Molly Davis, a Lexington, Ky., landscape architect with Parsons Brinckerhoff, was named the new director of The Arboretum, State Botanical Garden of Kentucky.
Photo: Steve Patton, UK Ag Communications

Molly Davis, a Lexington landscape architect, will be the new director of The Arboretum, State Botanical Garden of Kentucky beginning Jan. 1, 2014.

Following a national search, Scott Smith, dean of the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, Food and Environment, announced her selection. She succeeds Marcia Farris, who served as director since 1999. Farris, the first director for the arboretum, is retiring.

Davis is a supervising landscape architect at Parsons Brinckerhoff. She's been with the firm for 15 years. Her design work has included several project related to interpreting and preserving historic Kentucky landscapes. Davis is a graduate of the University of Kentucky, where she has served as a research assistant and as an adjunct professor in the department of landscape architecture.

The Arboretum, State Botanical Garden of Kentucky was created in 1991, a joint effort of the University of Kentucky and the Lexington-Fayette county government. The arboretum is managed through the UK College of Agriculture, Food and Environment. In March 2000, the arboretum became the official "State Botanical Garden for Kentucky."

Davis has lived and worked in England, and also worked on projects in France. In her 15 years at Parsons Brinckerhoff, she has been responsible for award-winning design and construction projects, managing planning and design assignments in Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, Mississippi, Virginia, West Virginia and North Carolina. She has a broad knowledge of Kentucky's landscapes and resources. Her work in Clark County's Lower Howard's Creek won top honors from the American Society of Landscape Architects.

The 100-acre arboretum is parsed into a number of gardens: rose, fragrance, perennial, annual, herb, habitat and a Children's Garden. There's also an accessible garden demonstration, vegetable plots, fruit and nut plantings and all-American trials and displays. The "woods" section includes wetlands and historic trees, and is engaged in ecological restoration and invasive plant removal. Arboretum amenities include a gazebo, pergola, stone fences, fishpond, fountains with sculptures, trellises, bird and bat boxes and natural areas.

Under the leadership of Marcia Farris, and with the support of the university, the city and friends, the arboretum gained a visitor center, the Children's Garden, the Walk Across Kentucky, educational programs and a lot of community support.