Cedar Valley Arboretum and Botanic Gardens is a forty-acre public garden in Waterloo, Iowa, founded in 1996 to give the Cedar Valley a dedicated green space and public resource for horticulture, plant study, environmental stewardship, and community life. Built on former farmland with a design reflecting Iowa’s agricultural heritage, it grew through volunteer support, public funding, and donations. Early development included the Sesquicentennial Forest and later additions such as accessible gardening spaces, educational facilities, prairie and butterfly habitats, children’s gardens, and event areas. Since the late 1990s, it has expanded programming, fundraising, and community access, including free admission for participating SNAP users in 2023.