Minnesota Landscape Arboretum

What began as a Fruit Breeding Farm to develop cold hardy crops at the turn of the twentieth century has grown into the largest public garden in the upper Midwest, the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. In 1957, the Minnesota State Horticultural Society, the Lake Minnetonka Garden Club, the Men’s Garden Club of Minneapolis and other local groups met with the idea of creating an Arboretum on a 160 acre tract near the Horticultural Research Center (formerly referred to as the Fruit Breeding Farm) which had by then become a center for developing new apple and berry varieties for northern gardeners. This group effort raised enough funds to purchase the property and formally dedicate the Arboretum to the University of Minnesota in 1958.

The 1959 Founders Fund Award went to employ Kansas City based Hare & Hare, a pioneer in the profession of landscape architecture and planning. They developed a master plan for the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum.

It has become part of the College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences at the University of Minnesota and has grown in size to over 1,200 acres of gardens, landscapes and natural areas. Its mission continues to be a growing resource for horticultural and environmental information, plant conservation, research and education; to inspire and delight a growing visitorship with quality plans in well-designed and maintained displays, collections, model landscapes and natural areas.