The Minnesota Landscape Arboretum
Chaska, Minnesota
By Nicole Thom-Arens
Published in 2024
The moment the calendar turns to September, I’m ready for fall. Unfortunately, I’m several weeks ahead of Mother Nature; however, by the end of August, the north usually offers cool mornings and chilly evenings. That was exactly our luck on August 31, 2024, when we visited the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. The Arboretum’s Horticultural Research Center started in 1907, and since then, the research center has developed various cold-weather crops including the Honeycrisp apple tree—the apples of which can be purchased at the nearby AppleHouse.
Today, the Arboretum spans 1,200 acres covered in mature trees and features numerous garden areas showcasing a variety of plants, shrubs, and grasses. Visitors are invited to stroll through the garden areas or embark on a three-mile drive that weaves through the arboretum with areas to pull off and explore whether it be the sculpture garden, hedge maze, or one of the more than thirty gardens and natural areas.
After strolling through the gardens, there is a shop, library, and farm to visit. The farm features the bee center and demonstration plots. Visitors are invited to connect with Minnesota-grown crops, fruits, and vegetables through interpretive exhibits.
The Arboretum is like a living museum where instead of just looking at all the cool things and trying to envision a time when the world looked like this, you can leave the place inspired to create beautiful and beneficial outdoor spaces back at home. I definitely took natural spaces for granted when I was growing up, but now visiting the Arboretum and dreaming about more trees, grasses, plants, and shrubs that we can add to our urban backyard is inspiring. The Minnesota Landscape Arboretum is a secluded spot in the middle of a concrete jungle that invites visitors to stay a while and find solace in the tranquility of nature.