By Gale Matteson

Twenty years ago the family of Mary Wattis Brown created an endowment to support a garden in her memory. The results of their generosity can be seen each day in the lovely setting of the Mary Wattis Brown Garden of California Native Plants. Dr. Ruth Storer was an avid gardener who created an endowment to build a garden of low-maintenance, water-conserving plants. Subsequent donations to this endowment by Dr. Storer and her friends and family have kept the Storer Garden one of the focal points of the Davis Arboretum. 

The Arboretum Enhancement Endowment was formed to provide general support to the whole Arboretum. This endowment is growing thanks to people like Eric and Louise Conn, who contributed $5,000 of Dr. Conn's UC Davis prize for teaching and scholarly research. Five years ago the Friends of the Davis Arboretum also created an endowment, setting a goal of $100,000 before interest could be drawn off for use. In 1989 reaching this goal seemed an impossible dream, yet today this endowment stands at $45,000!

These “savings” accounts have created a strong infrastructure for the Arboretum and have enabled staff to continue upgrading and expanding the collections. Your donation to one of these endowments will help ensure the Arboretum’s future even in these difficult economic times