OPPD Arboretum

OPPD Arboretum is an outdoor education area created by the utility company for customers to help them select the right plant for the right place. Through plantings, interpretive exhibits, plant identification signs and electrical equipment, visitors can learn how to choose and locate plants.

The arboretum covers 40 acres, adjoining an electrical substation. It was created to encourage planting for energy conservation and beautiy and to teach customers how to select trees and shrubs when planting near power lines and electrical apparatus. The arboretum provides visitors with a single, central location where they can view a wide selection of woody plants well-adapted to Omaha.

Its collections form a series of outdoor rooms and include deciduous trees and shrubs grouped by size and collections of conifers, native upland and lowland trees, tender trees, a windbreak and wildlife plantings. The Electrical Safety Education Area contains overhead power lines, streetlights and ground-mounted transformers. Properly located trees show the proper distance to offset trees from lines. Trees are also planted too close to power lines, to demonstrate OPPDs pruning techniques.

Fifteen wayside exhibits interpret the plant collections and Electrical Safety Education Area plantings. Plant labels indicate the name and size of each plant and its “compatibility” with planting near power lines. Woodland trails encourage visitors to enjoy trees in their natural setting. An outdoor classroom at the edge of the woods is available for students, environmental groups and scouts.

Award Winning Project:

1995 National Arbor Day Foundation - Certificate of Merit
1993 ASLA, GPC - Merit Award for a Constructed Project