Morris Arboretum's Annual Plant Sale is next week

For rare and unusual plants for your garden, and expert advice from horticulturalists, plan to attend Morris Arboretum's Plant Sale on May 5-6 (Arboretum members only) or May 7 (public sale day). http://www.upenn.edu/pennnews/current/2011-04-28/latest-news/morris-arboretum-plant-sale-blooms-may

Storytime at Morris Arboretum

This morning, Morris Arboretum had their first session of Storytime for this year.  Storytime is a fun and engaging reading session among the trees for children ages 0-5 (check out website for more info) that is happening throughout the spring and summer.  It is a great activity for moms or dads or grandparents looking for something fun to get them out of the house into a beautiful setting and meet other people.

This morning, there were about twenty people that enjoyed interactive storytelling, learning signs and songs under Out on a Limb. There was beautiful weather and afterward, folks explored the garden to see all that is in bloom.

Storytime at the Morris Arboretum is a program in partnership with William Jeanes Memorial Library in Lafayette Hill and the Free Library of Springfield Township.

In bloom on April 26

It is starting to heat up and spring almost feels like summer already.  There are a lot of plants in bloom right now and it is a perfect time to take a trip to Morris Arboretum and enjoy the season.  Take a look at a few pictures I snapped this morning:

Morris Arboretum’s Botany Department Receives Grant to Create Recovery Plans for Most Critically Imperiled Pennsylvania Plant Species

The Botany Department at the Morris Arboretum has received a grant from the Pennsylvania Wild Resource Conservation Program (WRCP) to create resource recovery plans for three plant species considered among the most critically imperiled in Pennsylvania. The species of concern in this project are glade spurge (Euphorbia purpurea), Torrey’s mountain-mint (Pycnanthemum torreyi), and spreading globe-flower (Trollius laxus).

Trollium laxus



Pycnanthemum torreyi

JohnLynch Euphorbia purpurea

These plans will delineate a strategy that promotes protection of the species and their habitats and allows for species recovery and stability. The ultimate goal is to create objective, measurable criteria which, when met, would result in a determination that the species be removed from Pennsylvania’s list of species of special concern.



Morris Arboretum Botany Department staff will visit the few sites where these species are known to occur to provide up-to-date data on population information for extant populations. The data collected will include population size, potential threats, reproductive capacity, and overall population health.



Historic sites will also be visited to assess whether or not the species could remain at those sites. The potential for previously unknown sites will be assessed using geographic information system (GIS) analysis based on various physical parameters. All background and laboratory research associated with this project will be conducted at the Morris Arboretum of the University of Pennsylvania.



The Pennsylvania Wild Resource Conservation Program (WRCP) is part of the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and is the only dedicated source of funding for research and conservation of wild plants in our state. Visit www.dcnr.state.pa.us/wrcp to find out how you can help support this vitally important program.

In bloom at Morris Arboretum

Lots of folks have been asking what is in bloom at the Arboretum.  I could describe in words how everything is looking in the garden or list the plants and trees that are blooming but I thought pictures would be more effective.  All photos were taken today, April 18th, 2011.  With the nice weather this week, it will be a great time to come out and get a good taste of spring.

Birding on the Eastern Shore

This week, a group from Morris Arboretum took a three-day birding adventure to the eastern shore of Maryland. Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge, located at the confluence of the Chester River and the Chesapeake Bay was one of the primary destinations. This 2,285-acre island refuge is a major feeding and resting place for migrating and wintering waterfowl. More than 100,000 ducks, geese and swans seek sanctuary here, as do migrating and breeding songbirds and shorebirds.

The photo was taken by one of the trip takers, Douglas Marshall of the group:

The group also visited the 3,300 acre Chesapeake Farms where they observed a wide variety of wintering waterfowl including tundra swans and many ducks including pintails, green-wing teals, shovelers and other species.  The group saw lots of birds but some special ones were: the horned lark, snipes, horned grebes and lots of bald eagles.

Check out this great picture of an osprey taken by Lehman Kapp, one of the trip participants:

The trip was led by Ruth Pfeffer, an expert birder who teaches a number of birding classes at the Morris Arboretum.

Sakura and Katsura at Morris Arboretum

Bob Gutowski, Director of Public Programs

Sakura, cherry blossom viewing, is a Japanese cultural tradition that has taken hold at the Morris Arboretum.  For me it starts with Prunus mume, Japanese Apricot, already in bloom near the Garden Railroad.  It carries a fine fragrance.  I heard it was in bloom today and took a walk after work to get acquainted with this new tree in the collection.

Prunus mume 'Shiro-Naniwa', Japanese Apricot, 2003-005-B

The Katsuratree, Cercidiphyllum japonicum,  is also putting on a fine show of flowering, although without petals.  Katsura are dioecious, having male and female trees.  This is a male.



















See more photos from March 22, and post your own on Flickr:  http://www.business-services.upenn.edu/arboretum/submit_pictures.shtml