and events.
          Access to new plant material being distributed by NSA for testing and evaluation.
          Assistance with plant labeling and permission to use official NSA plant labels.
          Statewide exposure through NSA publications and outreach efforts.
          Opportunity to recognize local supporters and volunteers through the NSA awards program.
          Full benefits of associate membership in NSA for the coordinating authority/group. Such benefits include membership publications, discounts on horticultural books for affiliate site library; reduced admission to landscape workshops, etc.
         Application forms are available by contacting the Nebraska Statewide Arboretum office, or by sending an e-mail request to Justin Evertson.