Arthur Ross Pinetum is a four-acre landscape featuring 17 different species of pine trees. In the 1970s, native New Yorker and philanthropist Arthur Ross set out to return pine trees to Central Park in an area where the pines had been replaced by deciduous trees.
Ross started by hiding maintenance buildings from view on the 86th Street Transverse Road with native white pine trees. Eventually he decided to plant a Pinetum and added about 35 trees a year with species from Macedonia, Japan and the Himalayas as well as others. The Himalayan pines were his favorite, known as a hardy evergreen that grows 30 to 50 feet tall, with soft, blue-green needles.
In 2006, the Contemplation Circle was created in the Pinetum to honor Ross. Central Park Conservancy staff established new plantings to surround a rustic installation of wood benches and railings. The setting includes a Chinese Elm, Mugo Pines, Coralberry, Winter Jasmine and Forthergilla.