Lewis W. Barton was one of the founders of Medford Leas, a horticulturist by education and lifelong experience, an Estaugh Board member, and a resident. His daughter, Nancy Barclay, is now a resident of Bridlington and chairman of the Estaugh’s Arboretum Committee. Nancy recalls coming with her parents to walk around the Mickle property, which would become Medford Leas.
As construction proceeded, Lew guided the landscaping around the campus. He advised what to plant to achieve maximum beauty year-round, and he contributed many specimens. The first landscape architect hired by Medford Leas was charged with designing the courts’ plantings so that each would be unique, and they remain so to this day.
In 1980, at a reception attended by Lew Barton, the entire campus of Medford Leas was formally named the Lewis W. Barton Arboretum. After Lois Forrest became Medford Leas Director in 1979, she invited Ernesta Ballard, head of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, to visit. During their walk around the property, Mrs. Ballard taught one of the basic lessons about plantings: during their first five years, the area will seem under-planted; during the next five years, things will seem about right; during the third five years, they will be over-planted and become ready for redevelopment.
Mrs. Ballard advised Medford Leas to obtain the services of an established arboretum and recommended the Morris Arboretum of the University of Pennsylvania. Paul Meyer, who was on the staff of the Morris Arboretum and later was to become its director, became the first liaison in 1981. Bob Wells is the current liaison.
The Estaugh’s Arboretum Committee includes members of the Estaugh Board, staff, residents, and the community. They meet quarterly in the Nature Center to review the current status of the Arboretum and to lay plans for the future. When the Lumberton campus became part of Medford Leas, it also became part of the Arboretum.
The creation of a Memorial Garden was approved by the Estaugh Board in 1999. It is available for scattering of residents’ ashes and for private meditation. The garden, located in a wooded area across from Parking Lot B, was renovated in 2013. It is nicely landscaped and contains two benches.
Global Positioning System
The Lewis Barton Arboretum has been mapped using GPS satellites. Coordinates divide the campus into 200-sq.-ft. grids inside which individual trees are identified. Each identified tree has been assigned a number, and signs with the number and the common and scientific names are being affixed to the trees. Much work remains to be completed before all this information will be readily accessible. Information Technology has prepared a program that makes it possible to locate any specific tree on the campus.
Residents and visitors to the Arboretum can locate on the grid every flowering crabapple tree, or all of the varieties of pine, or specific trees planted on the Medford campus. Photographs of each tree in different seasons will be available on line. Landscaping staff will also keep a tree journal, including notes on the care, treatment, and condition of each tree, which can be accessed by maintenance crews, residents, and visitors to the Arboretum.
Several members of the Maintenance Department have special training and experience in landscaping. These people have primary responsibility for the care of the plantings throughout the Arboretum, including those in the Atrium, Courtyard Gardens, the Nature Preserve, the Meadows, the Pinetum, and the Arboretum in general.
In November 2010, work began on a new Native Garden. Medford Leas has applied for certification by the Pinelands Preservation Alliance in Vincentown as a “certified native garden.” In 2011 Medford Leas joined the Native Plant Society.
