Rare Conifer Stolen from the Arboretum

Our Arboretum partners at UW Botanic Gardens regret to inform the community that a specimen of the rare Cupressus gigantea (Tsangpo River cypress, Tibetan cypress) was recently cut down and stolen from the Pinetum, presumably to be used as a holiday tree.

This act of vandalism represents a significant loss to the Arboretum’s living collection and our conservation efforts. The specimen was part of our scientific collection and is an endangered species in its native range on the Tibetan Plateau. This tree was grown from seed collected in the wild by the Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden in Federal Way, Washington and shared with the Arboretum to help further safeguard the species’ genetic diversity.

The young, eight-year-old tree was planted out in the Arboretum in 2022 and had reached five feet tall. (Tibetan cypress is the largest species in the genus Cupressus and can grow well over 100 feet tall and live for thousands of years.) A hardy tree with a conical form, it bears flat, scale-like, waxy evergreen foliage and fibrous, orange-brown bark.

Photo of the specimen, taken in October 2023.

This theft is particularly distressing as it affects not only the Arboretum as a public garden but also:

Our conservation mission and scientific research;
Future visitors who would have learned from and enjoyed this specimen;
Our dedicated staff who invested years in nurturing this tree;
The broader botanical community’s efforts to preserve rare species.

This is a good reminder that the Washington Park Arboretum is a living museum of many diverse tree and plant species. We ask our visitors and neighbors to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity to our staff immediately.

If you have any information about this incident, please contact UW Botanic Gardens at uwbgfac@uw.edu.

Seattle Police Department case number: 2024-945485.

The Washington Park Arboretum remains committed to maintaining and protecting our valuable collection of plants for research, conservation, and public enjoyment. We appreciate our community’s continued support in helping us preserve these irreplaceable botanical treasures.