Howard County Arboreta
Wilde Lake
- Wilde Lake
- Jackson Pond
- County Office
Complex - Guilford Park
- Centennial Park
- Harwood Park
- Lake Elkhorn
- Howard Community College
- Robinson Nature Center
Forestry Homepage
History
"Wilde Lake Frazar Bullard Wilde
Chairman of the Board
1960-1966
Whose wisdom, foresight
June 21, 1967
This lake and this village
are named for
Connecticut General
Life Insurance Company
and strong support
made Columbia possible"
Trees at Wilde Lake
In addition to providing lakeside recreational opportunities, Wilde Lake has a fine collection of both native and exotic trees and shrubs. Each tree below is linked to its ArborTag which describes the distinguishing features of the species. Those pages can be used to make your own laminated tree tags.
| American Basswood | Tilia americana |
| American Hornbeam | Carpinus caroliniana |
| Black Cherry | Prunus serotina |
| Black Locust | Tilia americana |
| Black Walnut | Juglans nigra |
| Black Willow | Salix nigra |
| Boxelder | Acer negundo |
| Dawn Redwood | Metasequoia glyptostroboides |
| Dogwood | Cornus florida |
| Flowering Cherry | Prunus serrulata |
| Flowering Plum | Prunus cerasifera |
| Goldenchain Tree | Laburnum x watereri |
| Gray Birch | Betula populifolia |
| Green Ash | Fraxinus pennsylvanica |
| Hazel Alder | Alnus serrulata |
| Japanese Pagodatree | Sophora japonica |
| Katsura Tree | Cercidiphyllum japonicum |
| Cherry, Kwanzan | Prunus serrulata 'Kwanzan' |
| Littleleaf Linden | Tilia cordata |
| London Plane Tree | Platanus x acerifolia |
| Norway Spruce | Picea abies |
| Osage Orange | Maclura pomifera |
| Paperbark Maple | Acer grisium |
| Pin Oak | Quercus palustris |
| Purple Plum | Prunus cerasifera |
| Redbud | Cercis canadensis |
| Red Buckeye | Aesculus pavia |
| Red Maple | Acer rubrum |
| River Birch | Betula nigra |
| Sassafras | Sassafras albidum |
| Silver Maple | Acer saccharinum |
| Sugar Maple | Acer saccharum |
| Sweetgum | Liquidambar styraciflua |
| Tulip Poplar | Liriodendron tulipifera |
| Weeping Birch | Betula pendula |
| Weeping Cherry | Prunus subhirtella |
| Weeping Willow | Salix babylonica |
| White Ash | Fraxinus americana |
| White Mulberry | Morus alba |
| White Pine | Pinus strobus |
| White Oak | Quercus alba |
| Willow Oak | Quercus phellos |
| Witch-hazel | Hamamelis virginiana |
| Yellowwood | Cladrastis kentuckea |
| Yellow Buckeye | Aesculus octandra |
Focus
Due to the imagination of the Rouse Company planners and planters there is a wide variety of exceptional trees at Wilde Lake. The Columbia Association has added to the collection around the lake and has been reponsible for maintaining the plantings around the lake, the pathways and other public areas throughout Columbia.Of the many fine specimen around Wilde Lake, the Goldenchain Tree (Laburnum x watereri) is truely an exceptional example:
The Laburnum is one of the few trees with a trifoliate leaf: a leaf with only three leaflets. Each leaflet is more or less oval shaped. The petiole, or leaf stem is more than 2 inches long.
The flowers which bloom at the same time as Wisteria in May are brilliant yellow cascades, often 9-12 inches long. A member of the pea family, the pods contain 3-6 very poisonous black seeds.
A small tree, the Goldenchain Tree can grow 12 to 15 feet. The bark on young branches and even on older wood retains an olive green color.
Frequently seen in Europe, the Laburnum is somewhat a rarity in the U.S. The most widely planted Laburnum is a cross between the Common (anagyroides) and the Scotch Laburnum (alpinum) originally developed at Waterer's Nursery in Surry, England.
Directions
Take route 175 west to Columbia, crossing route 29. At the second traffic light take a right onto West Running Brook Road, and then an immediate left onto Hyla Brook Lane. Hyla Brook borders Wilde Lake for its entire length, and there are several small parking areas. The tagged trees are all on this north side of the lake.
Contacts
Want to establish an arboretum where you live? Mail your questions to theArboretum Director
Howard County Arboreta
Howard County Forest Conservancy District Board
P.O.Box 819
Clarksville, MD 21029