The High Plains Arboretum is located at 8601 Hildreth Road Cheyenne WY 82009.
The Arboretum shares property with the National Cemetery and USDA Research Center, please respect and follow all posted rules. No pets are allowed on the property.
To schedule a talk or tour of the High Plains Arboretum, contact Jessica Friis at jfriis@cheyennecity.org
High Plains Arboretum
The High Plains Arboretum is a 62-acre collection of unique historic trees located on the former USDA Cheyenne Horticultural Field Station, west of Warren Air Force Base. The collection includes over 600 historic trees and shrubs that were planted as early as 1930. Some were collected from the Great Plains region, and others were brought in by USDA plant explorers from other parts of the world with cold, dry climates, including Russia and northern China. These tough trees have survived for decades in Cheyenne's harsh climate with minimal irrigation.
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State Historic Site Project
In 2023, the city of Cheyenne invited the Wyoming State Parks Department to consider designating the High Plains Arboretum and Research Station as a state historic site. This project would create a partnership between the city of Cheyenne, USDA, and Wyoming State Parks to cooperatively manage the site. The city would continue caring for the trees, the USDA would continue the grasslands research, and state parks would help preserve the historic buildings and improve visitor services. An important aspect of this project would include restoring the historic greenhouses so that tough trees for Wyoming can once again be grown for use around the state. A bill designating the historic site will come before the Wyoming Legislature in January 2025.
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A Brief History
From 1928 through 1974 the research station’s goals were to find, breed, and release trees, shrubs, fruits, vegetables, and flowers that would survive in the challenging climate of the High Plains to help settlers grow their own produce, plant shelterbelts for wind protection, and beautify budding communities. Researchers at the station also developed new varieties of plants that were suited to Cheyenne's harsh climate. With many successful plant introductions, it is one of the nation’s important historic horticultural sites. In 2021, Cheyenne Botanic Gardens Horticulturist Jessica Friis published a book about the history of the research station. Containing over 200 historic photographs from the 1930s-1940s, the book is available for purchase at the gift shop in the Cheyenne Botanic Gardens conservatory. Profits and royalties from book sales benefit the High Plains Arboretum.
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Growing tough trees for Wyoming
Part of the Cheyenne Botanic Gardens mission is to help teach and promote sustainability: past, present, and future. Trees are an important part of our city's history and will contribute to its future. In 2021, the Gardens began hosting an annual plant sale to make the trees and shrubs tested at the High Plains Arboretum more available in our community. The plant sale is held at the greenhouse and lath house buildings of the arboretum (8601 Hildreth Road) on the first Saturday of June each year. All plants sold have been tested or developed at the arboretum and research station. All profits benefit the High Plains Arboretum. For more information on the sale, contact Jessica Friis at jfriis@cheyennecity.org
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Tree Inventory of High Plains Arboretum Research Station
In 2024, the Laramie County Conservation District funded an inventory of all trees in the proposed state historic site boundaries. The inventory was conducted with help from the Wyoming State Forestry Division. This valuable information will aid in caring for the historic trees by helping us monitor their health over time, identify which trees are in need of pruning or pest control, and creating a record of over 6,000 historic trees on the property.
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