ARBOR DAY CELEBRATION: Children of all ages are invited to an Arbor Day celebration at Marquand Park’s Children’s Arboretum on Sunday, April 27 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. There will be story time, a sing-along, a children’s book club, free sugar maple saplings, and more. (Photo courtesy of Marquand Park Foundation)

By Donald Gilpin

Marquand Park will be celebrating Arbor Day 2025 with story time, a sing-along, a children’s book club, a scavenger hunt, and more this Sunday, April 27 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at its Children’s Arboretum on Lovers Lane.

Marquand Park Foundation Co-Chairs Evie Timberlake and Rebecca Flemer noted that the Foundation has recently “taken a sharper focus on education, trying to get children more involved with the environment.”

Timberlake added, “We want to get the younger generation involved. We want to make it fun for them. It’s nice that families return for this event each year.”

The Marquand Park Children’s Arboretum hosts family events in each of the four seasons. In addition to the Arbor Day celebration there will be “Made in the Shade” in July, “OAKtober” in the fall, and “Pines and Needles” in January.

“Often kids come to the park and just stay on the playground or in the sandbox,” said Flemer. “We want them to explore beyond the playground. There’s a lot more to see and do in Marquand Park.”

She went on to point out that a section of the park is a pinetum (an arboretum for pines and other conifers), and that there is an extraordinary number of unusual evergreen trees in Marquand Park. One of the activities in the winter “Pins and Needles” program will be learning how to tell a spruce tree from a fir tree.

Flemer added, “We’re seeing some of our native trees disappearing and beech trees suffering from a new disease. It’s important that we talk about that. The landscape is changing.”

At Saturday’s Arbor Day event the Marquand Park Foundation will be presenting participants with free sugar maple saplings. Other activities on tap include tree bingo, journaling, and memory games.

“Discover the magic of trees, play in nature, and learn through hands-on exploration,” states a Marquand Park press release. The 17-acre park is home to more than 140 different tree species from around the world.

The Marquand Park Foundation, established in 1954, supports planning and programs to preserve the park as an arboretum for the public to enjoy. The foundation works closely with the Municipality of Princeton, which owns the park, to support proper routine maintenance and to raise awareness, if special attention is needed, to the condition of trees and shrubs.

“Come out and see Marquand Park’s trees in every season and learn how important trees are in our lives,” the press release urges. “Whether you’re a first-time visitor or a long-time friend of the park, there’s always something new to see, do, and enjoy together at Marquand!”

Visit marquandpark.org for further information.