New director of Minnesota Landscape Arboretum: 'I was blown away by the beauty'

Despite exploring the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum in subzero temperatures last winter, the wind biting his face, Andrew Gapinski was mesmerized by the beautiful snowscape.

"I was blown away by the beauty of the natural landscape that was here," Gapinski said, who is the organization's new director. "It was all snow-packed so you couldn't see any of the flowers but I was really astonished by the topography that is here and the natural beauty of the woods and wetlands."

Gapinski, who hails from the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University in Boston, known as North America's oldest public arboretum, where he worked as the director of horticulture, has just landed in Minnesota full-time.

As the newly named arboretum director, Gapinski now oversees the 1,200-acre grounds that include gardens, restored prairie and a research center with the help of 200 employees and more than 1,000 volunteers.

Gapinski knows he has big shoes to fill after former director Peter Moe retired after 50 years at the arboretum. Gapinski is hitting the ground running, already planning to ensure the arboretum's long-term future for decades to come.

"The ambitions have been big before my arrival and there's more to come," he said. "I'm looking forward to getting together with all the stakeholders across the various communities that are involved with the Arb and figuring out where we're heading next."

Gapinski took time out to tell us more about his love for all things nature, a return to the Midwest and plans for the arboretum.

Q. What drives your love for horticulture?

A: I was born and raised in Wisconsin on the southern end of Milwaukee County, not far from Boerner Botanical Gardens in the city of Hales Corners. We'd ride our bikes over there so I had early exposure to what botanical gardens are and what they represent in the community. I was always fascinated by natural history and exploration.

When I was 10 years old my family moved to the countryside and I was really exposed to more natural systems. I grew up across from Kettle Moraine State Forest and spent the rest of my childhood exploring and in nature — it was a really big part of my upbringing.

When I was in high school, I took horticulture courses. Then I decided to go to college and major in horticulture [at the University of Wisconsin-Madison] and it all went from there.

Q: What drew you to the position of Minnesota Landscape Arboretum director?

This was an opportunity to come back to the Midwest. And I liked that the University of Minnesota's commitment to horticulture and plant sciences continues to thrive. The arboretum has connections with the university's Department of Horticultural of Science's research and faculty that have produced things like the Honeycrisp apple and grapes that are hardy in the northern Midwest and some of the ornamental plants that have great value in Midwestern landscapes.

Coming to an institution that is still leading the way in horticultural and research — it was a no-brainer for me to take that opportunity.

Q: What's one of your favorite things about the arboretum?

A: I knew of the arboretum from the plant introductions even when I was in high school and college — I was planting the hearty azalea that was coming out of the research here. The science that was being produced by the Department of Horticultural Science was always at the forefront of my head of what makes it such a special place.

Q: What have you been working on since starting at the arboretum?

A: We're developing a long-term vision and strategic plan for the next decade and beyond. [The arboretum just wrapped up its 2017-22 strategic plan that included adding the Tashjian Bee and Pollinator Discovery Center, among many other things.]

As part of that plan, we're looking at realigning the entrance on Hwy. 5 for easier access and additional parking that will make visitation easier among many other projects.

Q: You've been a horticulture enthusiast your whole life. What's your favorite plant?

A: I would say my favorite tree is commonly known as the swamp white oak; the Latin name is Quercus bicolor. At the University of Wisconsin, on the horticultural sciences end of campus, they had this magnificent swamp white oak which had these low, large branches, and I always felt really connected to that tree. It's an oak that has some unique characteristics with great exfoliating bark. The leaves are unique and have a white silvery underside to the leaf.

It's also an adaptable plant, so you see it used more and more in urban conditions where it's tolerant of pollution and compacted soils and limited soil volumes. I think it's going to be an important plant for our urban environments and forests moving forward.