Lāčupīte Arboretum

The full name of the picturesque Lāčupīte Arboretum is Igors Mednis’ Dendrological Plantation in Lāčupe. With over 400 different varieties from around the world, the diversity of tree and shrub varieties here is impressive.

Igors Mednis (1891–2001) was a dendrology enthusiast, but a civil engineer by profession. He began creating the arboretum in 1959, and the first tree he planted was a walnut tree he got from sculptor Kārlis Zemdegs’ garden. The purpose of the arboretum was to plant non-native trees and shrubs to observe how different varieties that were uncommon in Latvia would interact with local biotopes.

The plants in the arboretum have been obtained from 68 locations in Latvia and abroad – from Estonia, Lithuania, Crimea, the Caucasus, East Asia, Poland, Germany and elsewhere. Igors Mednis created and assessed this collection of woody plants in cooperation with the National Botanic Garden in Salaspils and the Latvian Dendrologist Society.

The total area of the arboretum is currently 7.2ha, and about 60 coniferous and 350 deciduous varieties have been registered as growing here. Several of the trees planted here – such as the sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa) and others – are some of the finest specimens of their kind in Latvia. Varieties that have difficulty surviving the winter in many other parts of Latvia, such as the Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica), the oplopanax (Oplopanax elatum), the Korean maple (Acer pseudosieboldianum) feel very good here due to the arboretum’s mild maritime climate. The arboretum is at its most colourful in May and June when the rhododendrons bloom abundantly.

Here, within the framework of the project, we have 15 different zones with different moods, psychological effects and types of use have been created: Lauma’s garden of the forest, Sun Bay, Coast of inspiration, Valley of Truth, Airway, Rest place and kinetic path, Grove of Power, Harbor of Peace, Forest of Thoughts, Valley of Dreams, two Labyrinths, Serpent’s Nest, Dragon Realm, Dwarf for the Inner Child. The garden is complemented by wooden sculptures, various inscriptions, signs, footpaths, rest areas, as well as a children’s playground.

You can get to the Arboretum by foot from the Riga–Talsi motorway – it is located in dunes that have restricted car access. A forest road leads to the sea from a sign by the motorway. Once you have crossed the footbridge over Lāčupīte, turn left and walk another 150m along the forest road until you come to the first planted trees.

The Lāčupīte Arboretum is a specially protected natural territory and has been designated a natural monument. This is to ensure the preservation and propagation of the selection of valuable non-native trees that has been created here.