Freedom Park Conservancy To Create ‘Flowering Forest’ Tree Tribute to Civil Rights Leader John Lewis

Freedom Park Conservancy next month will plant “hundreds of blooming plants,” including over 300 blooming trees, flowering shrubs, and fields of daffodils, as a memorial to the late Congressman John Lewis. The “Flowering Forest” will be planted in the first phase of a multi-year project in Freedom Park, according to a press release.

Freedom Park Conservancy is hosting a three-day volunteer planting project starting on February 19 and ending on Sunday, February 21, 2021, which would have been Lewis’s 81st birthday. Volunteers who wish to participate in the tree planting are required to register in advance.

“The trees and flowering plants have been selected for their early blooming in late winter (specifically around February) to celebrate the civil rights icon’s birthday with a spectacular blooming event each year,” Freedom Park Conservancy writes of the project on a landing page. “The desire to honor John Lewis’ life and legacy inspired the Freedom Park Conservancy, Trees Atlanta, and The National Center for Civil and Human Rights to bring together their commitments to community stewardship, urban tree cover, and civic storytelling.”

Over a five-year period, the Freedom Park Conservancy will lead the effort to extend the Flowering Forest with additional hundreds of blooming trees through Freedom Park, the “largest” linear park in the City of Atlanta, along the length of John Lewis Freedom Parkway to Boulevard. Tree selections will include mostly native varieties of redbuds, magnolias, dogwoods, yellowwoods, buckeyes, fringe trees, and other flowering species.

“Freedom Park has an important legacy in the areas of art, activism, and nature, and this tree installation will honor John Lewis and allow us to reinforce his legacy for future generations,” Harriett Lane, Freedom Park Conservancy Chair, said. “Today John Lewis Plaza within Freedom Park is anchored by The Bridge, a work of sculptor Thornton Dial, which represents Congressman Lewis’ lifelong quest for the advancement of civil and human rights.”