Mount St. Mary Park in St. Charles earns arboretum status
In addition to being a beautiful space where community members gather, walk and play, Mount St. Mary Park in St. Charles is also officially an arboretum.
The park enjoys Level II accreditation from ArbNet, an interactive, collaborative, international community of arboreta and tree-focused professionals. The Morton Arboretum in Lisle is the organization behind ArbNet, which supports tree-focused gardens around the world as they work toward their institutional goals.
Level II accreditation requires that a number of standards are met. Among them are a comprehensive plan for the space, labeled trees and woody plants, support from staff and a policy for the space’s living collections. To achieve level II — four levels exist in total — the arboretum must also have a minimum of 100 species, varieties or cultivars of trees or woody plants.
“Mount St. Mary Park is a keystone property to the district and is the top visited park with its large hardscaped pathways, riverfront view, and sculptures,” said David Svitak, arbor supervisor for St. Charles parks and the person who led the process for ArbNet accreditation. “For the past 10 years, we have been adding new species to the park every planting season, and I have been guiding park tree tours during the bloom and fall colors seasons for many years.”
Most recently, the park has become home to a variety of native oak and hickory species. The adjacent Fox River also helps many water-loving species to thrive.
These include bald cypress, river birch and swamp oak. Some of the most mature trees are well over 100 years old, and are among the most eye-catching at the 30-acre park.
The impressive display of fall color is due to the diversity of trees throughout the space, Svitak said, adding that the park’s ornamental flowering trees are an especially welcome sight during the spring season. Additional highlights are landscape beds filled with a carefully curated selection of perennials and annuals.
Mount St. Mary Park is the only accredited arboretum in the Tri-Cities, and more than one mile of trails give visitors the opportunity to explore the park’s exceptional tree and plant life for themselves.
Learn more about the park and its popular “Sculpture in the Park” display at www.stcsculpture.org.