Celebrations to mark the 60th anniversary of Cornell Plantations begin with an Aug. 15 birthday party, from 2 to 4 p.m. in the botanical garden at One Plantations Road. Open free of charge to the public, the party features classic jazz by the Johnny Russo Quartet, a massive birthday cake and a new flavor from the Cornell Dairy - lemon-basil ice cream.

More anniversary activities will follow for Plantations, which manages the arboretum, botanical garden and natural areas of Cornell University.

"While the idea of a botanical garden at Cornell stretches back to the earliest days of the university, it wasn't until 1944, when Professor Liberty Hyde Bailey joined the Faculty Arboretum Committee, that the name Cornell Plantations was suggested and approved," recalls Donald Rakow, the Elizabeth Newman Wilds Director of Plantations since 1996. "At the same meeting, the publication of Plantations Magazine was authorized, with Bristow Adams as the first editor, and Plantations has celebrated many milestones since that seminal meeting."

Among the milestones marking the growth of Cornell Plantations are:

• Establishment of the Mundy Wildflower Garden in 1963 and acquisition of the old Forest Home School (now the Lewis Education Center) as Cornell Plantations' headquarters.
• The Robison York State Herb Garden, east of the Lewis Education Center, was officially dedicated in 1974.
• Construction on the F.R. Newman Arboretum, named for the 1912 Cornell graduate Floyd "Flood" Newman, began in 1981 in glacier-carved pastureland once used by the Department of Animal Science. The 100-acre arboretum was dedicated in 1982 during the 70th reunion of the Class of 1912.
• Renovated facilities for Plantations' maintenance, mechanical and carpentry staff opened in 2000 at the Arboretum Center, while the botanical-garden and natural-areas staff moved to new quarters in the Horticultural Center.
• The donation of an additional building at 130 Forest Home Drive allowed Plantations to develop the Ramin Family Administration Center, which opened in 2003. oPlantations' newest gardens, the Mullestein Winter Garden and the Class of '53 Container Gardens, were dedicated in 2001 and 2003, respectively.

Planning and change at Plantations are ongoing processes, according to Rakow, who points to a new master plan and redesign of the Botanical Gardens. Renovations are soon to begin on the Lewis Education Center, and planning continues for a new conservatory, he added.

"From our humble beginnings 60 years ago - with few acres and fewer staff - Cornell Plantations has now grown to nearly 4,000 acres of gardens and natural areas, and 53 staff members who maintain the collections and educate people about the interrelationships between people, plants, and the environment," Rakow said.

Plantations is open, free of charge, to the public during daylight hours. For more information, call (607) 25-2400.