“The majestic oaks lining Magill Walk are the trees that speak to me, so to speak. In honor of ’63’s 50th Reunion, my class had a swamp white oak planted in my honor on Magill Walk … a particularly meaningful gift because it is an underplanting that will help sustain the walkway of oaks on Magill Walk. I was not aware of ‘underplanting’ until I learned about it at Swarthmore. And, as I have learned more about trees, I am more partial to oaks since they are native, which means they support many more birds and insects than non-native trees.”
— Diana Judd Stevens ’63

“Asking the director of the Scott Arboretum for my favorite tree on campus is a bit like asking your grandmother who her favorite grandchild is … but today my answer is the magnificent American elm along the railroad tracks. I marvel at its sheer size; its fabulous buttressing moss-covered roots and majestic umbrella-shaped broad canopy. Knowing the history of this species in America makes me appreciate the preciousness and rarity of having an American elm of this stature on campus. This tree predates the founding of the Arboretum in 1929 (being accessioned in 1932 as an existing tree), so it is presumably well over a century old. It stands 131 feet tall, and it has survived the ravages of Dutch Elm disease (thus far) that wiped out most American elms planted on college campuses (including those that used to grace the face of Parrish Hall) and throughout city streets of America after the fungus was introduced into the Unites States in the 1930s. This tree has been designated a Heritage Tree in our ongoing assessment of our tree collection to identify our most precious trees among the over 3,000 trees accessioned on campus.”
— Claire Sawyer, director of the Scott Arboretum