Governors’ Oaks
Governors’ Oaks
The establishment of this collection launched the first major project at the arboretum and the beginning of Arbor Week celebrations in Iowa.
In 1971, Governor Robert D. Ray of Iowa offered Iowans the opportunity to minimize environmental pressures in the landscape. An Environmental Action Program (EAP) was launched in April and May of 1971 to beautify, conserve, and become soil stewards of the Iowan landscape. Due to the woven-relationship of these and other environmental programs, Governor Ray sponsored a similar program in 1972, which established the Governor’s Arbor Week segment of the EAP, and the ceremonial tree plantings that have occurred thereafter. Governor Robert D. Ray had the honor of planting the first Arbor Day, Governors’ Grove oak in 1972, which is a respectable, if still juvenile-sized Scarlet Oak (Quercus coccinia) today.
Bur Oak (Quercus macrocarpa) is native to Iowa and planted in this collection. Several oak specimens originated as transplants from the native 300-acre woodlands across Peach Avenue, including many red (Quercus rubra) and white oaks (Quercus alba).
Many oak species are native to Iowa, and thus, have been planted in the Governors’ Grove to honor of those in public service at the state level. Honorariums for Iowa’s past Governors, First Ladies, and Lieutenant Governors fill the grove, all being dedicated at past Iowa Arboretum Arbor Day celebrations.
The original planting was developed by Neal Franson, Professor Robert Dyas, and Iowa State University students. The construction of the Hughes Education Center in 1999 lead to a large transplanting project of several honorarium oaks. Therefore, the collection was relocated to the southeast portion of the 40-acre site. While this is our most concentrated planting of oaks, over two dozen species of oaks and oak hybrids are represented throughout the 40-acre arboretum grounds.
Accession Number | Genus | Species | Cultivar | Common Name | Memorial/Honorarium Year | Memorial/Honorarium Name |
010098 | Quercus | bicolor | Swamp White Oak | 2004 | 16th Governor, Francis M. Drake, Arbor Day 2004 | |
030006 | Quercus | macrocarpa | Bur Oak | 2003 | 38th Governor of Iowa, Robert D. Ray, Arbor Day 2003 | |
070573 | Quercus | palustris | ‘Pringreen’ | Green Pillar Pin Oak | ||
070575 | Quercus | palustris | ‘Pringreen’ | Green Pillar Pin Oak | ||
120004 | Quercus | robur x bicolor | ‘Long’ | Legacy Regal Prince Oak | 2012 | 42nd Governor of Iowa, Terry Branstad, Arbor Day 2012 |
720002A | Quercus | bicolor | Swamp White Oak | |||
720002B | Quercus | bicolor | Swamp White Oak | |||
720002C | Quercus | bicolor | Swamp White Oak | |||
780002 | Quercus | sp. | Oak | |||
810053A | Quercus | x saulii (prinus x alba) | Saul Oak | 1998 | 6th Governor of Iowa, William Stone, Arbor Day 1998 | |
810053B | Quercus | x saulii (prinus x alba) | Saul Oak | 1996 | 5th and 9th Governor of Iowa, Samuel Kirkwood, Arbor Day 1996 | |
820005 | Prunus | cerasifera | ‘Newport’ | Newport Cherry Plum | ||
820336E | Quercus | sp. (imbricaria x rubra F2) | Hybrid Red Oak | 2000 | 17th Governor of Iowa, Leslie M. Shaw, Arbor Day 2000 | |
820336F | Quercus | sp. (imbricaria x rubra F2) | Hybrid Red Oak | 2005 | 7th Governor of Iowa, Samuel Merrill, Arbor Day 2005 | |
820336D | Quercus | sp. (imbricaria x rubra F2) | Hybrid Red Oak | 1999 | 14th Governor of Iowa, Horace Boies, Arbor Day 1999 | |
820336C | Quercus | sp. (imbricaria x rubra F2) | Hybrid Red Oak | 1989 | 1st Governor of Iowa, Ansel Briggs, Arbor Day 1989 | |
820339 | Quercus | x exacta (imbricaria x palustris) | Laurelpin Oak | 1997 | 6th Governor of Iowa, Harold E. Hughes, Arbor Day 1997 | |
830153 | Pinus | densiflora | ‘Umbraculifera’ | Japanese Red Pine | ||
830237 | Quercus | x runcinata (imbricaria x rubra) | Hybrid Oak | 1990 | 1st Territorial Governor of Iowa, Robert Lucas, Arbor Day 1990 | |
830254 | Quercus | velutina | Black Oak | 1994 | 3rd Governor of Iowa, James W. Grimes, Arbor Day 1994 | |
830256C | Quercus | imbricaria | Shingle Oak | |||
830264 | Quercus | muehlenbergii | Chinkapin Oak | 1983 | 35th Governor of Iowa, Norman Erbe, Arbor Day 1983 | |
840090 | Quercus | palustris | Pin Oak | |||
850013A | Malus | x | ‘Professor Sprenger’ | Professor Sprenger Crabapple | ||
850031A | Quercus | macrocarpa | Bur Oak | 1993 | 20th Governor of Iowa, Beryl F. Carroll, Arbor Day 1993 | |
850031B | Quercus | macrocarpa | Bur Oak | 2007 | 10th Governor of Iowa, Joshua Newbold, Arbor Day 2007 | |
880003A | Quercus | muehlenbergii | Chinkapin Oak | 2006 | 8th Governor of Iowa, Cyrus Carpenter, Arbor Day 2006 | |
880003B | Quercus | muehlenbergii | Chinkapin Oak | |||
910050B | Quercus | sp. | Hybrid Oak | 1992 | Iowa’s Sesquicentennial | |
990201 | Pinus | strobus | White Pine | |||
910050A | Quercus | sp. | Hybrid Oak | 1992 | Iowa Arboretum 25th Anniversary | |
820293 | Quercus | alba | White Oak | 1983 | 39th Governor of Iowa, Terry Branstad, Arbor Day 1983 |
*This collection page was last updated on February 28, 2018.