YELLOWSTONE ARBORETUM
" Stewards of the Natural Environment "
Billings, Montana @ ZooMontana
Yellowstone Arboretum
Quarterly Newsletter - Spring Edition
Bailey Collection
Pinktini Lilac
Spring at the Arboretum - Life Begins Anew
" New Collections and New Visions "
Fireside Ninebark-Plaza
Sweet Cherry Pie Cherry-Orchard lane
Japanese Rose-Asian Habitats
We are looking forward to a busy year at the arboretum. The three photos above represent more than 150 new introductions that you'll be able to experience in the arboretum and botanical gardens starting this spring. This includes both native and non-native plants from North America, Europe and Asia. The majority of these plants are courtesy of collaboration with Bailey Nurseries. Read more below. The arboretum is also in the process of expanding its association with the Global Conservation Consortium by securing specimens for a new "Sorbus" collection. This will be our fourth membership in the GCC. Volunteers will be busy with fertilizing and re-mulching trees early this spring as well as up-potting seedlings that were over wintered. Life at the arboretum !
Tianshan Seven Son Flower
Introducing the New Bailey Collection
The Yellowstone Arboretum, Botanical Park and ZooMontana is happy to announce its collaboration with Bailey Nurseries one of America's oldest, largest and most respected wholesale nurseries in the country. This program will go beyond the display of beautiful trees and shrubs but will unite local nurseries that carry Bailey products with their customers and the enhanced beauty of their Bailey plants on the grounds of the Zoo. Once planting ends the arboretum website will offer a complete mapping experience for nursery customers and Zoo visitors to observe these plants in a natural garden setting. Through close observation and nurturing the arboretum and botanical gardens will also be able to report to Baileys on the ongoing health and survival of these plants in our Montana climate. The new collection contains almost 90 plants including Ninebark, Lilacs, Dogwoods, Hibiscus, Roses, Hydrangea and more !
Curl Leaf Mountain Mahogany
"Other New Introductions"
Expect some new additions to three animal habitats this season. the Bison exhibit will be refreshed with Lanceleaf Cottonwood and Silver Poplar. The Wolf Woodlands will get Quaking Aspen while the upper tiger viewing area will see native Wood's Roses.
The Pathway Pots will be the first year home of seedlings including Juniper, Pine, Potentilla, Sage and Flax. These specimens will be nursed through the summer and then transplanted to their final homes in the fall.
Other trees and plants will be planted throughout the grounds including new natives in and around the Foster Refuge, non-natives at Homestead and along the pathway system. These specimens include native Currants, Silverberry, and Mountain Mahogany plus new dwarfs in the Beartooth Pinetum. Most all of these are new introductions to the arboretum inventory.
And finally, after a four year search, the arboretum was able to secure two new unique Maples, acer campestre "Carnival". This special small tree (right) will compliment the other acer campestre "Hedge Maples" located on the south side of the Wolf Woodlands habitat.
Silverberry
"Special Training and Tree Forum"
The arboretum, botanical gardens and ZooMontana are pleased to offer a special tree pruning course in conjunction with the MSU Extension Office and Yellowstone County Extension Office. This workshop will be presented by Sarah Eilers MSU Master Gardener Coordinator. Sarah is an ISA certified arborist. It will be open only to Yellowstone County master gardeners and ZooMontana botanical park and arboretum volunteers. Topics will include plant identification, proper pruning practices, pruning types and timing, scouting for insects and diseases, mulching, site awareness, water requirements and safety. A follow-up workshop on tree planting will be available for ZooMontana volunteers in April (TBA). The date for the pruning workshop is March 13th at 1:00 beginning in the ZooMontana Community Room.
A public "Billings Urban Tree Forum" has been scheduled for March 14th at 9 a.m. in the Billings Library Community Room. Sarah Eilers' presentation will tackle some of the common tree strategies in an urban setting. A panel of experts will be on hand to answer questions. A follow-up tree forum will be announced soon!
Seating is limited for the pruning workshop. You can email your reservation to:
"A Tree for all Seasons"
The Yellowstone Arboretum is excited to announce a new addition to its inventory. Courtesy of a fantastic donation from Apple Creek Propagators of Bonners Ferry Idaho a unique Montana bred Sugar Maple will find a new home in the ZooMontana Plaza. Meet the 'Gallatin' Sugar Maple tree. Here's the story provided by propagator
Aaron Pruitt:
"This new sugar maple cultivar is a selection from a block of seedlings I propagated by seed collected from mature trees in the Sunset Hills Cemetery of Bozeman, Montana in 1992. By this tree's fifth year, I observed distinct hardiness and fall color characteristics which set it apart from other sugar maples growing in my private, non-commercial, hobby nursery. I transplanted the tree in 1997 to it's permanent location in my farm pasture, where over the next 29 years it has flourished eight miles west of Bozeman. This cultivar consistently enters dormancy one to two weeks earlier in the fall than my other seed propagated sugar maples, and approximately 3-4 weeks before the 'Green Mountain' sugar maple cultivar also growing on my farm. At 4,800 feet in elevation, Bozeman sits in a high Rocky Mountain valley. In addition to a very short growing season, the region is regularly subject to dramatic and rapid temperature swings. Many tree species in the Bozeman area, including sugar maples, periodically exhibit mild to severe winter dieback resulting from early October freezes. My sugar maple's early dormancy trail protects it from frost with little to no tissue damage. In addition to exceptional cold hardiness, the tree exhibits a consistently brilliant red leaf fall color, deeper in saturation and more intense that the common sugar maple"
The arboretum's specimen will be planted in the Zoo Plaza.
"What is Browse"
Arboretums serve as vital, natural, habitats for local wildlife and, in some cases, provide browse (fresh foliage) for zoo animals. Common wild browsers like deer, rabbits, and rodents frequently forage, while, in urban areas, horticulturalists sometimes partner with zoos to provide sustainable browse—such as bamboo, willow, poplar, cottonwood and maple—to herbivorous animals.
Key Aspects of Animal Browsing in Arboretums:
Wild Animal Foraging:
Native herbivores like deer can heavily browse young trees, particularly in winter when food is scarce, potentially causing significant damage to collections.
Zoo Browse Program:
Arboretums like the Yellowstone Arboretum are fortunate to be a part of ZooMontana so collected trimmed branches (browse) can be chosen for Red Panda, Takin, goats, and other zoo animals to provide necessary nutritional benefits and behavioral enrichment.
Ecological Role:
The plants and trees offer food and habitat for various animals, including birds, insects, and small mammals.
Visitors can look for evidence of browsing, such as deer browsing on twigs, rabbit gnawing, or, in some cases, bird damage (e.g., woodpeckers).
Browse is defined as any natural plant material that an animal is
provided access to. This may be given for many reasons including bedding, shelter, enrichment, or as a part of their diet.
The goal of the ZooMontana browse program is to provide an
assortment of safe plant materials to our animals, while at the same time striving to prevent exposing our animals to potentially hazardous plants. This
is done by providing easy to access reference materials such as the respected "ZooMontana Browse Book".
Yellowstone Arboretum Partners
Don't forget our
feature articles
FEATURES
COMINGS & GOINGS
The 4th Annual Billings Community Seed Library (BCSL) Seed Swap is on March 7, 2026, from 11:00 AM to 1:30 PM at the Billings Public Library (510 N. Broadway). This free event allows residents to swap seeds, meet local experts, and obtain free vegetable, herb, and flower seeds.
PRUNING WORKSHOP
(Master gardeners & ZooMontana Volunteers) Friday March 13, 1:00 p.m.
ZooMontana Community Room
See article at left
REGISTER NOW BY EMAIL...
BILLINGS URBAN TREE FORUM
(Open to the public)
Saturday March 14, 9 a.m.
Billings Library Community Room
See article at left
PARTY FOR THE PLANET
ARBOR DAY
EARTH DAY
(Open to public)
April 18th at ZooMontana
More info coming soon !
Campus tree planting April 23
Educational Tours April 28-30
School District 2 Project
SD2, the Arbor Day Foundation, Montana Urban and Community Forestry Association and the Yellowstone Arboretum are collaborating to initiate a tree planting and educational opportunity for students from 6 campuses in Billings Heights starting this spring. A generous corporate donation is funding the planting of trees at the schools and providing tours of the arboretum with an emphasis on ethnobotany and indigenous cultures. There are hopes that this project will evolve into a district wide program
If you are an educator, plan on booking one of our fun tours of the arboretum for your students this spring. Contact us today !
Seeking Volunteers !
"Free Training"
Are you looking for a great volunteer opportunity that gets you outdoors, where you can meet new people, help a worthy cause and enjoy nature ? If so, consider volunteering at the Yellowstone Arboretum. We perform all facets of tree maintenance on some of the coolest trees in Montana. Work at your own pace and schedule and the pay is priceless.
or
email: billingsbotanical1@gmail.com
We want to thank all of the volunteers who helped to make 2025 a successful year. Special thanks goes out to the arboretum team who volunteered on a regular basis. This includes our interns who have chosen to come back for the spring semester.
Plus all the community volunteers, and there were hundreds, who cleaned up the Dell, removed Buckthorn, planted trees, sowed wildflower seeds and collected herbarium specimens.
THANKS !
The Yellowstone Arboretum and ZooMontana are now ambassadors for Weather-Ready Nation. WRN is a National Weather Service initiative to further organizational readiness and responsibility to serve the safety needs of members visitors in times of severe weather.
OUR MISSION STATEMENT
"The mission of the Yellowstone Arboretum is to cultivate arboreta appreciation and understanding of our local heritage through public education, organic preservation and stewardship of our natural environment."
