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What's in Bloom: April www.morrisarboretum.org/whats-bloom-april

What's in Bloom: April What's in Bloom: April Image April at the Morris Image Virginia bluebell Mertensia virginica Widener Woods These charming native wildflowers are a welcome sign of spring in the garden. Flower buds emerge a bright pink color and turn blue as they bloom, adding brightness to shady areas of the garden. Image Yoshino cherry Prunus x yedoensis Cherry Allée Following some of the early-blooming cherry varieties are the white flowers of Yoshino cherries, marking the peak of cherry blossom season here. These trees are a cross between Prunus speciosa , Oshima cherry, and Prunus pendula f. ascendens , weeping cherry. Learn More Image eastern redbud Cercis canadensis Log Cabin Clusters of pink flower buds cover leafless twigs and branches on this native tree. Redbud flowers are characteristic of the pea family, Fabaceae, with three upturned petals called the wings and banner and a lower cup-like petal known as the keel. In addition to the pink-flowering straight species, there are also several white-flowering varieties, such as Cercis canadensis var. alba and Cercis canadensis ‘Royal White’, on display in the garden. Image Piedmont azalea Rhododendron canescens Native Azalea Collection, across Key Fountain The showy pink flowers of this native shrub display long stamens and emit a strong, pleasant fragrance that wafts through the garden. In their native range of the southeastern United States, Piedmont azaleas can be found in acidic soils and bogs. Image Vilmorin dovetree Davidia involucrata var. vilmoriana   Mercury Loggia Dovetrees get their common name from the white, dangling bracts that resemble doves perched in the canopy. Image white enkianthus Enkianthus perulatus Pennock Garden Clusters of small bell-shaped flowers cover these large shrubs in the spring. Plants in the genus Enkianthus are in the Heath family, Ericaceae, which also includes Rhododendron and Pieris . Image flowering dogwood Cornus florida Seven Arches These popular native trees …

What's in Bloom: March www.morrisarboretum.org/whats-bloom-march

What's in Bloom: March What's in Bloom: March Image March at the Morris Image star magnolia Magnolia stellata Magnolia Slope Star magnolias are aptly named for their many-petaled, star-like flowers that open in early spring. While the straight species has white flowers, there are also pink-blooming cultivars such as M. stellata ‘Rubra’ (red star magnolia) planted on the Magnolia Slope. Image Okame flowering cherry Prunus ‘Okame’ Seven Arches This cultivar is one of the earliest blooming cherry trees we have in our collection, displaying bright pink flowers before leaves emerge. Their five-petaled flowers are characteristic of the rose family, Rosaceae. Learn More Image spike winterhazel Corylopsis spicata Witchhazel Collection Drooping yellow flowers with red anthers hang from the branches of these large shrubs, emitting a pleasant fragrance in the garden. This type of flower arrangement is called a spike because the individual flowers do not have pedicels and are attached directly to the main flowering stalk. Image katsura-tree Cercidiphyllum japonicum Azalea Meadow This champion tree stands out year-round with its sprawling form, heart-shaped leaves, textured bark, and fragrant fall foliage. In early spring, this tree produces inconspicuous red flowers along its branches. Image yulan magnolia Magnolia denudata Azalea Meadow Native to China, yulan magnolia has been in cultivation since the 7th century AD. Large-petaled, cream-colored flowers bloom on leafless branches, marking the transition into spring. Image bodnant viburnum Viburnum x bodnantense Widener Visitor Center A cross between Viburnum farreri and Viburnum grandiflorum , these large shrubs open up densely-clustered pink and white flowers that add fragrance and color to the early spring garden. Cherry Tree Map See the cherry blossoms this season! Cherry blossoms bloom in phases from late March through mid April. Use our Cherry Tree Map to find our whole collection and their bloom times. See Map See what …

Events

The bright green foliage of a maidenhair fern.

Climate-Proofing Plants for a Changing World

Tuesday, April 22 •
12 pm
Virtual
Registration is required
Register Today
A graphic of a hand holding a plant advertising a virtual event titled, "Climate-Proofing Pants for a Changing World."

April 22, 2025 • 12 PM ET • Virtual

Join us for a virtual armchair conversation on groundbreaking advances in breeding plants to thrive in a warming world.

This event features William Cullina, The F. Otto Haas Executive Director at the Morris Arboretum & Gardens, and Dr. Doris Wagner, DiMaura Professor of Biology at Penn Arts & Sciences. Dr. Wagner is also the inaugural director of the Penn Plant Adaptability and Resilience Center (Plant ARC), a new initiative dedicated to sustainable, plant-based solutions for addressing climate change.  They will engage in a captivating discussion about Plant ARC’s pioneering research on cellular precision editing and other innovative approaches to developing climate-resistant plants.

Meet the Panelists 

Headshot of a woman with shoulder-length dark hair and hoop earrings.
Introductions by
Alexandra (Lexa) Edsall, GCP’16, GCP’17
Chair, Board of Advisors, Morris Arboretum & Gardens

Since joining the Morris’s Board of Advisors in 2020, Lexa Edsall has been an active member of the Morris’s Master Planning Working Group. Edsall has a deep career in politics and law, serving in the offices of the deputy attorney general and the solicitor general at the US Department of Justice; as an associate at Covington & Burling; as a judicial clerk to Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg; and as senior adviser to the general counsel at the US Department of the Treasury. Edsall earned her BA and law degree from Harvard University and has a master of city planning degree from the University of Pennsylvania’s Stuart Weitzman School of Design.

 

A headshot of a man with gray hair smiling outdoors in a suit.
William Cullina
F. Otto Haas Executive Director, Morris Arboretum & Gardens

Prior to joining the Morris, William Cullina was the president and CEO of Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens for 8 years. He holds degrees in plant science and psychology and has been working in public horticulture for 30 years. He has extensive experience in commercial nursery production as well as a background in horticultural and forestry research. Cullina is a well-known author and a recognized authority on North American native plants.

 

 

Headshot of a woman with short grey hair, black-framed glassed, and a black shirt standing outdoors in a blooming garden.
Doris Wagner
DiMaura Professor of Biology, Penn Arts & Sciences

Doris Wagner is the inaugural director of the Penn Plant Adaptability and Resilience Center (Plant ARC), a multidisciplinary center housed in the Department of Biology. The Center focuses on enhancing plant development and fortitude in the face of increasingly common extreme and unpredictable weather events such as heat waves, droughts, and floods. Wagner is a leader in the fields of plant biology, chromatin modification, and epigenetics, which involves the reprogramming of cell identity and function. She has received numerous grants from the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health, and serves as editor-in-chief of Current Opinions in Plant Biology. Wagner holds a PhD from the University of California, Berkeley.

People Plants & Penn Discussion Series

Events

The leaves of bright green ferns with a light green dotted-line pattern along the fronds.

Eat the Weeds! Foraging and Cooking with Tama Wong

Saturday, May 10 •
10:30 am
Registration is required.
Register Today
Saturday, May 10 • 10:30 am – 12:30 pm 
Tama Matsuoka Wong, Forager, Meadow Doctor, Lawyer, Author, and Owner of Meadows + More
Members: $50 • Non-members: $55

Late spring is the perfect time to further explore the bounty of forageable, delicious "weeds" in our area.  We will explore different plants both in the field and on our plates!

Join Tama for a morning of exploring the most delectable of these wild plants in the Morris’s meadows. Tama will break down common assumptions about what is ugly, what is useless and what is unwanted by gleaning and making delicious use of unwanted ‘weeds.’ After an introduction, the group will go on a walk and learn how to forage for common spring edibles. You’ll learn the historical background and harvesting tips of some of the most common wild edibles in the Mid-Atlantic region. Then Tama will discuss the cooking and preparation of these edibles, and we will share bountiful tastes of wild edibles and ideas for incorporating them into every meal! 

Tama Matsuoka Wong is a forager, weed eater, meadow doctor, lawyer and mother of three. She is the author of the backyard field guide and cookbook Foraged Flavor (2012) and Into the Weeds (2024). She is the owner of Meadows + More, connecting great food with nature (meadowsandmore.com). 

Events

A rose garden in bloom.

Healthy Holiday Treats for Passover and Easter

Wednesday, March 26
Registration is required. 
Register Today
Monday, April 7 • 6 – 7:30 pm 
Dorothy Bauer, Weavers Way Co-op Neighborhood Nutrition Team Member, Raw Food Chef 
Members: $45 • Non-members: $50 

Are you making desserts for your Passover or Easter table? Ditch unhealthy ingredients and replace them with health-promoting, nutrient-dense REAL food that will kick those sugar cookies to the curb! We’ll make delicious holiday treats that folks won’t believe are low-glycemic index, as well as dairy AND gluten-free. Everything will taste as good as it looks! Prepare to be amazed at how satisfying, nourishing, and delicious healthy food can be! Please contact us in advance with any food allergies or intolerances. Don’t forget to bring your sweet tooth and a to-go container! 

Dorothy Bauer spent most of her adult life in Berkeley, California, where she was able to take classes at Living Light Culinary Institute and study with world raw-food chef Elaina Love.  

 

Two Longtime Morris Staff Members Retire www.morrisarboretum.org/blog/two-longtime-morris-staff-members-retire

Two Longtime Morris Staff Members Retire The John J. Willaman Director of Plant Science Dr. Timothy A. Block and Jason Lubar, associate director of Urban Forestry, have retired after serving for decades at Morris Arboretum & Gardens.   The John J. Willaman Director of Plant Science Dr. Timothy A. Block and Jason Lubar, associate director of Urban Forestry, have retired after serving for decades at Morris Arboretum & Gardens.  Dr. Block was hired at the Morris as a post-doctoral candidate to help write the first edition of The Plants of Pennsylvania: An Illustrated Manual, along with botanist Dr. Ann Fowler Rhoads. He is a co-founder with Rhoads of the Pennsylvania Flora Project of Morris Arboretum. He became director of botany in 2002.  Block’s interest in plants was cultivated as a child growing up in Ohio.  Image Dr. Timothy Block “I didn’t know what everything was that I was looking at, but there was sort of a magic to being out in the woods and communing with nature,” he said.  At the Morris, Block focused on floristic botany, the study and the science of how vegetation and species are distributed across landscapes and through time. He also taught field botany and other classes at the University of Pennsylvania.  “I love teaching,” he said. “I always have. It’s the most rewarding piece of my career. I think I’ve touched a lot of people’s lives in a positive way.”  Block said there are botanical projects he will continue to work on because he likes to do them. He’s learning more about the slender rock-brake ( Crytogramma stelleri ) and he’ll continue the vegetation inventory and plant community mapping of Nescopeck State Park in Luzerne County, PA.  “I’ve been really fortunate to be able to get paid to do something that I would have happily done for free,” he said. “I'm not retiring so that I don't have to be a botanist anymore. It’s not a job. It’s what my life has become. And I wouldn't have it any other way.”                                                    …

Events

Metal sheep sculpture on a green lawn surrounded by magnolia trees in bloom with pink flowers.

Walking with the Seasons

Monday, February 3 – Monday, April 14 •
11 am
Morris Arboretum & Gardens
Registration is required.
Register Today
March 31; April 14  • 11 am – 12:30 pm  
with Margaret Kinnevy, Naturalist, Community Nurse Educator, Doctor of Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine
Members: $25 • Non-members: $30

This curated set of walks begins as winter recedes and signs of spring begin to emerge all around (the first class will take place on the date of the Spring Festival celebration on the lunisolar Chinese calendar). Our experience on each walk will look and feel different as the seasons change.

We will meet at the Welcome Center, and together we will venture a few steps off the paved pathways, to the hidden-in-plain-sight areas where you will wish to return for quiet contemplation or to delight in spring’s crescendo of blooms and scents. Throughout this spring season two new areas of development will rise before our eyes: the new pollinator garden installation and the expansion of the witchhazel area.  

You will learn easy ways to stay warm outdoors in the cooler seasons and find a sense of peace and well-being as the spring emerges both in the natural world and within yourself. The class is all outdoors and will be held rain or shine. Dress for the weather! 

Note: These Monday sessions are not consecutive, but every other Monday as the winter turns to spring. Sign up for the full series at a discount!

Check out the Spring 2025 Course Catalog for more courses →

Collection Connection www.morrisarboretum.org/gardens-trees/collection-connection

Collection Connection Collection Connection Image Collection Connection Search our Collection Connection to learn more about plants and garden features of interest to you and where you can find them at the Morris. You can also view a map to help identify what is nearby. Plant Collection More than 11,000 accessioned plants of over 2,500 taxa are growing in the Morris’s living collection. These include representatives of the temperate floras of North America, Asia, and Europe. This historic collection traces its foundation to John Morris’s interest in plants from around the world and includes plants collected in China by E.H. Wilson at the turn of the century. Many of the Delaware Valley’s "trees-of-record" (the largest of their kind) are found in the Morris. Most notable are the katsura and the trident maple.  Image Staff members have regularly engaged in plant collecting expeditions in Asia and the United States, increasing the different kinds of plants available for today’s urban and community landscapes. Currently, plants from 30 countries are represented in the collection with a primary focus on Asian temperate species. Significant plant groups in the Morris’s collection include maples, magnolia species, native azaleas, members of the witchhazel family, roses, hollies, and conifers.  Help Protect Our Trees  Please note, visitors are not allowed to climb or sit on the limbs of trees . The Morris is home to a number of  champion trees , some of which are very old. With 150,000 visitors annually, climbing becomes a safety issue for both children and the trees. We don’t want any visitors or trees to break a limb. Thank you!  Seasonal Plants  With the range of our collections, there is seasonal interest throughout the year, for all levels of gardeners. Look for the following plants throughout the year:  Image December through February  Paperbark maple, stewartia, kousa dogwoods, hollies, and rare and unusual conifers of all shapes, sizes and colors.  March through …