Did Mother's Day Start Happy?

Did U.S. Mother's Day Start Happy? We look into history today.  And what do we find? The official holiday’s founder Anna Jarvis boycotted the holiday. Jarvis, a native of West Virginia, organized the first Mother’s Day celebration at a church in Grafton, West Virginia, in 1908 in memory of her own mother, who died three years earlier. She successfully campaigned to have the day adopted nationally, but by the time of her death in 1948, Jarvis had spent most of her personal wealth fighting the holiday she helped conceive. She apparently found the commercialization of Mother’s Day deplorable and sued groups that used the name “Mother’s Day” name to promote consumerism. She even lobbied the government to remove it from the U.S.’ official calendar. “Everything she signed was Anna Jarvis, Founder of Mother's Day. It was who she was," historian Katharine Antolini, author of “Memorializing Motherhood: Anna Jarvis and the Struggle for Control of Mother's Day,” told National Geographic. So much for a Romantic beginning!  Enjoy our day and the Niagara blossoms.  This orchard is on Highway 8 between Vineland and Beamsville.  It is the best white blossom orchard so far.  What makes it so is the distance between the trees and length of the rows so that the convergence happens at the end.  My name for this is "Blossom Heaven".

Niagara's Ancient Trees

They are generally not be the oldest trees…

"The typical lifespan of a cherry tree is as short as 16 to 20 years. Some species are longer lived than others. Black cherry trees (Prunus serotina) live up to 250 years, although the average lifespan of a black cherry is 100 years. Cherry trees are sensitive specimen trees. They are easily susceptible and invaded by insects and diseases. Cherry trees commonly succumb to diseases such as brown rot, black knot, silver leaf disease, as well as bacterial canker. Insects such as borers, aphids and scales weaken and destroy cherry trees."

The typical lifespan of a peach tree in cold areas is only 10 to 15 years, and up to 50 years in a warm area.  So this explains why orchards disappear and get replanted as the tree production starts to decline.  I do like the ancient trees, though, especially when they have been pruned and shaped like the one below.

We're Ready for Our Blossom Trail!

Niagara boasts a beautiful landscape and wonderful fruit orchards that are full of blossoms in the spring.  We're not there yet - but it will be soon...here's a peak of what to expect.  

This image comes from Scott Arboretum, on the grounds of Swathmore College, located just south of Philadelphia.

The little Chionodoxas and Scillas are blooming under my Maple tree...so we're close behind.