From the early 1800s to the 1940s a botanical garden occupied 7 acres at the corner of Linnaean and Garden streets. Now the site of an apartment complex aptly named Botanic Gardens, Harvard Botanic Garden was one of the earliest botanical gardens in the United States comprising plants from around the world as well as indigenous trees, shrubs, and herbaceous plants that were considered “worthy of attention, as being useful in domestic economy, in the arts, or in medicine.” [1] It is also associated with Asa Gray (1810-1888), a prominent botanist, educator, and writer known for his work to help unify the taxonomic knowledge of plants in North America.
The only remaining evidence of the botanic garden landscape are several specimen trees including, among others, ginkgo (Gingko biloba), American persimmon (Diospyrus virginiana), amur cork tree (Philodendron Amurense), tea crabapple (Malus hupehensis), and pagoda tree (Styphnolobium japonicum). The history of Harvard Botanic Garden is complex and associated with numerous individuals who have contributed to the science of botany. This post offers a glimpse into the history of the landscape itself that was not only a center of academic study and research but also a popular public green space.
The layout of the garden was conceived by Gabriel Thouin, a landscape designer and gardener at the Jardins des Plantes in Paris. William Dandridge Peck, the first professor of natural history at Harvard and charged with starting the botanical garden, met with Thouin on his tour of Europe’s gardens. The resulting scheme consisted of concentric planting beds radiating out from a central pool. The design was later modified to work with the site’s topography, creating formal display beds in the southern portion and locating utilitarian functions to the north, with buildings and greenhouses situated on a terrace overlooking the garden. Peck supervised the construction of the garden and oversaw its management until his untimely death in 1822. Thomas Nuttall, an English naturalist and explorer, then served as curator until 1834 when he resigned to go on an expedition along the Oregon Trail.
In 1842, Asa Gray was appointed the Fisher Professorship of Natural History chair and oversaw the botanic garden. Gray appealed to his American colleagues to send him seeds and specimens from all over North America to grow at the garden and exchange them with European botanists. During his tenure, a new greenhouse and conservatory were constructed as well as a building to house the herbarium he was organizing. In 1871, Gray inaugurated the first Harvard Summer School course with instruction in botany in order to take advantage of the climate to study plants outside. Summer classes in natural history, chemistry, and geology soon followed, and continue today.
Gray retired in 1872 from teaching and managing the botanic garden to focus on his work at the herbarium. That same year the culture of woody plants was transferred to the newly established Arnold Arboretum in Jamaica Plain. Harvard appointed Charles Sprague Sargent, a botanist and graduate of Harvard, as Director of both the botanic garden and the arboretum. At the botanic garden he continued specimen exchanges, overseeing the garden’s upkeep, and providing plants for the botany classes. In 1876, due to the limited amount of space, Sargent received approval from the College to plant a small arboretum on the grounds around the Harvard Observatory, located across Garden Street, featuring a representative collection of mostly North American species. Sargent still planted specimen trees within the garden to test their hardiness such as American beech (Fagus grandifolia), European beech (Fagus sylvatica), tulip (Liriodendron sp.), cucumber tree (Magnolia acuminata), black walnut (Juglans nigra), butternut (Juglans cinereal), cork elm (Ulmus thomasii), and a variety of maple trees. He also oversaw the installation of a large collection of ferns in the western portion of the site.
As new plants were being introduced into the garden, duplicate trees and shrubs were removed to make more room available. Existing plots were cleared, graded, and laid out in a series of long and narrow beds lined with grass paths. Labeled plantings were organized in botanical order according to a prescribed plan. The ground under the shade of large trees was used for rockeries for spring plants that would bloom before the trees were fully leaved and created too much shade. There were two small ponds for the cultivation of aquatics, and a spring at the corner of Linnaean and Garden Street served as a drinking fountain and provided moisture to a bog garden beside it.
Although the garden was primarily devoted to scientific plant displays, exhibits were created to appeal to the general public, including one display featuring plants referenced in Shakespeare’s works. Other beds displayed native plants that flourished during the time of Harvard’s founding, and another bed featured plants mentioned in poems by Virgil.
George Goodale, who succeeded Sargent in 1879, created an exhibit of economic plants, such as those utilized for textiles, dyes, tanning materials, and drugs. Additional trees were distributed throughout the grounds at this time including Austrian pine (Pinus nigra), tulip (Liriodendron tulipifera), American beech (Fagus grandifolia), and yellowwood (Cladrastis kentukea).
Alterations in the garden in the early 1890s included filling in the large water lily pond near Raymond Street because the water level could no longer be maintained after the construction of a sewer. Some of the original greenhouses were also replaced with a new iron-frame greenhouse. Plants for botany classes at Radcliffe were now being cultivated at the garden, and Cambridge public schools were invited to use plants from the garden for their classes.
In the early 1900s, plant displays along the embankment below the terrace contained white arabis (Arabis caucasica), phlox (Phlox paniculata), English daisies (Bellis perennis), grape hyacinths (Muscari armeniacum), saxifrage (Saxafraga tridactylites), dog-tooth violets (Erythronium dens-canis), yellow daffodils (Narcissus), and a variety of tulips imported from Holland. Landscape architecture students were offered opportunities to gain practical experience by designing planting plans for discrete areas of the garden that were installed by garden staff. In 1910, the Garden House was sold and moved to 88 Garden Street.
In 1917, the border below the terrace was replanted to illustrate the Engler system of plant taxonomy for botany classes. During World War I, residents installed vegetable gardens under the guidance of the head gardener on land adjoining the botanic garden. A model vegetable garden was also installed on the grounds of the botanic garden near the greenhouses for residents to study and imitate.
In 1923, Stephen F. Hamblin, an assistant professor of landscape architecture and horticulture instructor at Harvard, was appointed Director of the garden. The university also formed a visiting committee to plan for the potential use of the garden as a testing ground for all hardy herbs suitable for culture in the region. The collection had 2,000 species, and the committee sought to increase the number to 6,000 and grow 1,000 annuals as well.
Hamblin proposed modifying the grounds utilizing existing trees and shrubs as a background for the herb plantings or provide shade to those in need of it. He also suggested planting annuals in the beds around the central lily pond, installing orchids and ferns in the shade of a large group of trees, planting lilies in a “wild garden” arrangement under tall trees, and placing irises in a long border below the terrace. Additional proposed elements included breeding of new varieties and hybrids of herbs, breeding hardy rose varieties, and planting of American wildflowers.
Unfortunately, Hamblin was not able to fully realize his ambitious plan. In 1929, Harvard’s administration decided that due to chronic inadequate funding, the botanic garden would cease to function as an ornamental horticulture display area and focus solely on scientific study. Harvard President A. Lawrence Lowell later announced that the management of the botanic garden would be transferred to the Botany Department and he named professor Robert H. Woodworth as Hamblin’s replacement. Hamblin went on to establish and oversee the Lexington Botanic Garden in Massachusetts. Plant collections deemed no longer relevant at the botanic garden were transferred to Lexington, including a rose collection with the understanding that should the Arnold Arboretum start to cultivate roses, cuttings would be provided. In addition, beds west of the herbarium containing the collection of the American Iris Society were cleared after specimens were taken by the Society or transferred to Lexington.
The continued lack of funds and gardening staff also resulted in neglected grounds that were no longer a desirable place to visit. Although the greenhouses were still used to provide plant material for classrooms and research, they were in such a state of disrepair that it was decided to remove them and transfer selected plant material to other facilities. Outdoor plants continued to be maintained for experimental plantings. Prior to demolition, a large shipment of living plants was shipped to the Atkins Institute in Cuba. Remaining plant material was transferred to greenhouses at Harvard’s Biological Laboratory and the Bussey Institution. Other stock was presented to the Massachusetts State College, the Boston Teachers College, Wellesley College, and Boston Parks Department.
In 1937, Harvard collaborated with the Herb Society of America to plant an herb garden on the site of the demolished greenhouse complex, highlighting plants adaptable to New England conditions. The garden staff would care for the collection, but development would be sponsored by the Society. Initially, an evergreen hedge was planted, and a brick retaining wall and paths were constructed. Fourteen planting beds were laid out, and a wrought iron armillary sphere[2] on a brick pedestal was placed in the center. Three benches, each flanked by four-foot rosemary bushes, were installed along with four large flowering trees. Beds were then filled with herbs donated by members of the New England Group of the Herb Society of America.
In 1945, the City of Cambridge considered acquiring the botanic garden site through imminent domain to construct temporary housing for returning veterans. In response, rare plant species were transferred to the Arnold Arboretum. The City did not follow through, but the Director of the garden at the time, Elmer Merrill, suggested that the property be sold or used by Harvard to develop a housing program. Harvard did not reach a decision until 1948, when the demand for housing became acute. The university proceeded to construct new residences on the botanic garden site for faculty as well as returning servicemen consisting of 117 single-family, duplex, and apartment units and was completed in 1949. Today, the landscape of the Botanic Gardens Apartments still features some wonderful and unusual mature specimen trees from its storied past.
[1] William Dandridge Peck, A Catalog of American and Foreign Plants Cultivated in the Botanic Garden, Cambridge, Massachusetts, (Cambridge, MA: Hilliard & Metcalf, 1818), introductory page.
[2] model of objects in the sky consisting of a spherical framework of rings, centered on Earth or the Sun, that represent lines of celestial longitude and latitude and other astronomically important features
For additional information, please see resources below:
“The Botanic Garden,” Cambridge Chronicle, Volume XI, Number 44, November 1, 1856.
“New Building at the Botanic Garden,” Cambridge Chronicle, April 2, 1864.
“Harvard Botanic Garden, A Beautiful Home of Floriculture Open to the Public,” Cambridge Chronicle, March 30, 1878.
Gamwell, Edward F. “The Harvard Botanical Garden,” Cambridge Chronicle, June 17, 1898.
“Harvard Botanic Garden,” Cambridge Chronicle, May 14, 1904.
Thomas, Richard. “Remember A Lost Garden.” Cambridge Chronicle, Volume 154, No. 47, September 27, 2000.
Goodale, George Lincoln. “The Botanic Garden at Cambridge.” The Harvard Register, Vol.1, no. 1, Cambridge, MA: Moses King, 1881.
Goodwin, Joan W. “A Kind of Botanic Mania.” Arnoldia, Vol. 56, n. 5, 1996-97, pp. 17-24.
Graustein, Jeannette E. “Natural History at Harvard College, 1788-1842.” Proceedings of the Cambridge Historical Society, Volume 38, 1959-1960.
Hamblin, Stephen F. “In Cause of Horticulture, Botanic Garden of Harvard Performs Valuable Public Service.” Parks and Recreation, Vol. VIII, No. 1, The Institute at Minot, SD: September – October, 1924.
Hamblin, Stephen F. “Plan for Harvard Botanic Garden.” Landscape Architecture Magazine, American Society of Landscape Architects, Vol. 14, No. 3, April 1924, pp. 180-185.
Hammond, Charles A. “The Botanic Garden in Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1805-1834.” The Herbarist, Volume 53 (1987), Concord, MA: The Herb Society of America.
Harvard University Catalog, 1903-1904. Cambridge, MA: published by the University.
Ingersoll, Ernest. “Harvard’s Botanic Gardens and Its Botanists.” Century City Magazine, Vol. XXXII, No. 2, June 1886.
Peck, William Dandridge. A Catalog of American and Foreign Plants Cultivated in the Botanic Garden, Cambridge Massachusetts. Cambridge, MA: Hilliard & Metcalfe for University Press, 1818.
