Arnold Arboretum

Jack Alexander, a plant propagator who has worked in the greenhouse for 32 years, said most people don’t realize the grounds of the arboretum aren’t static. “We’re constantly growing — constantly replacing plants that may be in bad condition or dead,” he said. Established in 1872, the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University occupies 265 acres of land in the Jamaica Plain section of Boston and is the oldest public arboretum in North America.
Jack Alexander, a plant propagator who has worked in the greenhouse for 32 years, said most people don’t realize the grounds of the arboretum aren’t static. “We’re constantly growing — constantly replacing plants that may be in bad condition or dead,” he said.

Established in 1872, the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University occupies 265 acres of land in the Jamaica Plain section of Boston and is the oldest public arboretum in North America.

(Photo: Jonathan Wiggs/Globe staff; Text: Bianca Strzelczyk/Boston.com correspondent)

About the book

Boston's Secret Spaces offers tantalizing peeks into places ordinary mortals rarely see. Published in partnership with The Boston Globe and based on the exceedingly popular Boston.com feature (3.7 million page views and counting), the book takes readers behind the scenes at several sports hot spots, historical landmarks, and offbeat Beantown locales.