Cherry Park in Lahti

The City of Lahti ran a participatory budgeting campaign in 2020, in which local residents were invited to submit and vote for ideas on how the city could be improved. One of the winning ideas was to establish a Cherry Park in Lahti.

A total of 55 saplings were planted, of which 25 were donated by the Hokkaido Finland Society. The Lahti Poetry Marathon also contributed to the design of the park.

The appeal of cherry trees stems from their majestic blooms in the spring and the stunning colours of their leaves in the autumn. The trees usually bloom towards the end of May, and the cherry blossom season lasts just under a week.

The species chosen for Lahti’s Cherry Park are known for their beautiful, pink blooms: Sargent’s Cherry (Prunus sargentii), Accolade Cherry (Prunus ‘Accolade’) and an ornamental cultivar from Hokkaido (Prunus sargentii ‘Mustila’).

The Cherry Park is located right next to Laune Arboretum and Family Park, to the west of the Family Park in the Asemantausta neighbourhood.

The Cherry Park’s corridors are barrier-free, and you can use them, e.g. in a wheelchair. The park is located in a slope park, so the sections outside the park corridors are uneven and in some places very strongly inclined.