arboretum
An arboretum (plural: arboreta) in a general sense is a botanical collection composed exclusively of trees of a variety of species. Originally mostly created as a section in a larger garden or park for specimens of mostly non-local species, man ...
of 800 acres (3.2 km2) adjacent to
Carleton College
Carleton College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Northfield, Minnesota. Founded in 1866, it had 2,105 undergraduate students and 269 faculty members in fall 2016. The 200-acre main campus is between Northfield and the 800-acre Cowling ...
in
Northfield, Minnesota
Northfield is a city in Dakota and Rice counties in the State of Minnesota. It is mostly in Rice County, with a small portion in Dakota County. The population was 20,790 at the 2020 census.
History
Northfield was platted in 1856 by John W. N ...
. It is located on a natural border between prairie and forest habitat, and in part on the floodplain of the Cannon River, and is open to the public without any fees.
The Arboretum was established by Donald J. Cowling and Harvey E. Stork in the 1920s for education, conservation, and recreation. It is a
Minnesota
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
State Game Refuge, with some 10 miles of trails, and displays both native and non-native trees and shrubs.