Edith J. Carrier Arboretum facts for kids

The Edith J. Carrier Arboretum is a special outdoor place with lots of trees and plants. It's like a living museum for nature! You can find it on the campus of James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia, which is in the beautiful Shenandoah Valley of the United States.

This amazing arboretum started in April 1985. A person named Dr. Norlyn Bodkin helped get it going. He even discovered a new plant called the Shenandoah Wake Robin (a type of Trillium flower) right here! It was the first new plant discovery on the east coast of Virginia since the 1940s. How cool is that? The Edith J. Carrier Arboretum is also unique because it's the only arboretum located on a state university campus in Virginia.

The arboretum covers about 125 acres (0.51 km²) of land. Much of this is a big, old forest with oak and hickory trees. Some of these trees are even 100 years old! There's also a very rare tree called the Round-Leaf Birch (its scientific name is Betula uber) that is protected here. It's on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife's list of threatened species, meaning it needs special care to survive.

Exploring the Gardens

The arboretum has many different themed gardens. Each one is like a little world of its own, filled with unique plants.

Andrew Wood Memorial Garden

This garden was created in 1994. It's home to 92 different kinds of plants! You can see beautiful flowers like the Lilium superbum (Turk's cap lily), Dutchman's breeches, and wild ginger. There are also native azaleas, laurels, and other rhododendrons.

April Walk Daffodil Garden

If you visit in spring, you'll love the April Walk Daffodil Garden. It started in 1988 and is full of many different kinds of daffodils. Their bright colors are a sure sign that spring has arrived!

Ballard Memorial Planting

This area, planted in 1991, features interesting trees and shrubs. You can find the ancient Ginkgo tree (also called the maidenhair tree), more azaleas and rhododendrons, and white redbud trees. There are also Chinese dogwoods and a Viburnum prunifolium (blackhaw tree).

Wetlands Garden

The Wetlands Garden, established in 1999, shows off plants that love wet places. Here you might see Equisetum (horsetail) and tall bald cypress trees. These plants are important for wetland ecosystems.

Drury Planting

The Drury Planting, from 1993, has a mix of lovely trees and shrubs. Look for the forest pansy redbud, Cornus kousa (Chinese dogwood), Halesia carolina (Carolina silverbell), and Japanese maples. You can also spot Cherokee sunset dogwood and dwarf barberry.

Fern Valley

As its name suggests, Fern Valley is a cool, shady spot on the ravine slopes. It's filled with many types of ferns. Some you might see include Parathelypteris noveboracensis (New York fern), Eastern hayscented fern (hay-scented fern), Christmas fern, Matteuccia (ostrich fern), and Dryopteris marginalis (marginal shield fern).

Glen Dale Azalea Experimental Planting

This garden, started in 1996, is a special place where different kinds of hybrid azaleas are grown and studied. It's like a plant laboratory!

Heath Family Plantings

The Heath Family Plantings focus on plants that belong to the heath family. This includes many beautiful rhododendrons, azaleas, Kalmia latifolia (mountain laurel), and Leucothoe.

Herb Garden

The Herb Garden, created in 1996, is a fragrant and interesting spot. It features many different kinds of herbs, which are plants often used for cooking, medicine, or their scent.

Larkin Smith Rock Garden

The Larkin Smith Rock Garden, from 1991, is unique because it features plants that grow in special rocky, dry areas called shale barrens. You can find rare plants like yellow buckwheat, Clematis coactilis (Virginia white-haired leather flower), Senecio jacobaea (ragwort), and spike moss. There are also hairy lipped ferns, prickly pear cactus, and the Rhus copallinum (shining sumac).

Mid-Atlantic Azalea Garden

This garden, planted in 1996, showcases azaleas that are native to the Mid-Atlantic region. You can see pinxter flower, flame azalea, rose azalea, and plumleaf azalea, along with some hybrid crosses.

McDonald Azalea and Rhododendron Garden

The McDonald Azalea and Rhododendron Garden, established in 1995, is another wonderful place to see many different kinds of azaleas and rhododendrons.

Norlyn L. Bodkin Oak Hickory Forest

This large forest, about 20 acres, was named in 1998 to honor Dr. Norlyn L. Bodkin, who helped start the arboretum. It's a "mast producing" forest, which means its trees produce nuts and fruits that are important food for wildlife.

Sinclair Garden

The Sinclair Garden, from 1996, has a nice variety of shrubs and perennial plants. You might see Japanese barberry, Cornus kousa (kousa dogwood), leyland cypress, Prunus subg. Padus (cherry laurel), and rhododendrons.

Viette Perennial Garden

The Viette Perennial Garden, created in 1992, is known for its beautiful flowers that come back year after year. It features 18 different kinds of daylilies, 8 kinds of Siberian iris, hostas, and Eupatorium plants.