Community Corner
Essex County Cherry Blossom Trees ‘Peak’ In Time For Bloomfest
The 5,000 cherry blossom trees in Branch Brook Park have hit their "peak bloom" as Essex County's popular annual festival continues.
ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — The 5,000 cherry blossom trees in Branch Brook Park have hit their “peak bloom” as the 2019 Essex County Cherry Blossom Festival ramps up, officials said earlier this week.
On Thursday, Essex County park officials announced that the cherry blossom trees at Branch Brook are at their prime.
“Take a ride over to Branch Brook Park in the next few days to see our incredible trees at the height of their season,” officials encouraged.
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The announcement comes just in time for the centerpiece of the festival, the popular "Bloomfest," which is set for Sunday, April 14 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The free, family-friendly event will include Japanese cultural demonstrations, children's activities, live music, a crafter's marketplace and food. Learn more here.
The park is located in Newark and Belleville. History, driving directions, a complete list of activities and a web cam where the public can monitor the cherry trees can be accessed by visiting www.essexcountynj.org/branch-brook-park.
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The collection of 5,000 trees in Branch Brook Park is larger than the national display in Washington DC, and is one of the most diverse in the country, county officials stated.
According to Essex County officials:
"Many of the original Cherry Trees planted in Branch Brook Park were donated to the Essex County Park System by the Bamberger and Mrs. Felix Fuld family in 1927. At its height, there were about 2,500 Cherry Trees in Branch Brook Park. According to the Branch Brook Park Alliance, the original Cherry Trees began to die because of old age and, in 2006, it was determined the original collection had diminished significantly. County Executive DiVincenzo kicked off an aggressive planting program to strengthen and expand the number of cherry trees. To date, there are more than 5,000 cherry blossoms throughout Branch Brook Park."
>> See our roundup of events for the 2019 Essex County Cherry Blossom Festival here
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