University of Tennessee Forest Resources Research Center

Have you noticed the new walking trails under construction at the UT Arboretum?

It is all due to a grant received as part of the Recreation Trails Program, sponsored by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, in Nashville, TN.

You may have already enjoyed our newest addition, the Cemetery Ridge Trail, with its restful benches, or observed the various new trails under construction, or perhaps you noticed your favorite trail has been recently renovated for your enhanced enjoyment. Some of this work was done by our talented staff, but a great deal has been through the efforts of our extremely valuable volunteers.

We have been fortunate to have the assistance of local Boy Scouts of America troops, as well as local engineers, graphic artists, biologists, and people just like you who volunteer their time and energy to enhance everyone’s visit to the UT Arboretum, and it’s many walking trails.

We are still looking for Trail Rangers to assist with the trail maintenance. Classes were pushed back for a time, but we hope to have our first training session soon. Would you be interested? Please call our office, 865-483-3571, and leave your name and contact number. We would be delighted to have you join us in our effort to provide a wonderful place to enjoy nature, in the heart of Oak Ridge, Tennessee.

Weather Station at the Arboretum

The UT Forest Resources Research and Education Center, in partnership with the Oak Ridge Office of the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration - Atmospheric Turbulence and Diffusion Division (NOAA-ATDD), is hosting the newly established weather measurements and recording station for Oak Ridge, TN. This "weather station" is located on an exposed knoll of Chestnut Ridge near the TVA Power Line corridor and is within an area of the UT Arboretum.

ATDD's main function is to perform air quality and climate-related research directed toward issues of national and global importance. ATDD began as a Weather Bureau Special Projects research office established in 1948 under the Atomic Energy Commission sponsorship in Oak Ridge, and still serves as a source of meteorological information and expertise for the US Department of Energy and its contractors in Oak Ridge.

According to Richard Evans, Forest Resources Center and Arboretum Director, "Weather/climate information is an important variable in evaluating the performance of both native and ornamental plants, as well as environmental conditions associated with studying wildlife and plant communities. Given the mission of the Center and Arboretum in supporting a wide array of natural resources research and plant evaluation trials, having an on-site weather station is an immense asset to the faculty and students who are conducting research at this location."

At present this NOAA-ATDD weather station is instrumented to collect data on basic environmental stress factors. Over time, however, the station will be outfitted with more environmental and atmospheric data collecting instruments for broader and more elaborate measurements of environmental stress parameters. Oak Ridge NOAA-ATDD will soon provide on-line historic and current weather reports via their web-link at http://www.atdd.noaa.gov.

New Parking Lot for Arboretum

"We are hoping to begin construction in February on a new parking lot - completely paved, larger (space for 42 cars and 3 busses), easy in-and-out access, handicap accessible to the Office/Visitors Center, and landscaped to compliment the Arboretum. Our site plan has been presented to the City of Oak Ridge for approval, and we are awaiting the green light. How we are going to construct a parking lot on top of the old site and accommodate visitors at the same time has not been quite worked out yet.

Partial funding for the parking lot comes from the same source as the funds for trail improvements - the Tennessee Department of Conservation, Recreational Trails Program. The parking lot is essential to visitor's use and enjoyment of the whole Arboretum and, since the trail system is a major feature of the Arboretum, improvements to parking is necessary for the public's convenient access to the trails. A feature associated with the parking lot, if funds permit, will be a visitor's restroom facility. Restrooms have high maintenance costs and are dependent on the public's respect for this convenience.

From the new parking lot, visitors will be able to access the greater part of the Arboretum's plant collection via a paved handicapable trail that will parallel the Valley Road and end in the Heath Cove. This feature will further improve access to the Arboretum for not only those with a handicap, but for those who might have difficulty walking and for parents with baby strollers.

New Arboretum Trail Ranger Program

The Arboretum is unveiling an initiative to organize an "Arboretum Trail Ranger" Corp. UT Arboretum Trail Rangers are volunteers who assist the Arboretum in the maintenance and improvements of the Arboretum Trails. Trail Rangers will receive training in proper trail construction, maintenance techniques, and will learn about the unique features along each trail. They will also make trail signs and markers, and be available to answer visitor's general questions concerning the Arboretum and its trails.