A circular emblem featuring a large tree with the text 'Old City Arboretum', 'Est. 2025', and location 'Senoia, GA 30276'.

Old City Arboretum ( pl: arboreta) is a botanical collection composed exclusively of trees and woody shrubs of a variety of species.

Come for the Trees.

Fall in love with the journey.

Stroll, explore, learn, and revel in the natural beauty of Senoia. Let your curiosity guide you to discoveries as you wander the historic district's world-accredited Old City Arboretum.

Trees beautify our community, standing as a living museum. They clean our air and water, provide wildlife habitat, improve your health and wellness, and through their unique characteristics, CREATE A SENSE OF WONDER.

Finish the day with award-winning restaurants, and enjoy the charm and vibrant downtown atmosphere. 

 A visit takes your day to unforgettable new heights.

A peaceful landscape with tall pine trees, a small pond, and a larger body of water, with lush green grass and forested hill in the background.
A park with tall trees, a wooden bridge over a pond, and a paved walkway, sunny weather, and lamp posts lining the path.

Welcome to Senoia’s

Old City Arboretum

The Arboretum is not just a place of beauty but also an educational living museum that will enrich the quality of life in our city.

This arboretum isn’t typical. It is a testament to our community's spirit and dedication, a living museum of our city's heritage that we helped design and continue to maintain. We are creating an opportunity for you to recognize the importance of protecting and preserving our heritage specimen trees, and the natural urban forest environment within the city of Senoia.

Two trees near a lake with a grassy foreground and rocks, with a partly cloudy sky.
A peaceful lakeside scene with a tree, water lilies on the lake, grassy area, a bench, a parking lot with cars, and dense trees in the background.

  • Though many associate Senoia with shopping, entertainment, and beautiful homes, the city’s character would look very different without its trees, visionary residents, and parks that honor activism toward preserving and protecting our Heritage, Specimen, and Landmark trees. This unique blend reflects the rich community involvement and your vital role in the commitment to protecting our canopy of trees in the Historic “Old City” District of Senoia. A role that makes you an integral part of preserving Senoia’s history and character of our city for future generations.

  • The Old City Arboretum Field Team members are dedicated volunteers of The Garden Club of Senoia who will nurture, oversee, develop, and maintain the Old City Arboretum. This educational platform will bring new awareness to our history and the significance of the collection of unique trees in Senoia. Knowledge will protect and preserve our urban forest for future generations.

  • The Old City Arboretum has achieved a unique distinction, gaining Accreditation as a professional Arboretum through the only worldwide program, Arbnet, founded and led by The Morton Arboretum in Lisle, Illinois. This recognition, in collaboration with the American Public Gardens Association and Botanic Gardens Conservation International, is a testament to our city, which shares our commitment to professional standards and strength within our community for the protection of the natural beauty of our historic trees and the preservation of our Urban Forest.

  • CAROL MCMACKIN: President

    MELISSA HARRISON: V. President

    TERESA MCCARTHY: Treasurer

    AMI IVANECKY: Secretary

    THE FIELD TEAM:

    Missy Harrison

    Kim Peacock Lori Nelson

    Carol Moran Margarita Porto

    Roxann Ward: Propagation

    Bernadette Carty: Heritage Tree Identification

    Brian Arnold: Certified Arborist, Native Plant Systems

    EX-OFFICIO:

    WILLIAM “DUB” PEARMAN III: Mayor, City of Senoia

    Downtown Development Association

    Allie Garrett: Commissioner, Senoia Tree Commission

    In Appreciation: We thank Trees Atlanta and Grace Manning, Sr. Beltline Arboretum Manager, for their guidance and information that led to the Old City Arboretum Certification.

  • In tree conservation, "heritage," "specimen," and "landmark" trees are terms often used to denote trees of special significance due to various factors like size, age, historical association, or aesthetic value. While the specific definitions and protections vary by location, these terms generally highlight trees that are important to a community's natural and cultural heritage. 

    HERITAGE: Heritage trees often used as a general term that meet criteria such as age over 100 years old, historic significance and/or ecologically rare or native species.

    SPECIMEN: Specimen trees are individual trees recognized for their exceptional size, beautiful form, or their species rarity. 

    LANDMARK: Landmark trees are trees that are prominent features of a community, often recognized for their size, age, or historical significance. They may be visually dominant, represent the edge of a species' natural range, or be part of a notable grove or avenue. 

  • Explore our Living Museum of Trees and learn about the interesting Landmarks that provide cultural, historical and inspirational value to the community. We have curated two educational self-guided tour maps and informational pamphlets to help you get started:

    The Old City Arboretum Collection:

    The Old City Collection is the highlight of our Tree Collection, situated in the historic downtown district of Senoia. This collection serves as a testament to our shared history. With your ongoing support, we will identify and introduce the best specimen trees for each species, ensuring that our urban forest thrives for generations to come.

    The Learning Loop Collection:

    Discover a unique and educational journey into our historic past. Explore our heritage through the Age of Trees and meet the owners who planted them hundreds of years ago. This Learning Loop offers a fascinating one-mile walk back in time, making it enjoyable for all ages.

  • The Old City Tree Collections are self-guided tours that introduce you to the unique, hertiage, historic, and important landmark trees within the Old City district. Our goal is to educate you about the many different species of trees in the Old City Arboretum Tree Collection or The Learning Loop Tree Collection. Take the tours and learn their common names, individual traits, age, and profound historical significance while you support our preservation efforts for the furture.

    IMPROVING YOUR KNOWLEDGE SAVES TREES

    Pickup your self-guided Tour Map(s) at the following locations in Senoia, GA:

    WELCOME CENTER: 68 Main Street

    SENOIA HISTORY MUSEUM: 6 Couch Street

    VERANDA HISTORIC INN: 252 Seavy Street

    Larger Groups and Clubs please email: oldcityarboretum@gmail.com to make arrangements for pamphlet pick-up.

Old City ArboretumTree Collection

We invite you to learn about our Heritage or Specimen, Historically Significant and Landmark Trees.

* Heritage or Specimen ** Historically Significant. *** Historic Landmark

List of various trees with names, some marked with asterisks and numbered from 1 to 18.
A list of tree species with numbered labels, including Loblolly Pine, Bald Cypress, Monterey Cypress, Red Maple, Osage Orange, Japanese Red Maple, Japanese Green Maple, China Fir, Yoshino Cherry, Gingko, Sycamore, Red Bud, Pecan, Dawn Redwood, Dwarf Magnolia, Flowering Dogwood, Chinese Elm, and Pin Oak.
Map of Senoia, Georgia, showing streets, landmarks, businesses, parking, and numbered points of interest.

Learning Loop Tree Collection

We invite you to learn about our Heritage or Specimen, Historically Significant, and Landmark Trees.

* Heritage or Specimen ** Historically Significant. *** Historic Landmark

List of different types of trees with numbered labels and varying attribution marks.
List of tree types with their respective numbers and common names, including Japanese Red Maple, Japanese Green Maple, China Fir, American Elm, Yoshino Cherry, Southern Magnolia, Gingko Biloba, Sycamore, Red Bud, Pecan, Dawn Redwood, Deodar Cedar, Dwarf Magnolia, Flowering Dogwood, and Chinese Elm.
Map of Senoia, Georgia showing a walking tour route with numbered stops, local businesses, churches, and points of interest.