Through the Seasons at the Morton Arboretum: Then and Now (May)
"During no other month is there so much of horticultural interest" - E. Lowell Kammerer
The quotation in the subtitle certainly holds almost 80 years later!
I visited the Morton Arboretum this past weekend (May 2nd) and searched for some of the most impressive displays occurring in May, as outlined in a pamphlet he wrote for the 1942 Chicago Flower and Garden Show (which you can read more about here).
One genus of trees that my grandpa mentions are the Crabapples (Malus), calling them a “dominant feature of the May landscape.” I stopped by the West side of the Arboretum near Thornhill to seek out these beautifully flowering Crabs:
My grandfather’s collection of slides contained an entire box labeled “Malus Slides,” so here are some then and now comparisons:
The flowers on the next crabapple tree were much more stunning in person, but the photo does an alright job of showing their vibrant color.
For comparison, here is a photo of one of the Arboretum’s Liset Crabapples in May of 1965, taken by my grandpa:
I didn’t find a current tree to compare this slide to, but I love how the white flowers look set against the sky:
To again quote my grandpa: “during early May, [crabapples] spread out like a patchwork quilt worked in white, pink, and rose.” If you’re able to go see this spectacular display for yourself before the month is over, I’d highly recommend it!
Of course, another prevalent display occurring throughout the Arboretum right now are the unmistakable Redbud (Cercis canadensis) trees which, both at the time my grandfather wrote this piece and now, can be found “along woodland borders throughout the Arboretum.”
On the East Side of the Arboretum, I discovered some deep, moody Lilacs in full bloom during the month that my grandfather describes as “Lilac time”:
Because May is such an impressive month for blooms, I’ll be doing another edition of Through the Seasons at the Arboretum Then and Now sometime mid-May, so be on the lookout for that!
Thank you for subscribing! And if you’re not subscribed yet, you can do that right here. You can get newsletters for free, but there are also paid subscriptions that will offer you access to additional content (coming soon!)
If you have topics you’re interested to hear more about or specific trees you’re interested in, please feel free to let me know in the comments.
If you like what you’ve read so far, sharing Bulletin of Remarkable Trees with your friends would help a whole lot!