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Overland Park Arboretum and Botanical Gardens (120 hectares / 300 acres) is a public arboretum and botanical garden located a mile west of U.S. Highway 69 on 179th Street, Overland Park, Kansas. It is operated by the City of Overland Park.

The arboretum includes mature trees and limestone bluffs, with almost 5 miles (8.0 km) of trails and two bridges across Wolf Creek, a major tributary of the Blue River. The site was annexed by the city in 1994 and the first garden, the Erickson Water Garden, was dedicated in 1996. Nearly 85 percent of the site is set aside for natural ecosystems. The remaining property is earmarked for gardens, buildings, walking/hiking trails, and facilities. The Environmental Education Visitors Center (EEVC) is located toward the front of the park and serves as the formal entrance. The EEVC also serves as the starting point for guided tours.

Features

At present, 8 ecosystems have been identified within the arboretum:

Ecosystems

• Dry-mesic prairie - grasses such as big bluestem, little bluestem, and Indian grass.

• Dry Oak Savanna - widely spaced oaks in a prairie invaded by woody species.

• Dry Oak-Hickory - shagbark hickory, black oak, and post oak.

• Mesic Oak-Hickory Forest - white ash, bitternut hickory, shagbark hickory, hackberry, leatherwood, bur oak, red oak, chinquapin oak, pawpaw, and black walnut.

• Riparian Woodland - green ash, eastern cottonwood, elm, hackberry, bitternut hickory, silver maple, honey locust, red mulberry, bur aak, osage-orange, sycamore, black walnut, and black willow.

• Wooded Draws - juniper, rough-leaf dogwood, red elm, and buck brush as well as pale purple coneflower, milkweeds, prickly pear, and grasses.

• Dry Wooded Swales - Similar to the Wooded Draws but with dryer, shallower soil.

• Old Field - a severely disturbed zone due to over-grazing and cropping.

Gardens

• Welcoming Garden - various flowers and shrubs, located on the 178th street entrance.

• Erickson Water Garden - a Daffodil collection, wildflowers and ornamental grasses including "bird and butterfly" plants.

• Xeriscape Garden - assorted plants grouped according to water needs.

• Marder Woodland Garden - three acres of woodlands including regional trees, woodland hybrids, native plants, and a koi pond.

• Legacy Garden - plants native or naturalized to Kansas. Contains four time capsules scheduled to be opened every 25 years.

• Children's Discovery Garden - a story tree, frog pond, mulberry wood, turf maze, and other amusements for children.

• Monet Garden - one acre of colorful trees and shrubs embodying the style of Claude Monet's famous paintings of the gardens at Giverny. This garden is maintained by the Kansas State University Extension Master Gardener program volunteers.

• Cohen Iris Garden - Irises mixed with a variety of other annuals and perennials.

• Train Garden - miniature train attraction for children. A restored train caboose was donated and installed at this site in 2011. This area is currently under construction but the current park plans include a hydrangea garden, a model town, and anywhere from 3 to 5 G scale train tracks.

International Sculpture Garden

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Controversy

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• 
  Waterfall and Flowers at the Water Garden.

External links

• Overland Park Arboretum and Botanical Gardens

See also

• List of botanical gardens in the United States

References

Category:Arboreta in Kansas Category:Botanical gardens in Kansas Category:Geography of Overland Park, Kansas Category:Protected areas of Johnson County, Kansas