Eastwoodhill Arboretum facts for kids

Eastwoodhill is New Zealand's special national arboretum. An arboretum is like a giant park or garden where many different kinds of trees, shrubs, and plants are grown for people to study and enjoy.

Eastwoodhill covers about 1.3 square kilometers (131 hectares). It's located about 35 kilometers northwest of Gisborne, in a hilly area called Ngatapa.

A man named William Douglas Cook started Eastwoodhill in 1910. He had a big dream to collect thousands of trees from the cooler parts of the Northern Hemisphere (like Europe and North America) and grow them in New Zealand. This dream became his life's work, and he spent all his money buying and bringing in trees from nurseries in New Zealand and Britain.

When Douglas Cook got older and his health wasn't as good in the 1960s, he sold Eastwoodhill to H. B. (Bill) Williams. In 1975, Bill Williams set up the Eastwoodhill Trust Board. This is a special group that acts like a charity. He gave the arboretum to this trust to make sure it would be protected and cared for, so future generations could always visit it.

Eastwoodhill Arboretum is known for having the largest collection of trees from the Northern Hemisphere's cooler climates in the entire Southern Hemisphere. It has about 4,000 different types of trees, shrubs, and climbing plants. This includes 170 species that are currently on the IUCN Red List, which means they are in danger of disappearing from the world.

Eucalyptus trees growing near the entrance of Eastwoodhill Arboretum

History of Eastwoodhill

How It Started

The story of Eastwoodhill Arboretum is closely linked to its founder, William Douglas Cook (1884–1967). He was from New Plymouth and bought a farm of about 2.5 square kilometers (250 hectares) in Ngatapa. He named his property "Eastwoodhill" after his mother's family home in Scotland.

Douglas Cook started creating a garden right away. He planted trees, but also roses, flowers, shrubs, and vegetables.

During the First World War, Cook joined the army. He lost sight in one eye while serving in France. He then stayed in Scotland to recover. While there, he was inspired by the beautiful gardens and parks he saw in England. He also met Arthur William Hill, who later became the director of the famous Kew Gardens.

When he returned to Eastwoodhill in 1918, Douglas Cook began planting thousands of Pinus radiata trees for wood. He also planted Eucalyptus viminalis and E. macarthurii. He started creating park-like areas with trees like Platanus orientalis, different kinds of Ulmus (elms), Acer pseudoplatanus (sycamore maples), and A. platanoides (Norway maples). In 1918, he also planted lombardy poplars along what would become 'Poplar Avenue'. In 1919, he ordered almost 2,000 trees and shrubs. The next year, he ordered over 3,300, with about 2,500 of them for his garden. This included the 'Cabbage Tree Avenue', which was replanted in 2006.

His planting was paused when he traveled to England in 1922 and 1924. But in 1926, he made his garden even bigger. He added thousands of tulips, hyacinths, and peonies from The Netherlands.

His biographer, Garry Clapperton, said that this is when Douglas Cook "got serious." He began designing different sections of the arboretum, like Corner Park, Cabin Park, the Long Road to Poland, Douglas Park, and the Cathedral.

Growing the Collection

In 1927, Bill Crooks started working at Eastwoodhill and stayed for 47 years. He took care of most of the farm work, which gave Douglas Cook more time for his beloved trees. Around 1927, Cook began collecting many different tree species. Over the years, his collection grew hugely, reaching about 5,000 different types of plants. This cost him a lot of money.

Cook "continued to spend a lot of money on plants in the 1930s, much more than the farm earned." For example, in 1936, he spent £85 at just one nursery. This was about half a year's wages for a working person back then. By the end of his life, he had spent about £1,000 every year on plants from overseas and New Zealand.

In the 1920s, Cook could still pay for his expanding property with other money he had. But by his mid-fifties, he had to sell about 3.7 square kilometers (925 acres) of his farmland to get more money for planting new trees in the 'Circus' park. By the end of his life, Douglas Cook had put all his money into his arboretum. In 1965, he had a heart attack. He never fully recovered and passed away on April 27, 1967.

The Trust Is Formed

Even though Eastwoodhill was praised for its important plant collection in the 1960s, many people worried about its future, especially as Cook got older and had health problems. In 1965, Heathcote Beetham Williams (also known as H. B. (Bill) Williams), a businessman from Gisborne, bought the property from Cook. His goal was to keep the collection in good order and make sure that anyone interested in plants and trees could visit the arboretum in the future.

Eastwoodhill Trust

In 1975, a special law called the "Eastwoodhill Trust Act" was passed. This allowed the Eastwoodhill Trust Board to be officially created. After that, H. B. Williams donated Eastwoodhill to this Board. Williams believed that having a special group like this would be the best way to keep and grow the arboretum for a long time.

In 1994, the law was slightly updated.

Who Is on the Trust Board?

The Trust Board currently has 6 members who represent different groups:

• Department of Conservation (looks after nature)
• Williams Family (the family of H. B. Williams)
• Gisborne District Council (local government)
• Poverty Bay Horticultural Society (garden lovers' group)
• East Coast Farm Forestry Association (group interested in growing trees on farms)
• Friends of Eastwoodhill (volunteers who support the arboretum)

What Are the Trust's Goals?

According to the law, the Trust Board's main goals are:

• "to maintain and develop Eastwoodhill as an arboretum" (to keep it going and make it better)
• "to make Eastwoodhill available to the public for its education and recreation" (to let people visit for learning and fun, as long as it fits with keeping the arboretum healthy)

Who Manages Eastwoodhill?

Many people have helped manage Eastwoodhill over the years:

• Until 1974, Bill Crooks was the manager.
• From 1974 to 1982, Dan Weatherall managed it.
• From 1982 to 1985, Kevin Boyce was the curator (a person who looks after the collection).
• From 1985 to 2001, Gary Clapperton was the curator.
• From 2001 to 2009, Paul Wynen was the curator, with Maurice Hall as manager.
• From 2010 to 2013, Danny Frazer was curator.
• From 2013 to 2014, Ben Lyte was curator.
• From 2014 to 2019, Dan Haliday was curator.
• From 2019 to 2022, Martin Weaver was curator.
• From 2022 to 2023, Thrive Spaces and Places helped manage.
• From 2023 to now, Garrett Blair is the General Manager.

Friends of Eastwoodhill

Soon after the Eastwoodhill Trust was set up, a group of volunteers started helping to develop and maintain the arboretum. From 1984, a garden group began taking care of the Homestead Garden. In 1985, an organization called the Friends of Eastwoodhill was formed. This group helps get visitors interested, builds support, collects donations, and provides information. The 'Friends' publish a newsletter four times a year.

Buildings at Eastwoodhill

• The Douglas Cook Centre for Education opened in 1992. It's a place for meetings and workshops.
• An herbarium was created in 1994. This is a collection of dried plant specimens used for study.
• In 1998, a place for people to stay was ready. It can host student groups, plant scientists, and anyone who loves plants.
• A new visitor center opened in 2003.

Layout of the Arboretum

Trees in Eastwoodhill Arboretum

The arboretum is divided into several areas, each with its own style and name. These areas are called 'parks'.

The flatter sections include:

• Corner Park: This was the first park Douglas Cook systematically planted, starting in 1927.
• Burnside
• Pear Park: Planted by Douglas Cook from 1950.
• Circus: Planted from 1959.

Steep hills and valley sections include:

• Cabin Park: Planted by Douglas Cook from 1934.
• Douglas Park: Partly planted by Douglas Cook from 1945 (Basinhead and Blackwater from 1961).
• Orchard Hill: Planted from 1955.
• Glen Douglas: The last area Douglas Cook started, in 1963, when he was 79 years old.
• Springfield
• Mexico Way
• Canaan
• Turihaua Park
• Three Kings
• Millennial Wood

The Plant Collection

Douglas Cook brought about 5,000 different species (types) and cultivars (varieties grown by people) of trees, shrubs, and climbers to Eastwoodhill. Many of them came from famous English nurseries like Hillier's, Veitch's, and Slococks. He also bought many from New Zealand nurseries like Duncan and Davies in New Plymouth and Harrison's in Palmerston North.

The main focus of the collection is still trees, shrubs, and climbers from the Northern Hemisphere. However, Eastwoodhill now also has a large collection of native New Zealand trees.

Plant Catalogues

In the early 1970s, Bob Berry created the first lists of trees, shrubs, and climbers at Eastwoodhill. The first list in 1972 had 3,000 different types of plants. Bob Berry continued to update these lists until 1986.

Today, the plant list is kept on computers, and the curator is in charge of it.

Special Tree Collections

The most important groups of trees at Eastwoodhill are:

• Camellia: about 270 different types.
• Rhododendron: 220 types, plus 250 azaleas.
• Acer (maples): 90 types.
• Quercus (oaks): 80 types. In the 1990s, many acorns were collected. Three nurseries were supplied with tens of thousands of acorns each year from trees like red oak (Quercus rubra) and scarlet oak (Quercus coccinea). Also, pin oaks (Quercus palustris), english oaks (Quercus robur), and mongolian oaks (Quercus mongolica) from Eastwoodhill were sold through nurseries.
• Prunus (cherries, plums, etc.): 80 types.
• Pinus (pines): 35 types.
• Magnolia: 40 types.
• Malus (apples, crabapples): about 50 types.
• Abies (firs): 30 types.
• Sorbus (rowans, mountain ashes): 44 types.
• Juniperus (junipers): 30 types.

The best time to visit Eastwoodhill is in autumn. That's when over 100 oaks, almost as many maples, liquidambars, ash trees (Fraxinus), ginkgos, and other deciduous trees (trees that lose their leaves) show off their amazing fall colors. These bright colors look beautiful next to the evergreen conifers and nearly 300 camellias.

Homestead Garden

Near the entrance of the Arboretum, you'll find the Homestead Garden. It started in 1910 and covers about 0.01 square kilometers (1 hectare). Volunteers have been taking care of it since 1984. This garden is always being worked on and gives a lovely welcome to the arboretum. It has many interesting plants arranged in a unique way.

Awards and Special Recognitions

• In 1977, Eastwoodhill was the first arboretum in the world to be recognized as "a collection of outstanding merit" by the International Dendrology Society. A bronze plaque on a rock marks this award.
• In 2004, the New Zealand Gardens Trust named the Arboretum, including the Homestead Garden, a Garden of National Significance. This means it's a very important garden in New Zealand.
• In 2005, Eastwoodhill was officially named the National Arboretum of New Zealand. This title is used to help promote the arboretum and raise money.
• In 2009, Eastwoodhill won a Gold Award at the Ellerslie Flowershow in Christchurch for its display called 'Acorn to Oak', designed by Debra Stewart.