Floral Interlude

Some of you asked for flowers. It’s not been a good year for flowers. When I have the time and energy to photograph them, it’s been peeing down rain. When I’m trapped doing other things, usually indoors, it’s been bright and sunny and wonderful. I’ve determined the weather is mocking me.

But I did manage to slip away on Wednesday afternoon and catch a few for ye. We’ll start with those, then continue on with some of the lovely flowers some of you have sent.

Green and White Roof
Green and White Roof

I think these are dogwood. They’re on an enormous tree, and looking up through them towards the sky is like having a green and white floral roof. I could stand a house with a ceiling like this.

 

Early Rhodie
Early Rhodie

There’s a little round purple rhodie just beyond that tall white tree. The two of them together make it look like spring, with all their lovely pastel colors. This angle on a few of the flowers shows all the lovely bits that are there to make more flowers. There’s pollen, and there will be pollinators. Butterflies sometimes feast on these flowers, and I’m hoping to catch images of some this year.

Blaze
Blaze

The new growth on some of the bushes is flaming red. You’d think that would make it look like fall, but when it’s obviously young leaves like these, it’s another burst of spring.

Soon-to-be flowers
Soon-to-be flowers

There’s a set of trees that will soon have vivid pink blooms bursting everywhere, but they haven’t gone yet. These nearly-blown buds show they’ll be beautifying the place within days.

Cloud of flowers with cloud of water vapor
Cloud of flowers with cloud of water vapor

I missed the plums, but the cherry trees are still going strong. I think these are cherries. You can tell me. Some of them are more white than pink and bloom later, so I could be wrong about what they are. The white ones are in their prime, plump and full, and the cluster here seems to be comparing itself to the cloud, which I found charming.

White bursts against evergreen
White bursts against evergreen

I like early spring, when the fruit trees bloom while leafless, and virtually the only green you get is when they’re blooming against evergreen trees. You can also see a hint of bashful sunshine here. It kept trying to come out all the way and never quite succeeding.

Cherry blossoms
Cherry blossoms

These delicate pink blooms are nearly past their prime, but this cluster on a sheltered part of the tree are still bright and beautiful.

Line of lovely trees
Line of lovely trees

One thing I’ve always particularly loved about this street is the median, with its rich green grass and its gorgeous fruit trees. Every spring, they put on a spectacular show. It makes driving along it an uplifting experience. A little beauty every day is definitely welcome.

Blooms against bark
Blooms against bark

Love this little cluster right here, low down on the trunk of the tree. The trunks and branches of these trees are fascinating even when they’re dormant – there’s a vibrant community of mosses and lichens growing on them.

Warding off winter
Warding off winter

Soon, this will be a green and leafy boulevard. Now, it’s still lined with skeletons. The red flush of new growth shows they’re about to come to life again. The crossed branches of white cherry blossoms in the foreground seem to be warding off winter.

So that’s flower season well and truly begun. Lovely!

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Floral Interlude
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10 thoughts on “Floral Interlude

  1. 4

    Gorgeous. I spent much of my life in either Tucson or the SF Bay Area, with a two year stint in Eureka. It wasn’t until I moved to Seattle that I learned just how beautiful springtime could be.

    And that first picture does look like dogwood, one of my favorites. But OY! My eyes and sinuses itch just looking at them. Excuse me a moment while I find the Benadryl….

  2. 5

    Lovely. I think that first one may be an apple/crabapple rather than a dogwood.

    We’ve just started getting crocuses and snowdrops, so I may send a few pictures your way.

  3. 6

    Actually, on closer look the first one might be crabapple; the leaves don’t look quite right for dogwood.

    The real test would be what the fruit looks like. Crabapples look a bit like cherries, but with a matte, somewhat mottled skin that looks like an apple; dogwood fruit has a segmented appearance, like a small, round, red pineapple.

  4. 7

    The first white tree is definitely not dogwood. Looks like some sort of fruit-with-a-pit (cherry, etc.) to me. I think it’s a tad early for the apple family, but could be wrong. The pink blossoms are likely a flowering plum, rather than cherry. They look beautiful for about two weeks but have extremely unruly growth habits and are a mess to have in your yard. If the leaves are dark red when they come out that’ll be the clue.

    The red leaves, I think, are photinia. And I’ve no idea what that second one is.

  5. rq
    9

    Crabapples have been known to bloom early, but then, so have cherries. :)
    For a few of these, it might actually help to have a picture of the tree (for shape) and bark (for texture), since a lot of these fruit trees have extremely similar flowers ** – being all member of the same family and all. Pinker flowers could be plums, could also be cherries. Very bright white flowers could be pears, could be certain kinds of apple. Either way, I love the snowdrift impression they all make when the petals fall (like the apple orchard out in the country, sometime in May – a phenomenon not easily captured on regular soapbox camera, though).
    And my sympathies to all those who are unable to experience this in person (or via internet, as it may be) without breaking out in mucus and sneezing.

    ** (I think last time you did a series on fruit trees, Dana, answers varied from apple to cherry to pear, to apricot and almond and plum… And that actually sounds like a lovely and bright arrangement of colours.)

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