Garden’s Sakura reflect delicate beauty

Photo courtesy of the Dallas Arboretum

A wave of delicate pink and white cherry blossoms on the Arboretum’s 150 cherry blossom trees are starting to unfold, announcing their annual arrival and ushering in springtime. The flowering Japanese cherry trees are expected to be in full bloom within the next week. In Japan, cherry blossom time is known as hanami, with parties held both night and day under the sakura (cherry blossom trees), to celebrate this yearly occurrence and the delicate beauty of life. Hanami dates back to the Heian Period (794-1185) when the Imperial Court in Kyoto held flower-viewing parties beneath the blossoming cherry trees. The flowers were praised by poets as a metaphor for life, “beautiful yet fleeting.” Today, branches on many cherry trees at the Arboretum are overflowing with thousands of lacy blooms, and each tree only blooms once a year. 

              — Terry Lendecker