Growing up, I always thought of arboretums to be where stuffy old people went for a walk — an enclosed giant garden. Ah, to be proven so wrong and smile about it!
In the northwest border of Philadelphia, passed the magnificent stone mansions of Chestnut Hill lies the Morris Arboretum. This old estate property that has been converted to a living, thriving, creative arboretum; one that respects the classic past, but goes way beyond beautiful and varietal gardens, to details like having rotating modern sculpture exhibits, a permanent classic toy trains area and a wild, enormous spider web built for kids into the body of a giant oak.
Clearly, it is an escape for everyone seeking a bit of peace at the city’s edge, as well as a great place to walk the stroller and let the kids nap and play.
The history of the old estate is best scene at the small pond, swans and all, with it’s tiny faux-Greek columned wedding temple. In the photo here, it was decorated for a spring event…all the walkways, railing and even the Greek Temple, was wound in multi-colored thick yarn.
Once every season, we visit, not just to see the garden and arbor craft on display, but to experience what does not change — the expansive lawns, the open and contained themed gardens, the massive old trees, their limbs weighed close to the ground by age and weight.
So, basically there is no bad time to go! Even at Christmas they open evenings for a special toy train exhibit with dozens of tiny classic trains winding through a groove of pines.
But some other intriguing details? The “art” exhibits…like this incredible example of thatched huts, done in a modern way.
…or the odd presence of California Sequoias; I had never seen any on the East Coast of the U.S., and these are much smaller than, let’s say, nearly any in California. But they still hold to the mystic circle, the fact that they grow in clusters, nearly perfect circles.
If you are visiting Philadelphia, which is a city of stark beauty, history, poverty, racism, crippled politics and stunning museums, it is worth a little breathing space and a quiet, inspired walk at the Morris Arboretum.
Outspoken Traveler 