Welcome!

The beauty of the Hastings College campus is due in part to the tradition of tree planting and care beginning with the first spring planting season in 1883 and, with the help of countless volunteers and professionals, continuing to the present. Come explore the HC Arboretum, rich with old and young trees and species variety, located in the heart of the Great Plains near the 40th parallel and 98th meridian at an elevation of approximately 1,920’.

About this Site:

How to Use:

Click on “History” if you want to learn more about the story of HC trees in text and photos from 1883 to the present.  The campus is divided into sections such as Circle Drive, Taylor Hall, Gray Center, etc. Click on the campus section that you are interested in and then click on a particular tree for more details. Some 150 campus trees on the older parts of the campus are signposted and we have chosen these to post on this website. We will add trees from time to time. You will see photos of trees and additional information such as common name, Latin name, family, location by latitude and longitude, and height at maturity. Some trees will have special notes such as the Autumn Blaze red maple (south of French Chapel) that was planted in memory of Virginia Tech students.

If you wish to search the campus for a particular kind of tree, type the name of the tree into the search field on the left. A list of campus areas with that type of tree will be displayed.

Mission:

1. To provide learning opportunities for students at HC, CCC, area K-12 students, and the Hastings Community.
2. To demonstrate the importance of species diversity, environmentally sound landscaping design and technique.
3. To provide enjoyment for students, faculty, staff, alums, community, visitors.
4. To show appreciation for over a century of professional and volunteer work on the HC Arboretum.
5. To demonstrate the value of trees and the importance of planting for future generations.

Credits and Thanks:

• Paul Dooley – Curator & Maintenance Manager and his staff.
• Jim Ruzicka – Director of Physical Plant Services.
• Christian Fruehling – Web Content Manager. Design and construction of website.
• Dr. Will Locke ’61 – Emeritus Professor of Teacher Education, volunteer  of arboretum project, digital photography, arboretum history research, update of tree census notebook.
• Brooke Biggerstaff, John Major, Brandi Stanek – HC seniors who created arboretum website design as class project for Advanced Media Design class.
• Brett Erickson – Assistant Professor of Communications Arts, instructor for student design project.
• Matt Fong – Tribute Tree Program
• Chris Schukei and Pete Theoharis of Marketing and Communications.
• Troop 200 – Eagle Scout candidate Thomas Freetly and other scouts, scoutmaster Harvey Freetly. Installed tree plaques and posts.
• Dr. Fred Mattes – Emeritus Professor of Chemistry, digital photography.
• Justin Evertson, Bob Hendrickson, Karma Larsen of the Nebraska State Arboretum – Identification and support.
• John Anderson, Gilbert Adrian, Joachim Wunderlich – Tree identification.
• Dr. Elinore Barber – HC historian/archivist.  Photos and records from HC archives.
• Catherine Renschler – Adams County Historical Society.  Photos and newspaper articles from archives.
• Fred Condos, Judee Konen, Turner McGehee, Cheryl Woods, Cheryl Wray.
• All volunteers – individuals and groups.

Contact Information:

Contact Dr. Will Locke (’61), Professor Emeritus of Teacher Education, with comments and suggestions. We are looking for photos, records, clippings, letters, and personal recollections of campus trees from the full span of HC history. If you or a group would like a tour of the HC arboretum, contact Dr. Locke.

An Affiliate Site of the Nebraska Statewide Arboretum