Tulips and fairies at the Orange County Arboretum

Hamptonburgh — The Orange County Arboretum in the Thomas Bull Memorial Park will offer two events, a fairy garden walk for children, and the blooming of the tulips. The Friends of the Orange County Arboretum will present a Whimsical Fairy Garden Walk in the arboretum on Sunday, May 7, in cooperation with the Orange County Department of Parks, Recreation and Conservation. Naturalist and fairy enthusiast Laurie Presser will guide children on an enchanted quest for tiny habitats of woodland fairies amidst the arboretum’s gardens and woodlands. Three walks will be offered, at 1 p.m., 1:45 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. The fee of $5 per child will include fairy-inspired crafts and magical story at the end of the tour. Children are encouraged to wear wear fairy costumes. The 16,000 tulip bulbs in the arboretum will reach full bloom soon. The color combinations in the 17 raised beds, and around the flagpole, and at the entrance to the Ruth and Jim Ottaway Education Center, are enhanced with the colorful petals of Japanese cherry, pear, service berry and crab apple trees in bloom. There is no charge to visit the arboretum, open daily from 8 a.m. to dusk, at the Grove Street entrance off Route 416 in the Town of Hamptonburgh. For more information, call 457-4902 or visit www.OrangeCountyArboretum.org.