Orland E. White Research Arboretum

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The Orland E. White Research Arboretum (172 acres), also known as the State Arboretum of Virginia, is an arboretum operated by the University of Virginia as part of the Blandy Experimental Farm (700 acres). It is located at 400 Blandy Farm Lane, Boyce, Virginia, and open daily without fee.

Blandy Farm was created in 1926 by a donation from Graham F. Blandy for horticultural research. The arboretum itself was established in 1927 by the farm's first director, Orland E. White, and in 1955 was named in his honor upon his retirement. Early research focused on cytological reconstruction of plant phylogenies and the consequences of irradiation-induced mutations. It became the official State Arboretum in 1986.

Today the arboretum is maintained primarily for environmental research and education. It contains more than 8,000 trees and woody shrubs, representing over 1,000 species and cultivated varieties of plants in 50 plant families. Of particular interest are its collection of boxwood cultivars (said to be the largest in North America) and its pine collection, representing over half of the world's species. Other arboretum features include a Ginkgo biloba grove (more than 300 trees), the Virginia Native Plant Trail (established 1997), extensive meadows, and plantings of azalea, beech, buckeye, catalpa, Cedar of Lebanon, crabapple, holly, lilac, linden, magnolia, maple, stuartia, and viburnum.

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