Trees in the Heritage Garden
The Heritage Garden is home to dozens of trees, some of which date back to the first owners of the property in the 1920s. Many of the trees are also native to Ohio. Learn more about the various trees on the property.
Location in Heritage Garden: along the back perimeter fence
Native Ohio tree
Donated by Ammon Nursery to the Heritage Garden by Dewey Hollister.
American Holly (Ilex opaca)
Location in Heritage Garden: Cedar Glade
Native Ohio tree
Planted by Ohio Governor Bob Taft in honor of First Lady Hope Taft on Mother's Day in 2006.
Arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis)
Location in Heritage Garden: Governor’s Grove & Perennial Bed
Native Ohio tree
Planted by Ohio Governor Bob Taft in honor of First Lady Hope Taft on her birthday in 2006.
Black Tupelo, Black Gum (Nyssa sylvatica)
Location in Heritage Garden: Governor’s Grove & Perennial Bed
Planted in honor of Governor Nancy Hollister and Jeff Hollister.
Blue Spruce (Picea pungens)
Location in Heritage Garden: Governor’s Grove & Perennial Bed
Native Ohio tree
Planted in honor of Ohio Governor John Kasich and First Lady Karen Kasich.
Bur Oak (Quercus macrocarpa)
Location in Heritage Garden: Governor’s Grove & Perennial Bed
Native Ohio tree
Two trees were planted for Ohio Governor John Kasich’s twin daughters, Reese and Emma, in 2012.
Carolina Silverbells (Halesia carolina 'Arnold Pink')
Location in Heritage Garden: Governor’s Grove & Perennial Bed
Planted in honor of Ohio Governor Nancy Hollister and Jeff Hollister.
Colorado Blue Spruce (Picea pungens)
Location in Heritage Garden: Woodland Wildflower Garden
Planted by the original homeowners prior to becoming the state’s executive residence.
Corneliancherry Dogwood (Cormas mas)
Location in Heritage Garden: To Life Mound
Seven trees were planted as a backdrop to the Tibor to Life sculpture. Five of the original trees are still living.
Crabapples (Malus floribunda)
Location in Heritage Garden: Governor’s Grove & Perennial Bed
Planted by Ohio Governor George Voinovich and First Lady Janet Voinovich.
Cutleaf Japanese Maple (Acer palmatum var. dissectum 'Tamukeyama')
Location in Heritage Garden: Governor’s Grove & Perennial Bed
Planted by Ohio Governor George Voinovich and First Lady Janet Voinovich.
Dawn Redwood (Mestasequoia glyptostroboides)
Location in Heritage Garden: Garden of the Lost
Native Ohio tree
Donated to the Heritage Garden by the Henry County Hospital in honor of Marilyn Krueger's many years of service as a board member to the Friends of the Ohio Governor’s Residence and Heritage Garden.
False Indigo (Amorpha fruitcosa)
Location in Heritage Garden: Garden of the Lost
Donated to the Ohio Heritage Garden by Dewey Hollister in 2005.
Florida Corkwood (Leitneria floridana)
Location in Heritage Garden: Dogwood Glade, and Water Garden
Native Ohio Tree
Both Ohio Governor Richard Celeste and The Garden Club of Ohio donated trees to the Heritage Garden.
Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida 'Richland')
Location in Heritage Garden: Governor’s Grove & Perennial Bed
Native Ohio tree
Planted by Ohio Governor Ted Strickland and First Lady Frances Strickland.
Freeman Maple (Acer x freemanii Autumn Blaze®)
Location in Heritage Garden: Woodland Wildflower Garden
Planted by original homeowners prior to being a state property.
Gingko (Gingko biloba)
Location in Heritage Garden: Llody Medicinal Garden, and Johnny Appleseed Memorial
This is a descendant of a tree planted by John Chapman 'Johnny Appleseed' in Ohio. The tree was donated to the Heritage Garden by Steve George, Executive Director of the Ohio Bicentennial Commission in 1999.
Johnny Appleseed Tree (Malus domestica)
Location in Heritage Garden: Governor’s Grove & Perennial Bed
Native Ohio tree
Presented to the State of Ohio and First Lady Hope Taft by the Commonwealth of Kentucky and First Lady Glenna Fletcher in 2006.
Kentucky Coffeetree (Gymnocladus dioicus)
Location in Heritage Garden: Woodland Wildflower Garden
Planted by original homeowners prior to being a state property.
Maidenhair Tree (Gingko biloba)
Location in Heritage Garden: Woodland Wildflower Garden
Native Ohio tree
Thornless cultivar by Bob Siebenthaler, Dayton Ohio. This is the first tree to be patented in the United States.
Moraine Honeylocust (gledistsia triacanthos var. inermis 'Moraine')
Location in Heritage Garden: Governor’s Grove & Perennial Bed
Native Ohio Tree
The matching pair of Northern Red Oaks were planted by Ohio Governor George Voinovich and First Lady Janet Voinovich.
Northern Red Oak (Quercus rubra)
Location in Heritage Garden: around the back perimeter fence
Native Ohio tree
Donated by Ammon Nursery to the Ohio Heritage Garden.
Oakleaf Hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia)
Location in Heritage Garden: Appalachian Garden
Native Ohio tree
A branch of this tree was used by First Lady Janet Voinovich for the design of the buckeye furniture she made.
Ohio Buckeye (Aesculus glabra)
Location in Heritage Garden: Woodland Wildflower Garden
Planted by original homeowners prior to being a state property.
Oriental Spruce (Picea orientalis)
Location in Heritage Garden: Dogwood Glade, and Water Garden
Native Ohio tree
This tree was donated by Ted Schnormeier.
Pagoda Dogwood (Cornus alternifolia)
Location in Heritage Garden: by the front door behind ADA walkway
This tree was planted by Ohio Governor Bob Taft and First Lady Hope Taft.
Paperbark Maple (Acer griseum)
Location in Heritage Garden: Dogwood Glade, and Water Garden
Native Ohio Tree
Planted by Ohio Governor Bob Taft in honor of First Lady Hope Taft on Mother’s Day in 2005.
Pink Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida var.rubra)
Location in Heritage Garden: Around the property’s front perimeter fence
Planted by homeowners prior to being state property.
Privet Hedge (Ligustrum sp.)
Location in Heritage Garden: Cedar Glade
Native Ohio Tree
This tree is from a quarry in Adams County (southern Ohio) where the Cedar Glade was made.
Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana)
Location in Heritage Garden: Governor’s Grove & Perennial Bed
Native Ohio Tree
Planted by Ohio Governor Richard Celeste and First Lady Dagmar Celeste. Six trees were planted for the six Celeste children.
Redbud (Cercis canadensis)
Location in Heritage Garden: Governor’s Grove & Perennial Bed
Native Ohio Tree
Planted by Ohio Governor Richard Celeste and First Lady Dagmar Celeste.
River Birch(Betula nigra)
Location in Heritage Garden: Water Garden, and First Family Patio
The seeds of these two trees were given to Ohio Governor Bob Taft on a trade mission to Japan in 2000.
Sargent Cherry (Prunus sargentii)
Location in Heritage Garden: Appalachian Garden
Native Ohio Tree
Donated by Ray Albert to the Ohio Heritage Garden in 2004.
Sassafras (Sassafras albidum)
Location in Heritage Garden: Governor’s Grove & Perennial Bed
Planted by Ohio Governor John Gilligan and First Lady Mary Kathryn Gilligan.
Saucer Magnolia (Magnolia x soulangiana)
Location in Heritage Garden: behind the Rose Garden
Donated in 2005 by Janet Rothert in honor of her daughter, First Lady Hope Taft.
Southern Magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora 'Brackens's Brown Beauty')
Location in Heritage Garden: behind the Medicinal Garden in glaciated Alleghany plateau
Native Ohio tree
Donated to the Heritage Garden in honor of Rick Stanforth, who was the Heritage Garden’s Horticulturist from 2005-2008.
Striped Bark Maple (Acer pensylvanicum)
Location in Heritage Garden: Governor’s Grove & Perennial Bed
Native Ohio tree
Planted in honor of Ohio Governor Mike DeWine's inauguration in January 2019.
Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum)
Location in Heritage Garden: near Gate 3 parking lot
Native Ohio tree
As a seed, this tree orbited Earth on Space Shuttle Discovery in 1984 prior to being planted in 1987.
Sweet Gum (Liquidambar styraciflua)
Location in Heritage Garden: County Walk, and Woodland Wildflower Garden
Planted in honor of Ohio Governor Jim Rhodes and First Lady Helen Rhodes.
Taxus Hedge - Yew (Taxus spp.)
Location in Heritage Garden: Bluegrass Region
Donated to then-Ohio Governor Ted Strickland by David Durr, who was a member of the Governor’s Executive Protection Unit.
Tricolor Beech(Fagus sylvatica 'Tricolor')
Location in Heritage Garden: Governor’s Grove & Perennial Bed
Native Ohio tree
Planted by Ohio Governor George Voinovich and First Lady Janet Voinovich.
Tuliptree (Liriodendron tulipifera)
Location in Heritage Garden: Governor’s Grove & Perennial Bed
Planted by Ohio Governor John Gilligan and First Lady Mary Kathryn Gilligan.
Weeping Cherry (Prunus subhirtella var. pendula)
Location in Heritage Garden: Woodland Wildflower Garden
Native Ohio tree
Planted by original homeowners prior to being a state property.
White Pine (Pinus strobus)
Location in Heritage Garden: Appalachian Garden
Planted by original homeowners prior to being a state property.
Willow Oak (Quercus phellos)
Location in Heritage Garden: Water Garden, and the First Family Patio
This tree was gift from the National Park Service and the U.S. Arboretum, planted April 2002. This tree is a direct descendant of those planted by First Lady Helen Herron Taft in 1912 at the Washington D.C. Tidal Basin.