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Photo by Joe DiGiacomo 

The Arboretum is
sensational in September!

The arboretum is open every day 8:00 AM to dusk,
weather permitting.

There are 7 pedestrian gates that are always unlocked.
The most commonly used are located on Home Hill to the right
of the Knippenberg Center and on Long Valley Road
near the exit from the Pines Lake Drive West parking lot.

The Knippenberg Center for Education 
is open April 8 - October 31
Tuesday through Sunday, 12 Noon - 4:00 PM

Chair Yoga           Mondays 10:00 AM through November 3rd 

Walking Group     Mondays & Thursdays 9:00 AM

9/2 - 9/29              Art Exhibit - Landscape Painters of North Jersey

9/6      10:30 AM   Free Walking & Cart Tours

9/7       2:30 PM   Opening Reception - Art Exhibit - Landscape Painters
                             of North Jersey 

9/13     8:30 AM   Fall Migration Bird Walk (rain date 9/14)

9/17     6:30 PM   Chrysanthemum Presentation – NJ Chrysanthemum Society    

9/20     10:30 AM   Free Walking & Cart Tours

9/23     4:30 PM     Laurelwood Book Club

9/24     5:00 - 6:30 PM   GreenQuest Nature Club, for children from grades 2-6

9/27     8:30 AM    Fall Migration Bird Walk (rain date 9/28)

9/28   11 AM - 5 PM    Wayne Day – visit the Laurelwood booth

New sculpture installed! 

Butterflies and Flowers installation with sculptor Babette Bloch, Sean Holtzi and Eddy Lantigua

The new stainless-steel sculpture, Butterflies and Flowers, has been installed on site #2 on the west side of Laurel Pond. Sculptor Babett Bloch commented, “Butterflies and Flowers is a sculptural celebration of nature’s delicate balance and a call to action. Through this work, I emphasize the vital importance of protecting our ecosystems—not only for their beauty, but because they are essential to our very survival."

Laurelwood Arboretum Level II Accreditation has been renewed by the ArbNet Arboretum Accreditation Program and The Morton Arboretum. Accreditation is awarded for achieving standards of professional practices deemed important for arboreta and botanic gardens. Level II criteria include having a minimum of 100 species, varieties or cultivars of trees or woody plants; having a defined collections policy; and supporting enhanced educational and public programs relating to trees. Laurelwood is also recognized as an accredited arboretum in the Morton Register of Arboreta, a database of the world’s arboreta and gardens dedicated to woody plants.

“Our Plant Collection Management Committee, led by Lorraine LaShell, has worked diligently for the past several years identifying, cataloging and tagging our special collections of trees, rhododendrons and native plants and built our collections database with over 2,000 separate listings to date,” said Georgette Moesch, president of Friends of Laurelwood Arboretum. “As a volunteer organization, we are proud of this accomplishment.”

ArbNet is an interactive, collaborative, international community of arboreta. The accreditation program, sponsored and coordinated by The Morton Arboretum in Lisle, Illinois in cooperation with American Public Gardens Association and Botanic Gardens Conservation International, is the only global initiative to officially recognize arboreta based on a set of professional standards. More information is available at www.arbnet.org

Laurelwood currently has over 2,000 trees, woody shrubs, rhododendrons and native plants in our plant collection database of which 219 are different species, which qualified Laurelwood for Level II Certification. Thank you to Joe DiGiacomo, Betty Montagne and Joan Scott Miller for their work on securing this renewed certification.

SOAR Science Programs

SOAR Science presented two programs in Laurelwood for children 6-9. Both were great programs with hands-on activities and related activities outside. The children were learning and having fun! These programs were made possible by a sponsorship from the Albert Payson Terhune Foundation.

World of Littles children’s program presented by SOAR Science on July 22. 

Who Lives There? Children’s program presented by SOAR Science on August 19.

Bird Feeding Basics

On July 16, Andrew Marino from the Backyard Birding Store in Wayne presented a program on the basics of bird feeding. Store owners Andrew Marino and his wife Joanne are a wealth of knowledge for all things related to bird watching and feeding.

Volunteer News

Sharon Nikaido and “Igor”

Sharon Nikaido and “Igor”

On Fridays Sharon Nikaido does “double duty” as the greeter in the KCE and also as our brochure folder. Sharon is diligent and exacting with both responsibilities. Sharon says “I call the folding machine Igor. He can be stubborn, temperamental and destructive but with patience I have learned his idiosyncrasies and now most Fridays we are getting along famously.”

Useful Phone Apps

Do you ever wonder what plant you’re seeing or bird call you’re hearing? There’s an app for that!  Here are some of the
most popular apps that aid in identification.

Pl@ntNet         https://plantnet.org/en/

iNaturalist       https://www.inaturalist.org/

PictureThis       https://www.picturethisai.com/

Audubon    https://www.audubon.org/section/audubon-app

Merlin Bird ID    https://apps.apple.com/us/app/merlin-bird-id-by-cornell-lab/id773457673

Asian Jumping Worms

There’s a new invasive in the area - Asian Jumping Worms.
They are particularly detrimental to the health of the soil.

Please click here to learn more.

Donations to Friends of Laurelwood Arboretum help to support the park's maintenance, operations and public programs.

Dues and donations are deductible for income tax purposes
to the extent allowed by law.

Friends of Laurelwood Arboretum
is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.

Keep Our Arboretum Green!

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