Cherry blossoms at the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens
Jun 20, 2013 6:16:46 GMT
Post by nycgirl on Jun 20, 2013 6:16:46 GMT
Cherry blossom season is a highly-anticipated rite of spring at the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens. The BBG is one of the premiere sites to view cherry blossoms outside of Japan (though I'd love to see the cherry blossoms in Washington, D.C. one day). The blossoms typically peak at the end of April during Sakura Matsuri, a two-day Japanese cultural festival held at the gardens. However, when I attended the festival last year the blossoms were sadly gone thanks to unseasonably warm weather. Determined not to miss out again, I made it a point to visit the gardens twice this year.
The first time was in mid-April. The weather had been unseasonably cool this time around, just as it was all over the world, but some buds had finally opened up.
The BBG is home to over 200 cherry trees of 42 varieties. I can only identify a few, like the exquisite "Pendula," also called the weeping higan cherry. Planted in the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden, these trees, with their blossom-laden branches reaching elegantly over the water, are a major draw for visitors and are frequently depicted by photographers and painters.
The red torii, used to mark the entrance to a sacred place, is a distinctive feature of the Japanese Garden.
Also on display were the gleaming white blossoms of the "Shirotae" (meaning "snow white") trees.
I took a little time to view some of the gardens' other lovely flora, such as magnolia trees...
... tulips...
... and weeping crabapple trees.
The star attraction of cherry blossom season, the dazzling "Kanzan" trees, had not yet flowered, so I opted to return again later.
The first time was in mid-April. The weather had been unseasonably cool this time around, just as it was all over the world, but some buds had finally opened up.
The BBG is home to over 200 cherry trees of 42 varieties. I can only identify a few, like the exquisite "Pendula," also called the weeping higan cherry. Planted in the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden, these trees, with their blossom-laden branches reaching elegantly over the water, are a major draw for visitors and are frequently depicted by photographers and painters.
The red torii, used to mark the entrance to a sacred place, is a distinctive feature of the Japanese Garden.
Also on display were the gleaming white blossoms of the "Shirotae" (meaning "snow white") trees.
I took a little time to view some of the gardens' other lovely flora, such as magnolia trees...
... tulips...
... and weeping crabapple trees.
The star attraction of cherry blossom season, the dazzling "Kanzan" trees, had not yet flowered, so I opted to return again later.
