Colonial Park Arboretum and Gardens
Encyclopedia
Arboretum
An arboretum in a narrow sense is a collection of trees only. Related collections include a fruticetum , and a viticetum, a collection of vines. More commonly, today, an arboretum is a botanical garden containing living collections of woody plants intended at least partly for scientific study...
located in Colonial Park (651 acres), 150 Mettlers Road, in the East Millstone
East Millstone, New Jersey
East Millstone is a census-designated place and historic district within Franklin Township, in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. It is a small rural community that grew and prospered with a small industrial base in the 19th Century, centered around the Delaware and Raritan Canal at...
area of Franklin Township
Franklin Township, Somerset County, New Jersey
-Communities of Franklin Township:The following are census-designated places, unincorporated enclaves, and historical communities located within Franklin Township...
, in Somerset County
Somerset County, New Jersey
Somerset County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey. In 2010, the population was 323,444. It is part of the New York Metropolitan Area. Its county seat is Somerville....
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
. The grounds are open daily without fee.
The arboretum contains labeled specimens of flowering trees, evergreens, shade trees, dwarf conifers, and flowering shrubs. Some of the genera represented are Abies (firs), Acer (maples), Aesculus
Aesculus
The genus Aesculus comprises 13-19 species of woody trees and shrubs native to the temperate northern hemisphere, with 6 species native to North America and 7-13 species native to Eurasia; there are also several hybrids. Species are deciduous or evergreen...
(buckeyes), Carpinus (ironwoods), Chamaecyparis
Chamaecyparis
Chamaecyparis is a genus of conifers in the cypress family Cupressaceae, native to eastern Asia and western and eastern North America. In the nursery trade it is often incorrectly known as "false cypress" for lack of other common name, so as to distinguish it from other similar genera bearing...
(false cypress), Cedrus (cedars), Celtis (hackberries), Cephalotaxus
Cephalotaxus
Cephalotaxus, commonly called Plum Yew or Cowtail Pine, is a genus of conifers comprising 11 species, treated in either the Cephalotaxaceae, or in the Taxaceae when that family is considered in a broad sense. The genus is endemic to eastern Asia, though fossil evidence shows it had a wider Northern...
(plum yews), Ilex (hollies), Juniperus (junipers), Picea (spruces), Pinus (pines), Quercus (oaks), and Sorbus
Sorbus
Sorbus is a genus of about 100–200 species of trees and shrubs in the subfamily Maloideae of the Rose family Rosaceae. Species of Sorbus are commonly known as whitebeam, rowan, service tree, and mountain ash...
(mountain ashes).
The arboretum area also contains several gardens: the Rudolf W. van der Goot Rose Garden, 1 acres (4,046.9 m²) with more than 3,000 rose
Rose
A rose is a woody perennial of the genus Rosa, within the family Rosaceae. There are over 100 species. They form a group of erect shrubs, and climbing or trailing plants, with stems that are often armed with sharp prickles. Flowers are large and showy, in colours ranging from white through yellows...
s of 325 varieties; the Fragrance and Sensory Garden (1981); and the Perennial Garden (1976). The Delaware and Raritan Canal
Delaware and Raritan Canal
The Delaware and Raritan Canal is a canal in central New Jersey, United States, built in the 1830s that served to connect the Delaware River to the Raritan River. It was intended as an efficient and reliable means of transportation of freight between Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and New York City,...
passes along one side of the arboretum.