The University of Maryland Arboretum and Botanical Garden is located on the grounds of the University of Maryland - College Park. The Arboretum and Botanical Garden is free to visit and is used as an outdoor classroom for a variety of courses at the University. There is an established Central Campus Tree Walking Tour that is based around McKeldin Mall

McKeldin Mall

McKeldin Mall is a nine-acre area in the heart of the campus of the University of Maryland, College Park. Named after Theodore McKeldin, the former Governor of Maryland, McKeldin Mall is the largest academic mall in the United States.-Description:...

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About the Arboretum and Botanical Garden

"The University of Maryland, the state’s flagship campus, is located in the Baltimore-Washington corridor. The American Association of Public Gardens, by designating the university as an arboretum and botanical garden in 2008, recognized President C.D. Mote, Jr.’s commitment to becoming a green campus. Maryland is also the first university in the state to be honored as a Tree Campus USA by the Arbor Day Foundation.

The Campus inventory of 8,000 trees, garden plantings and nearly 400 acres of undeveloped urban forest is a beautiful reminder of Maryland’s history and a harbinger of Maryland’s future. The university look at the campus’ green space as a major resource for its educational, research and service missions."

Mission

"The University of Maryland campus is an Arboretum and Botanical Garden that strives to be an instrument of horticultural distinction, landscape design and interpretation, and place-making reflecting the university’s education, research and service missions. The Arboretum and Botanical Garden incorporates the diverse heritage landscapes of the campus from its beginnings as an agricultural college founded in 1856 to its current urban setting befitting a distinguished research university. Through exemplary practices of environmental stewardship, horticulture and urban forestry, the Arboretum and Botanical Garden will enhance the campus’ aesthetic and promote awareness of conservation and preservation of our natural environment for the enrichment of the university community, the citizens of Maryland and our visitors."

History

"The State of Maryland

Maryland

Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...

chartered the Maryland Agricultural College in 1856 to offer a practical and scientific education to the sons of farmers. The original site of the college consisted of 428 acres and was part of the Rossborough Farms, then owned by Charles B. Calvert, a prime mover in planning and securing the college.

Located in northwestern Prince George’s County, the campus comprises 1,250 acres of rolling topography, east of the fall line in the westernmost portion of the Coastal Plain Province and within the Anacostia-Potomac-Chesapeake Bay Watershed. Over its history, the campus’ landscape heritage has evolved to comprise a variety of eco-cultural landscape types that a trained eye may recognize on a campus walk."

Visit the ABG website for more information