Life Forest® Burial Trees Earn Arboretum Accreditation

Life Forest® has been awarded a Level 01 Accreditation by The ArbNet Arboretum Accreditation Program and The Morton Arboretum, for achieving particular standards of professional practices deemed important for arboreta and botanic gardens.

The ArbNet Arboretum Accreditation Program is the only global initiative to officially recognize arboreta at various levels of development, capacity, and professionalism.

Life Forest® is also now recognized as an accredited arboretum in the Morton Register of Arboreta, a database of the world's arboreta and gardens dedicated to woody plants.

Life Forest® was established in 2019 with the mission to conserve a forest while protecting legacies of the deceased. Life Forest consists of over 13 acres and is abbutted by over 80 acres of conservation land managed by the Hillsborough Conservation Commission.

There are over 25 distinct species planted as memorial trees over the course of 2 years - both native and rare. This includes two different Japanese Maples, Cardinal Dogwood, Common Juniper, Sourwood, Sargent Crabapple, Fragrant Lilac, and many more. Life Forest® offers educational programs for school children and scheduled tours to the public, but people are always welcome to peruse the land by themselves.

"Being an accredited arboretum helps us move towards our goal of conserving a forest and preserving legacies. Having an educational facet of our land is important to us and our community." -Cameron Ickes, Director of Forest and Family Services