Plants I'm Growing: First Blooms—Bosc pear, flowering crabapple

Spring is here. I've been lazy about keeping track of what's started to bloom in the garden this year, but note here that the flowering crabapple toward the back of the house (above) and the Bosc pear at the front of the house (below) both started blooming in the past couple of days, on March 28 to be exact. 

Plants I'm Growing: First Blooms—Flowering Crabapple, California Poppies (March 26, 2018)

Yesterday, March 26, brought the first blooms on the flowering crabapple in the side garden. The first California poppies in the garden bloomed yesterday, too, although they've been blooming in various places around town for the last week or more. This is fairly typical for the crabapple, which usually blooms in the second week of March in early years, the last week of March when it's later, and for the poppies as well. In past years they've opened as early as the first week of March and usually always before April.

Plants I'm Growing: First Blooms--Ceanothus, Rhododendrons, Michelia, Flowering Crabapple

In the past couple of weeks, a number of plants have come into bloom in the garden, including the large Julia Phelps Ceanothus outside the kitchen window; Michelia Yunnanensis, a magnolia relative native to China; our flowering crabapple tree; and the large white Rhododendron called "King George." The Ceanothus and the Michelia came into bloom on March 3, the crabapple on March 10, the Rhododendron on March 11.

Plants I'm Growing: Phlomis, Rose "Flutterby" (April 5, 2013)

A lot of flowers coming into bloom in the garden now. The first Phlomis blossom opened on April 3 (pictured). The first flowers on the big climbing rose called "Flutterby" at the front of the house opened yesterday, April 4. Lithodora diffusa, a ground cover with a pretty star-shaped flower started blooming today. Most of the Ceanothus varieties in the garden are in full bloom. The sound around them is amazing; Ceanothus attracts a startling range of insects. Pacific Iris are in bloom, and leaves are just appearing on the smoke tree in front of the house. Both our pink crabapple tree and our "Pink Lady" apple tree are in bloom. The large salvia "Point Sal Spreader" is in bloom as well. The wisteria behind the house looks like it will start blooming soon, which always attracts many large bumblebees. A pretty time of the year.

Plants I'm Growing--First Blooms: Purple crabapple, Solomon's Seal

First blooms today on the purple-pink crabapple and on Solomon's seal (Polygonatum commutatum) behind the house. The crabapple bloomed on March 26 in 2009. A year according to this plant was therefore 362 days.

The Solomon's seal always reminds me of Glen Helen and other woodland spots in Ohio. I have no idea why it does so well here. It is not really adapted to our long, dry summers, but, in shade behind the house, it has proved a stalwart. Very pretty, and evocative of hikes in the woods in my youth--and other things. Solomon's seal bloomed on April 10 in 2009, so the flowers are quite early this year. A year according to this plant was only 347 days.

Plants I'm growing: First Blooms--Isopogon, Bosc pear, crabapple

Spring is really here. Every day brings a number of new plants coming into bloom. Today the first blossoms opened on the deep pink crabapple (unfortunately, I can't remember the name of the variety), on the Bosc pear, and on the Isopogon formosus we have. The flowers on this last, an unusual Australian plant, open progressively, so it's hard to say exactly when a flower is in full bloom, but I note the plant today because the flowers are starting to look more flower-like than not. Even the tightly closed buds are attractive on this plant.