Recently, I came across and article on the University of South Carolina’s W. Gordon Besler Arboretum, right here in the heart of Columbia, SC and just off of Divine Street. I had no idea that such a vast nature preserve existed within Columbia!
Excited by the prospect of the Arboretum, I gathered several friends who were also eager to experience an educational adventure on a Sunday afternoon. We entered the park and found laminated maps that were available and identified the different sections of the preserve. There are 10 different biomes within the Arboretum, including the Eastern Prairie, the Bottomland Hardwood Forest, the Upland Hardwood Forest, the Wetland Community, the Riparian Community, the American Beech Forest, the Bright-Resistant American Chestnut Forest, the Bald Cypress Swamp, the Ice Age Relict Community, and the Pine Grove.
We started down the Arboretum Loop, passing “The Orchard” and an outdoor classroom for USC students. Just beyond the classroom, we ventured down a side-path to the “Zen Garden.” The path was a bit overgrown, and we even had to veer off of it at one point due to a beautifully constructed spider web that we wanted to preserve. The path abruptly ended with a fallen tree, so we turned around to return to the main pathway. Once we got closer to Arboretum Loop, we were greeted by a crowd of people and immediately captivated by the conservational spirit of Dr. Pat DeCoursey. Since 2007, Dr. DeCoursey has dedicated thousands of volunteer hours to renovating the Arboretum, and in 2011, she was awarded the 2011 South Carolina Environmental Awareness Award for re-foresting the W. Gordon Besler Arboretum. She is the face of the Arboretum and greets guests during the Sunday Open Houses.
Dr. DeCoursey told us that the reason that the trail that we were exploring was closed off was because the Arboretum experienced a tremendous amount of damage earlier in the summer from a storm. Many large trees fell, and volunteers are still working to clear all of the debris. We were sad to miss the Zen Garden, but there was a lot more for us to see!
By this time, we had gathered with a local father and his seven year old son, listening to Dr. DeCoursey tell us more about the Arboretum. She had promised the son a tasting of the fruit of the PawPaw Tree, and she invited us to return to the picnic table by the entrance to try a piece of the fruit. I had never heard of a PawPaw Tree, but she pointed them out to us along the way and also explained that they are the largest trees in North America that produce edible fruit. Who knew? Native to Kentucky, these trees produce a round, cylindrical fruit which tasted to us like a cross between a mango and a banana with a rich texture and large seeds.
PawPaw Fruit in Tree
PawPaw Fruit
PawPaw Fruit
After enjoying the fruit and talking with the group around the picnic table for some time, we were sad to part with Dr. DeCoursey as she had other visitors to attend to, but we were excited to explore the rest of the Arboretum Loop on our own. The loop includes many biomes, and we especially liked the Cypress Swamp which reminded us of our recent visit to Cypress Gardens. The swamp was mostly dried up since it has been such a warm summer, and we all commented that this would be a wonderful place to visit monthly to see how the plants and surrounding look different during each season. One of my favorite plants was a tree with bright fuchsia colored berries.
In the short time that we were with her in the Arboretum, Dr. DeCoursey was able to engage our diverse group, educate us on wide variety of plants in the Arboretum, and create a sense of community among strangers. I would highly recommend a trip to the USC Arboretum. Please be advised that the Arboretum is only open to the public the third Sunday of every month from 1:00 - 4:00 p.m., so be sure to plan ahead for this afternoon of exploration. Located at 4080 Bloomwood Road within the residential Sherwood Forest district, only street parking is available. Admission is free, but donations are accepted. For more information, visit http://arboretum.biol.sc.edu/.
Kindest Warrior
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