OWNERSHIP
CONDITIONS
CONTEXT
HISTORY

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OWNERSHIP:
Unlike the majority of the Arnold Arboretum, which is owned by the City of Boston and leased to Harvard University to be managed as a publicly accessible park, this section is owned by the Harvard College Presidents and Fellows.

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CONDITIONS:
The Dana Greenhouses and Nursery are where all Arnold Arboretum plant material is propagated and maintained until planted on the grounds. There are four greenhouses, and most of the plant material that is grown in the greenhouses is sold as opposed to planted in the Arboretum. Large numbers of hardwood seedlings are sold from the Dana Greenhouses each year.

The Larz Anderson Bonsai Collection is located next to the Dana Greenhouses and Nursery. The collection is housed in a hexagonal Douglas fir lath house during the spring, summer, and early fall. This open-air building protects the collection while offering visitors views of the trees unobstructed by glass.

During the winter months, the trees are kept in a special building that maintains temperatures between 33 and 35 degrees Fahrenheit.

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CONTEXT:
The Greenhouses and Nursery are next to the new shrub and vine collection, which was opened in the summer of 2002 in a special section of the Arnold Arboretum that is set apart from the main area.

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HISTORY:
The Charles Stratton Dana Greenhouses were constructed in 1963. In 1937, when the Lars Anderson Bonsai Collection was first established, there were 39 plants in the collection. Fifteen of them remained in 1989. In 1986, six plants were stolen from the bonsai collection, including three Japanese maples that were part of the original collection. In 1987, in response to the break-in, the Arnold Arboretum Associates renovated the bonsai house and installed a new security system (Del Tredici, P. "Early American Bonsai: the Larz Anderson Collection of the Arnold Arboretum," Arnoldia, 1989).

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