Howard County Arboreta
Harwood Park 

• Wilde Lake
• Jackson Pond
• Howard County
    Office Complex
• Guilford Park
• Centennial Park
• Harwood Park
• Lake Elkhorn
• Howard Community College
• Robinson Nature Center

In cooperation with the Howard County Department of Recreation and Parks, the Forestry Board formally opened the Harwood Park Arboretum. On Thursday, 7 April 2004, a bright and sunny morning, a goodly crowd gathered to witness the opening of the Arboretum, and to take part in the ceremonies.

History

Harwood Park is a neighborhood in a Howard County suburb, located in Elkridge, Maryland. Harwood Park is Howard County’s first planned community. Its unique feature is the varied age and beauty of different architectural housing styles and mature foliage throughout the neighborhood.

Before 1893, the neighborhood you see today was farmland. Thomas Cottingham is the first documented landowner in this area; later the land was purchased by William Kyne. The Kyne family farmed most of the 125 acres known as "Harwood Park." Although the farmland has long since vanished, the Kyne’s original farmhouse remains today, at the corner of Highland and Euclid Avenues.

The land for the community was later purchased and developed by the Boston Land Improvement Company. On July 24, 1893, the new community of "Har-wood" was created. The development derived its name after two of the owners, William E. Harman and Charles Wood, of the Boston Land Improvement Company.

The Harwood Neighborhood Park dates back to 1977 when the Elkridge Advisory Committee first requested the construction of a neighborhood park. On September 15, 1982, funded through county capital project funds and a HUD community development block grant, the "Harwood Neighborhood Park" was officially open to the public. The original park included a full basketball court, tot lot and swings, similar to the park you see today.

Trees at Harwood Park

Black Locust	Robina pseudoacacia
Black Walnut	Juglans nigra
Blackgum	Nyssa silvatica
Green Ash	Fraxinus pennsylvanica
Honey Locust	Gleditsia triacanthos
Norway Maple	Acer platanoides
Pin Oak	Quercus palustris
Red Maple	Acer rubrum
Red Oak	Quercus rubra
Silver Maple	Acer saccharinum
Southern Red Oak	Quercus falcata
White Oak	Quercus alba
White Pine	Pinus strobus

Focus

Unlike the Scarlet Oak, the leaves of the Southern Red Oak do not turn a bright red in autumn but are more likely just to turn brown. The "red" refers to the rust colored hairs on the underside of the leaves, and along the twigs. The acorns, often growing in pairs, are distinctly stripped, alternating light and dark brown from the tip to the base. Each nut is no more than a half inch long with a cap which tapers to a stout stalklike base.

Often called the Spanish Oak, possibly because it commonly occurs in areas of the early Spanish colonies, it nevertheless is unlike any oaks which are native to Spain. This tree is usually found in well-drained lowland soils from New York to northwestern Florida and eastern Texas. Found particularly in Western Maryland, the Southern Red Oak is more unusual in the eastern regions of our state.

Directions

Contacts

Arboretum Director 
Howard County Arboreta 
Howard County Forest Conservancy District Board 
P.O.Box 819 
Clarksville, MD 21029