Sakura, which means cherry blossom, is Japan’s unofficial national flower. The evanescent blooming and then scattering each spring has been celebrated for many centuries and takes a very prominent position in Japanese culture.
The Pittsburgh Sakura Project (PSP) began in 2007, with a proposal by members of the Japanese Association of Greater Pittsburgh and approval by JAGP’s Board of Directors. The PSP became an independent nonprofit organization in 2008. Our founding idea was to plant and maintain 250 ornamental cherry trees around the greater Pittsburgh region over a 10-year period, in honor of the 250th anniversary of the founding of Pittsburgh in 1758. Our aim is for lovers of cherry blossoms to enjoy beautiful, mature cherry trees in the Pittsburgh region. Our goal is being realized in Allegheny County’s North Park. The PSP will enable visitors to North Park to enjoy the unique scenery of Sakura and strengthen bonds within the local Japanese community by creating a focal point for cultural and personal exchange. By adding the new element of Sakura to existing park scenery, we create a new aesthetic while preserving the woodland scenery, an example of cultural harmony and environmental sustainability for future generations.
Allegheny County formally approved PSP’s proposal to plant at the North Park site, on May 20, 2008. Our inaugural planting day was April 25, 2009 and we celebrated our 10th Anniversary in April 2019. As of October 2021, we have planted nearly 340 trees: 225 cherries (10 varieties) and 111 other park trees, providing spectacular scenery in spring as well as the beauty and ecosystem services trees provide throughout the year. We are grateful to the Allegheny County Parks Department, Allegheny County’s TreeVitalize Program, Tree Pittsburgh for their support. TreeVitalize has provided PSP with many trees, and Tree Pittsburgh has trained volunteers in good practices regarding tree planting and maintenance. We are also grateful to our designers, Animoto + Mercer, LLC and Ron Block Landscape Design, who have given us countless hours of their expertise and sweat, as well as the many other volunteers working on tree planting and care. Our board is also comprised completely of volunteers. We have no official membership, and we are funded completely by donations.
Since our inaugural planting ceremony and First Annual Spring Planting Day in 2009, public planting days continued each fall, with tree maintenance workdays in winter, spring, and summer, until the pandemic arrived in March 2020. Since then, smaller scale, in-house planting and maintenance events continue. We look forward to the day when we can safely welcome larger numbers of volunteers again.
春爛漫と咲き、美しく散る桜の姿は古来より日本人の美意識に合致し、 日本の国花とされております。 どこに暮らしていても多くの日本人の脳裏に残る花木です。 ここアメリカにおいては1912年に友好の印として首都東京からワシントンＤＣ に送られた３０００本の桜が日米交流の象徴として有名であり、 現在も春にはポトマック河畔を彩り、多くの人々の目を楽しませています。
私達「さくらプロジェクト」メンバーは、私たちが愛する美しい桜をアリゲーニ郡の公 園に植え地元の人々にこのあたりでは他に見られないユニークな景観を楽しんでもらうと 同時にこのプロジェクトが当地の日本コミュニィティの絆を強め、 地域社会との人的・文化的交流が生まれることを願っております。
又、私達は、植林地に現存する松林の景観を損ねることなく、新しい要素である桜が加わることにより生み出される新しい空間が、次世代に異文化融合の良き例として受け継がれることを信じております。