An arbor is a garden area made from trees, vines and climbing plants trained into sides and a roof, usually through the use of latticework. The American spelling is arbor, the Canadian and British spelling is arbour. Arbor comes from the fourteenth century word, herber, meaning herb garden. Arbor Day is a day designated to raise awareness about the importance of planting trees, it was first celebrated in 1872 in the state of Nebraska, in the United States.
Some words end in -or in American English and -our in British English. These words come from two languages, French words which end in -ur and Latin words which end in -or. After the Norman conquest of England, French spellings with endings of -our became preferred. In the United States, the 1828 Webster’s dictionary settled on the -or endings of such words, which perpetuated this type of spelling in the United States.
Examples Its entrance is marked with an arbor that reads, “Nature Discovery Area” and a flagstone pathway guides guests inside. (The Citizens Voice)
Lady Alexa stood under an arbor of red roses on a mostly white float, accented in rose to complement her dress. (The Gilmer Mirror)
In addition to the ornamental garden, there is also a grape arbor and raised vegetable beds. (The Daily Record)
The most striking piece of garden architecture is a sturdy wooden arbor that extends around the perimeter of the property for hundreds of feet. (The Washington Post)
The Arbor Day celebration is a requirement for the city to qualify as a Tree City USA, a program established by the Arbor Day Foundation. (The Daily Star-Journal)
The centrepiece is the Tea Garden, with a tea house and waiting arbour where the Bankes children originally “took tea” brought out from the main kitchen. (The Blackmore Vale Magazine)
A lack of financial management meant that these grand ideas could not be sustained (many of the great tree avenues were felled for their timber value when things got really bad) until Lucius Cary inherited the estate in 1907 and made a real effort to improve the garden, adding a rose arbour and more glasshouses and earning himself a rave review in the Garden magazine of 1910. (The Torquay Herald Express)
In the same section, a 20th Century stone garden arbour in the form of a classical temple and a pair of 19th Century bronze recumbent lions made £4,500 each and a 20th Century single span arched bridge sold for £3,500. (The Coventry Telegraph)