Bloom time, Boom time

At long last, Spring is here in full force.  Take a peak at what’s been blooming in my yard this past month or so. 

It all started with my Prunus mume  or flowering apricot that did NOT bloom in February.  Rather, it waited until April.  This year, it has reverted back to it’s graft plant, a wild cherry.

 

Shortly thereafter, my Narcissus ‘Ice Follies’ appear from nowhere amidst the Liriope muscari ‘Evergreen Giant’.  These daffodils do very well in the south!

 

These Narcissus sp. ‘Sir Winston Churchill’ bloom later in the month and are extremely fragrant!  They also have double flowers.

 

Here is an Acer palmatum ‘Emperor’ that has just leafed out with Lychnis coronaria or Rose campeon.

The maple leaf. 

And the Rose campeon flower.   This plant is extremely drought tolerant and produces seeds each year.  The magenta flower is a brilliant contrast to the pale grey/green leaf and stem.

Here is an Acer palmatum dissectum or Laceleaf Japanese maple.

 

Crinum ‘Ellen Bosanquet’ will produce blooms in my garden from late Spring through mid-Summer.   I love Crinum lilies!  They have big beautiful flowers and glossy green strap-like foliage.  These are what I call a ‘Pass-along’ Plant as they are easily divided. 

Chionanthus retusus or Chinese Fringe Tree ranks high on my list of all time favorite flowering Ornamental trees!  See the sidebar entitled “May Plant of the Month.”

Here is the close up of its flower.

 

Azalea indica ‘George Tabor’ grows so well in the south!  This is a plant for the mid-ground or back-ground.  It’s not a plant you want to put front and center because in the off-season they are rather unattractive evergreens.  However, when they are in full bloom, NOTHING can beat their showy habit!

I love the orchard-like blossoms of the George Tabor azalea.

In the middle of my Spring gardening, I came across this little creature.  It is called a Southeastern Crown Snake. 

It really wasn’t much bigger than a large earth worm!

Here is one of my favorite irises - Iris germanica ‘Blue Stellata’.

And the Rosa sp. ‘Knock Out’ Redrazz variety always puts on a show this time of year.

Here is my Loropetalum chinensis ‘Ruby’ hedge.  This plant makes a wonderful architectural hedge and blooms twice a year.  First, in early summer and later in late summer. 

And it’s flowers.

A close up.  There is nothing like a tight dense hedge!

Prunus yedoensis or Yoshino Cherry blooms after the Okame Cherrys.  These trees have made Washington, DC king of the Cherry Blossoms!  They do very well in the south too.

… and a close up of its flower.

 

Trachelospermum jasminoides or Confederate jasmine is in full bloom now and fills my outdoor room with sweet fragrance that makes me want to stop and just breathe it all in.

Camellia japonica blooms from February through April here in the south!  Aren’t we lucky?

And finally, my Rosa sp. ‘Zepherine Drouhin’  or Zepherine Drouhin rose is very fragrant and thornless.  This is a climber and is very hardy in the south! 

Roses should always be bought bare root.  I get mine from Jackson & Perkins.

There you have it.  We are quickly approaching prime-time in the Zone 8  garden!  And I’m just now noticing how my garden overflows with pinks and burgandys in Spring!  Whatever colors are up in your garden now, enjoy!  Happy Spring!  To see what’s blooming in other gardener’s gardens, visit May Dreams Gardens Bloom Day.

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day – February 15

On the 15th of each month May Dreams Gardens hosts “Garden Bloggers Bloom Day.” She and other Garden Bloggers want to know what’s blooming in our gardens. This should be very interesting as these Bloggers come from around the world. With this post, I’m jumping in! Here is what is blooming in my yard in mid-February in south eastern North Carolina (Zone 8).

This is a Prunus sp. ‘Okame’ or Okame Cherry. It is a small 1-1/2-inch caliper tree and is blooming a month early this year!

Here is a close up of its blossoms:

Can you believe I also saw a honey bee working these flowers in February?! In my part of the world, the Okame Cherrys bloom first, usually in mid-March. After they finish blooming, the Prunus yedoensis (Yoshino Cherrys) bloom, usually around early April. Finally, in early May, the Prunus serrulata ‘Kwanzan’ (Kwanzan Cherrys) bloom. This is perfect and gives us two solid months of flowering cherrys!

When I think of flowering cherry trees I always recall the Cherry trees around the Tidal Basin in Washington, DC. They are spectacular!

Did you know that there are roughly 3750 cherry trees planted around the Tidal Basin? Most are Yoshino cherrys. Their peak bloom time varies depending on the year. To see a history of peak bloom times for these trees go Here. In 1912, the trees were given to the United States as a gift of friendship by the people of Japan. First Lady Taft and the Viscountess Chinda, wife of the Japanese Ambassador, planted the first two cherry trees on the northern bank of the Tidal Basin. These two original trees are still standing today near the John Paul Jones statue at the south end of 17th Street. If you ever get the opportunity to visit Washington, DC during the Cherry Blossom Festival, do it! It truly is a spectacular sight to see in our nation’s capitol.

Going back to my garden, which seems quite dull next to those Washington, DC cherry trees, I also have Narcissus sp. or daffodils in bloom.

The one on the left looks to me like a large yellow – most likely a ‘Dutch Master.’ The other one, I have no idea about as it was given to me. I also have ‘Ice Follies’ and ‘Sir Winston Churchill’ in other parts of my yard that are not in bloom yet. The Sir Winston Churchill’s are late-blooming with a double flower. I grow them for their wonderful fragrance! Although I have broken my rule here, I normally always plant massings of daffodils in with evergreen Liriope muscari. I normally use either ‘Big Blue’ or ‘Evergreen Giant’ liriope. The leaves of the daffodils are very similar in form and size to the liriope and this adds a wonderful seasonal dimension to the masses of liriope.

So, there you have it. Not a lot of action yet. However, Spring really is just around the corner!