sweet auburn | 2021 volume ii
Introduction
Larry Weaner Founding principal of Larry Weaner Landscape Associates
In 1830 , a committee formed to establish what became , a year later , Mount Auburn Cemetery . The committee included civic-minded individuals with expertise in horticulture , botany , medicine , and law . Their expansive approach to land use proved visionary . In 2014 , that tradition continued as Cemetery President Dave Barnett ( now emeritus ), with assistance from Halvorson Design Partnership , spearheaded a charrette to create a “ Wildlife Action Plan ” for Mount Auburn . A multidisciplinary group , including horticulturists , ecologists , ornithologists , and a herpetologist , engaged in detailed site exploration and discussion . Out of that work came a concrete plan that has guided planning , planting , and vegetation management ever since , including the Indian Ridge restoration currently in progress .
Horticulture and botany were integral to Mount Auburn ’ s inception , yet the creation of a bucolic retreat for people was also a major objective . This dual commitment , still honored today , has inspired our firm ’ s vision for Indian Ridge , an ecologically and experientially significant area at Mount Auburn .
ount Auburn is a profoundly layered landscape , shaped by cemetery stewards and horticultural staff , lot owners , and designers . Glacial
M forces thousands of years ago also defined this landscape , and Indian Ridge is an iconic example . During glaciation , meltwater carved a channel beneath the ice that became clogged with sediment . When the glacier retreated , the sediment remained as a long , snaking ridge . Because these landforms — known as eskers — are easily mined for sand and gravel , they are rare in urban settings . Indian Ridge , however , was preserved within Mount Auburn where it offered ample high ground for burial and dramatic vistas conducive to a contemplative experience .
Early maps of Mount Auburn show Indian Ridge as predominantly wooded , likely consisting of oak , beech , and pine characteristic of well-draining , gravely upland soils of the region . Indeed , at least one large oak still growing on Indian Ridge pre-dates the cemetery , a sylvan witness to an evolving memorial landscape . Southern portions of Indian Ridge may have featured sunnier gaps with meadow vegetation given that early maps refer to Auburn Lake , which borders Indian Ridge , as Meadow Pond .
In contrast to the plant communities likely present at Mount Auburn ’ s inception , later renderings show Indian Ridge as a manicured landscape dominated by turf with scattered trees and shrubs . Following the Civil War , the use of turf proliferated in cemeteries , with consequences to this day for ecology , the climate , and landscape norms . The Indian Ridge restoration and comparable projects are providing new naturalistic alternatives to the turf paradigm while remaining sensitive to Cemetery traditions .
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