The Ambler Arboretum of Temple University is 187 acres of hands-on, unique experiences for students, faculty and visitors alike. The entire campus is home to a diverse collection of gardens providing opportunities to learn, explore and simply connect with nature.
At Ambler in Bloom, the Ambler Arboretum’s signature garden party fundraiser, the experiential nature of the Ambler Campus gardens will take center stage. The theme for this year’s event, which will take place on Saturday, October 3, from 12 to 3 p.m., is “Rooted in the Elements." Register for Ambler in Bloom by Friday, September 25.
Ambler in Bloom, an annual event that supports public access to educational gardens, is designed to inspire creativity, spark discovery and celebrate the gardens, programs and community that grow at the Ambler Arboretum. Rooted in the Elements centers on four essential forces — roots, sun, water and soil — and getting hands-on with experiences through these lenses.
“The theme for this year’s in Bloom emerged from a discussion about our supporters — how they all are important — in whatever way and in how much they can give, whether that is simply telling a friend about a program and getting them to attend or helping to fund a garden or an initiative,” said Kathy Salisbury, Director of the Ambler Arboretum of Temple University. “The same way roots, soil, sun and water are essential, in their own ways, in their own time and in their own amounts, our community are all important; without the unique combination of their support we would struggle.”
Proceeds from Ambler in Bloom support the Arboretum’s mission of environmental education, horticultural excellence and free public access to the gardens. If you are unable to attend, please consider supporting the Ambler Arboretum with an Ambler in Bloom donation through the event registration page.
“The funds we raise at Ambler in Bloom are the funds we use to purchase tools and equipment, new plants and to also be able to hire student gardeners. My goals with this event are to ensure that people connect with each other and with the gardens and create memories in a beautiful space,” said Salisbury. “I hope our visitors have stories they will share with others after the event — maybe they will share the suncatcher they made or connect with a new friend again after the event or learn something they have in common with a stranger. I hope they will laugh, they will feel good about what they are supporting and that they will become lifelong supporters of the Arboretum.”
Acres of Experiences
Guests will arrive at Ambler in Bloom to live music in the heart of campus and lunch served by a curated collection of artisanal food truck chefs. Between bites, they’ll roam the gardens at their own pace to explore guided interactive activities.
Along the paths, guests will interact with a roaming “oystertainer,” create botanical cyanotype sun prints, try soil leaf printing, craft a pressed flower glass suncatcher, watch a bonsai demonstration, help plant bulbs for a future spring ephemeral flower path and discover a legacy wood-turning display. Ambler in Bloom will also feature a silent auction!
Pressed Flower Suncatchers
Environmental artist Carrie Barron is able to capture a little bit of nature under glass. During Ambler in Bloom, she will guide visitors in creating vibrant glass suncatchers using pressed flowers and other botanical materials.
“I’ve always been in love with connecting people to the natural world. I’ve also always loved the idea that you could experience nature in your home and be able to — even in the wintertime — have beautiful flowers around you,” said Barron, a naturalist, former park ranger and former environmental educator with the Baltimore Aquarium, the Philadelphia Zoo and the National Audubon Society. “I started pressing flowers many years ago and found a way to place them into double glass frames, which preserves them. That allows you to hang them anywhere in your home to add a little bit of spring and summer no matter what the season.”
Live Bonsai Art
Watch the meticulous artistry of bonsai with Michael Persiano, a master in the art of bonsai tree design and cultivation. Persiano is an accomplished, and internationally recognized, bonsai artist and educator who enjoys sharing the timeless techniques and philosophy behind this living art form.
“I am an advocate of horticulture practices and creating beauty through an understanding of how nature and, in this instance, potted trees can be transformed into living art,” said Persiano who has spent the better part of four decades honing his bonsai mastery. “Sharing the experience of creating a bonsai moves many individuals to seek a closer relationship with the natural world. Temple's initiative to bring together various masters and craftsmen motivates individuals to deepen their life experiences and to continue endless learning.”
Legacy Wood Display
Bob Dougan has created a legacy in wood for the Ambler Arboretum.
Taking maple wood, cherry and walnut he has used his artistry with wood to create pieces from trees lost during the tornado that struck Temple Ambler and its surrounding communities in 2021.
“I’m honored that they asked me to be the one to put some of these wood pieces together and make something out of them. It means a lot to be asked to do something that’s so important to helping remember, and to raise funds for the Arboretum,” said Dougan, a Temple Ambler alumnus and a member of the Ambler Arboretum Advisory Committee, who also taught classes on campus for many years. “This is helpful in creating a legacy of the trees that we lost; that we can remember them pretty much forever. When a tragedy happened, we were able to turn it around to something good and useful.”
Soil Leaf Printing
Create an original gesso print using leaves gathered from the Ambler Arboretum and pigments made from the campus’ own soil.
Local artist Rebecca Kamen came to her fascination with soil art when learning that “in a spoonful of soil there are more living organisms than people walking on the Earth.”
“It was this fact that got me totally excited about investigating soil and how it can become an art form,” said Kamen, who has collaborated with the Temple Ambler Field Station and Ambler Arboretum to explore the hidden stories found within the campus’ tornado-impacted soil. “My whole practice it about reimagining scientific discovery and making it really accessible to humanity. I’m an artist who crosses the intersection of art and science and the best thing about my work is I get to do it with my own rules!”
Botanical Cynotypes
Discover one of photography's oldest processes by arranging leaves and flowers on light-sensitive paper.
This experience is presented by internationally recognized artist Sam Van Aken, whose work explores the intersections of art, nature, history and horticulture.
Ephemeral Path - Bulb Planting
Join Arboretum Gardens Manager Stephanie Bross in the Beech Grove to plant bulbs that will form a flower path in the meadow. This growing tradition, begun at Amber in Bloom in 2024, expands year by year — a gift to the Arboretum’s future gardens.
“In the springtime, the Beech Grove is a really awesome area to come see because the whole field is filled with daffodils,” Bross said. “There is a wonderful ephemeral grass path that leads you over to our Woodland Garden so you can walk among the daffodils.”
Gardens Filled with Music
An acoustic guitar duo featuring Boyer College of Music and Dance Jazz Performance alumnus Chris Dolhancryk and current Boyer Music Education student Patrick Crowling will keep live music flowing throughout the gardens!
Roaming Oystertainment
Dive into conversation with our professional roaming “oystertainer!” Find them in the gardens expertly opening oysters to order, combining strength with artistry to reveal the fresh, briny delights within.
Learn more about Ambler in Bloom’s many presenters and activities at ambler.temple.edu/bloom.
The Ambler Arboretum: An Essential Part of Temple’s Mission
The Ambler Arboretum connects Temple faculty and students “while also connecting Temple with the community as a whole,” said Salisbury.
“It gives people an entry point to Temple in a way that might be different than what they are used to thinking about when they think about Temple University,” she said. “As an outdoor classroom and an educational support facility, we also work very hard to ensure that our gardens continue to be relevant and safe and useful by all of our faculty, staff and students.”
The Arboretum is “Temple University's outdoor classroom, living laboratory and public botanical garden,” Salisbury said.
“From Temple Ambler Field Station students dressed in personal protective equipment ready to head out to investigate the Temple Forest Observatory; to the National Park Ranger and the Municipal Police Academy cadets; to the Landscape Architecture students laden with their sketchbooks and drafting supplies to the Horticulture students exploring the small details of woody and herbaceous plants out in the gardens, it seems like everywhere you look, there's some hands-on learning going on,” she said. “This campus, and the Arboretum itself, is a place of hands-on experiential learning. This is a place where we take the changes that come at us and work with them, incorporating the unexpected into the lessons.”
Register for Ambler in Bloom by Friday, September 25. Learn more about the Ambler Arboretum at https://arboretum.temple.edu.