Last chance to see Exuberant Blooms!
Experience our biggest annual floral display to date before it closes on October 1.
In honor of our 90th anniversary, we're celebrating the joy and importance of public gardens at the Garden Railway! See miniature replicas of iconic structures at some of America's most famous public gardens including the Climatron at Missouri Botanical Garden, Torii Gate and Pavilion at Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Science Pyramid at Denver Botanic Gardens, and so much more.
Register for the Scarecrow Design Contest!
Registration Deadline: September 21
Morris Arboretum & Gardens’ Scarecrow Design Contest is back for the 16th year! This year’s theme is “The 1990s” in celebration of our 90th anniversary as a public garden. It’s your chance to create a scarecrow version of your favorite ’90s musician, icon, or nostalgia for display at the Morris! Scarecrows will be on display from October 1 through October 31. Visitors will vote online for their favorite scarecrow to determine the winners. The top three scarecrows win a cash prize—top prize is $250!
Fall 2023 Courses
Get outdoors, build new skills, meet new people, make something beautiful!
Whether you've been flexing a green thumb for years, you're new to horticulture, or you're looking for a new hobby, there's something for everyone at the Morris this season. From exercise and meditation in our beautiful gardens, to creative outlets that use nature's beauty as a muse, our course catalog is filled with over 90 inspiring education experiences to choose from.
Register today—courses fill up quickly!
In this latest issue of Seasons, we highlight our ongoing research since opening to the public in 1933. From a new research lab to finding new plants for our warming climate, there's a whole other side of the Morris that exists beyond the Garden. Learn more about what we're doing behind the scenes, and how our conservation research impacts not only the future of the Morris, but the future of plants and trees everywhere.
This Month's Highlights
Register for the Scarecrow Design Contest
Registration Deadline: September 21
Morris Arboretum & Gardens’ Scarecrow Design Contest is back for the 16th year! This year’s theme is “The 1990s” in celebration of our 90th anniversary as a public garden. It’s your chance to create a scarecrow version of your favorite ’90s musician, icon, or nostalgia for display at the Morris!
Harvest Trains
Saturday, September 2 – Monday, October 9
From refrigerated boxcars that carry bounties of fruit and other perishables, to grain cars that transport corn and wheat, come see the model harvest trains in our Garden Railway
Magic Railway Weekend
Saturday, September 16 – Sunday, September 17
Everyone's beloved cartoon train can always be found chugging along in his own section of our Garden Railway, but a few weekends a year he and his friends run free on all the tracks. Join us this weekend to experience the magic!
September Storytime
Wednesday, September 20 • 10:30 AM
Join us for story time and a fun activity in the Whimsical Woods.
Historic Springfield Mills Day
Sunday, September 24 • 1–4 PM
On a guided interactive tour, watch one-ton millstones grind corn kernels, observe 160-year-old machinery transport and sift ground corn to produce meal, and even grind your own flour on a pedal-powered mill.
Register for the Tree Canopy Conference
Friday, October 20 • 9:00 AM–4:30 PM
With the reveal of the new Philly Tree Plan, along with an abundance of new funding for urban and community forestry nationwide through the Inflation Reduction Act, now is a time of great growth and opportunity in Philadelphia’s urban forest. Join us to hear new insights and discuss these topics and more with peers and industry experts.
