Hunterdon County Arboretum

The Hunterdon County Arboretum was originally a 73 acre tree nursery that was sold to the county in 1974. Upon entering through a deer fence, I was pleasantly surprised to find display gardens.



My favorite was the Alphabet Herb Garden.


Each letter corresponds to an herb. The veggie patch was past its prime, but still attractive.


The centerpiece of the display gardens is this two level gazebo built in 1892, moved to the site in 1979 and renovated in 1997.


I love its rustic features.


From inside the gazebo, you get a bird’s eye view of the rock garden, cut flower garden and butterfly garden.



This was a perfect time to visit the arboretum. The trees are just beginning to show their fall colors.


Then it was off to explore the two miles of trails.




There was something strangely attractive about this dead tree.


Vines were everywhere. I don’t think these are poison ivy vines, though.



As I traveled further into the woods, the path became less distinct.


Suddenly, it opened into a pine forest that reminded me of the towering pines of the Adirondack Mountains.


This looks familiar too! Turkey Tail fungus. I learned about it on a mushroom walk through Helyar Woods at Rutgers Gardens.


The pine forest gave way to deciduous trees once more. Look at the thorns on this one.


Don’t these trees make a great hedge?


Occasionally I turned a corner and was stopped dead in my tracks by color.



Scenes like this make it difficult to believe I am in New Jersey, the most densely populated state in the country.


I’m so glad that there are still a few places left where one can get away from strip malls, condos and MacMansions.

More pictures of my trip to Hunterdon County Arboretum can be seen on Flickr.