Gardens & Grounds
With a wide variety of programs and events, Goodell Gardens has a lot to offer. But if it weren’t for the gardens, there would be no reason to visit!
From our Welcome Garden filled with roses and herbs, to the Heritage Garden with native plants and beautiful shrubs and trees, to the Pollinator-Friendly Demonstration Garden filled with nectar-rich and host plants, the Gardens at Goodell are truly something special.
When you visit, you’ll see rare & extirpated specimen, gardens design to demonstrate gardening for pollinators and how to use the square-foot method to grow vegetables. Visit the State Champion Paper Birch and enjoy the Goodell sisters’ extensive collection of Rhododendron. There are many beautiful things to look at Goodell Gardens, and chances are, you’ll learn something too.
Arboretum
Goodell Gardens & Homestead is a Level II Accredited Arboretum through ArbNet
The only facility in northwestern Pennsylvania to earn this designation, Goodell Gardens & Homestead is a Level II Accredited Arboretum through ArbNet.
This means Goodell Gardens hosts a cataloged collection of more than 100 trees and woody plants (taxa count of 157 as of June 30, 2023), has an arboretum plan, a collections policy, paid staff, enhanced public and educational programs, public access, labeled taxa collections, and at least one event per year.
The collection includes the State Champion Paper Birch, rare specimens like Dawn Redwood, and even extirpated Franklinia.
ArbNet is an interactive, collaborative, international community of arboreta. The ArbNet Arboretum Accreditation Program is the only global initiative to officially recognize arboreta based on a set of professional standards.
For more information about Accreditation and what Level II means, visit them online at abrnet.org.
Welcome Garden
This “old-fashioned” garden features fragrant roses and herbal companion plants.
The roses are hybrids developed Dr. Griffith Buck to emphasize lovely fragrance with repeat flowering. The companion herbs include lavender, thyme, catmint and scented geranium. This herbal theme is continued in the stone-wall raised bed surrounding the side porch, constructed by Carrie Goodell in 1937. Now a Kitchen Garden, calendula, sage, lemon thyme, basil and oregano thrive here. This garden is sponsored by the Kubeja-Richardson Fund of the Erie Community Foundation.
Heritage Gardens
Goodell Gardens’ staff refers to the area that was first gardened by Carrie Goodell and her sister, Margaret as “the Heritage Garden.” Many of the plants that thrive here today date back to the Goodell sisters’ time. Most of the large trees and shrubs were planted by Carrie and Margaret, as were many of the spring ephemerals and the native wildflowers located near the cabin.
When visiting the Goodell Heritage Garden, you’ll find collections of Rhododendron & Azaleas, the Pennsylvania State Champion Paper Birch, a Ben Franklin tree, Pennsylvania native species, a Japanese Maple, a Dawn Redwood and more. The Heritage Garden is also the home to Carrie’s Cabin, where the gardens truly got their start.
Lincoln's Lookout
The observation deck, built in honor of Lincoln Daniel Bufalino, overlooks Edinboro Lake Cove, a marshy wetland that rises and falls with the water level of Edinboro Lake.
Pollinator Garden
The Pollinator Garden is a cooperative effort with the Penn State Master Gardener Program and serves as the demonstration garden for pollinator-friendly practices in Erie County.
Design and plant choices revolve around the needs of larval and adult butterflies, honeybees, and native bees. “Host” plants supply caterpillar food and nectar-rich flowers provide adult food from Spring through Fall to help Monarchs along their migration route. Because of this, the garden was designated a Waystation in 2008 by the Monarch Watch organization.
In 2009 and 2013, bees feeding in the garden were counted and identified to provide data for Penn State’s study on native bee populations. Educational signage is provided by funding from the “Haagen Dazs Loves Honey Bees” campaign.
Natives in the Garden
The native shrubs and trees in this area were planted in the 1930s by the Goodell sisters. Their design included Pennsylvania’s state tree, the Hemlock, and state flower, Mt. Laurel. Wildflowers include Bloodroot, White Trillium, Wild Ginger, Virginia Bluebells, and other spring ephemerals. Around the cabin you will also find other native trees: Sugar Maple, American Hornbeam, and Redbud.
Allegheny Chinquapin, a native nut tree, provided the sisters with nuts for roasting.
This garden is sponsored by Charlie McDaniel and Catherine (McDaniel) Smith.
Native Grasses and Wildflowers
As part of a multi-year project, Goodell Gardens & Homestead Trails Committee and volunteers have finished planting wildflowers and native grasses in a portion of the northern acreage on their main campus.