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Table of Contents

Tours

1. Campus Tree Tour

   Self-guided tour of CSU's notable trees and collections

   Stops

   1. Common Horsechestnut

      Aesculus hippocastanum
      

   2. White Ash

      Fraxinus americana 

   3. Common Hackberry (Celtis occidentalis) - state champion

      CSU’s first mass planting of 3,000 trees occurred in 1881! Many are still alive today. The 1881 planting included a row of hackberry trees extending from Old Main Drive to Laurel Avenue, just east of Spruce Hall. Two of those original 1881 hackberry trees are growing today and are among the largest in Colorado.

   4. Engelmann Spruce

      Picea engelmannii 

   5. Rock Elm (Ulmus thomasii) - state champion

      CSU has been home to many state champions over the years. A champion tree exceeds all others in the state in a combination of height, trunk circumference and canopy spread. The most notable state tree champion at CSU today is a 117-foot-tall Rock elm—the fifth tree from the corner of College and Laurel. It was part of the 1892 tree plantings along the College Avenue and Laurel Street frontages.

   6. Bur Oak

      Quercus macrocarpa 

   7. Arizona Cypress

      Cupressus arizonica 

   8. Kentucky Coffeetree

      Gymnocladus dioicus  

   9. The Oval

      The Oval elm collection dating from 1881, is preserved for the long-term benefit of university and has continuing research value in finding efficacious treatments for evolving exotic pests of elm. The American elms on the Oval are as high as 90 feet tall with roots that exceed their height.

      Read about the Oval's history: The Oval - Fun Facts & History

   10. American Linden

       Tilia americana

   11. Colorado Spruce

       Picea pungens

   12. American Elm (Ulmus americana)

       The American Elm by the northwest corner of the Natural Resource Research Lab is a deciduous beauty over 90 years old. Its canopy is twice as wide as its height at approximately 110 ft. wide and 50 ft tall—a unique feature for elms in an urban environment, including on campus. This elm is archetypal, a tree that embraces you and reminds you of childhood. The sculptural arrangement of the limbs is extraordinary—they cross and lace across each other. The shadow and light of the day provides continual visual interest with the changing patterns. A person is drawn to be beneath the tree, looking up into its canopy, as well as to admire it from a distance. Because the branches are so wide spreading, it is one of few trees on campus that has an additional support system cabled within the limbs to preserve and protect its stability and long-term future.

   13. Sherwood Forest

       The trees in this quiet place were planted in the 1930s by State Forester Russell E. Ford. In later years, it was unofficially designated “Sherwood Forest” by the students of the College of Forestry and Natural Resources. When asked why he planted trees that he would never see to maturity, Ford’s reply was, “They are not for me; they are for our kids, their kids and all their friends – they are for the future.”

   14. Ohio Buckeye

       Aesculus glabra

   15. Northern Catalpa

       Catalpa speciosa 

   16. Shagbark Hickory

       Carya ovata

   17. European Hornbeam (Carpinus betulus)

       This European Hornbeam was planted in the original Perennial Gardens on the main campus, arriving in 1986 from Schichtel’s Nursery in New York. In 2016, with the construction of Canvas Stadium and associated practice fields, CSU recognized the value and benefits of this hornbeam, relocating it to the Heritage Garden & Arboretum, which has the largest collections of woody plants in the region with over 1,100 different taxa represented. In fact, the hornbeam was moved by the largest tree spade then available in the state of CO.

   18. Heritage Arboretum

       Heritage Arboretum & Garden

       The Heritage Arboretum is an extraordinary collection on main campus—perfect for clearing your mind during a busy day. Visitors have been known to spot a deer or two while walking along the winding paths. Have you visited? It exists as a mini-refuge immediately west of Canvas Stadium. A million dollars of improvements went into upgrades of this space in conjunction with the construction of the stadium.

       The Heritage Arboretum at CSU has the largest collections of woody plants in the region with over 1,100 different taxa represented. The Heritage Gardens showcase the agricultural heritage from six major regions in Colorado. Presently, a computerized method for collection, storage, and retrieval of information on plant performance has been implemented for all the woody plants. New plants are continually being added to and evaluated in the collection.