Trees in Early Spring
Here in the Northeast, we're expecting a mix of sun and clouds today with temperatures in the 50s. This week brought rain and even a bit of snow in some areas, but the gardens continue to transform.
It always amazes me how quickly plants and trees grow from day to day. I am constantly noticing something new blooming at my farm. And, while many of the flowers are erupting with vibrant color, we've also been taking photos of the various trees and all the precious buds just beginning to open on their branches.
Enjoy these images.
-
- Here on my 153 acre farm, I’ve planted thousands and thousands of trees – at least 15-thousand over the years. I love how they look in the landscape and how they change through the seasons. Most importantly, we need trees for the environment – they help combat climate change, provide habitat and food for birds and other animals, and release oxygen for us to live.
-
- Just outside my kitchen on the terrace parterre is this weeping katsura, one of my favorite trees. Cercidiphyllum japonicum f. pendulum has pendulous branches that fan out from the crown and sweep the ground. Caramel-scented foliage emerges bronze or purple-red, turns blue-green, then fades to gold or apricot in autumn.
-
- Tiny red flowers emerge in late March or early April before the leaves. Here is a closer look at the fresh foliage with the pretty heart-shaped leaves.
-
- Looking up, one can see the long, pendulous, and graceful branches that appear to “weep.”
-
- Just outside the kitchen to my Winter House, I have two of these Camperdown Elms. Camperdown Elms slowly develop broad, flat heads and wide crowns with weeping branch habits.
-
- Its leaves are broad oblong-obovate to elliptic, rough-textured and serrated.
-
- Just across the footpath is my dwarf apple orchard. Look closely, and these trees are also showing some colorful buds.
-
- Here are some buds. The majority of apple tree blossoms begin as pink buds and bloom as white flowers.
-
- These are ‘Miss Kim’ lilacs, which bloom in May. They are some of the most fragrant of all the lilac bushes. These lilacs prefer full sun, but will also live in partial shade.
-
- Soon, these sweet ‘Miss Kim’ lilacs will be smelled all over the garden. The blooms will become bright lavender and will stand out nicely against their dark green leaves.
-
- Across the carriage road are the beautiful Malus ‘Gravenstein’ espalier apple trees. I am hopeful we will have a very productive apple season this year.
-
- These trees are also showing off their early springtime buds.
-
- One of the earliest trees to flower here in spring is the magnolia. I have several white and yellow magnolias outside my Summer House. Magnolia is a large genus of about 210 flowering plant species in the subfamily Magnolioideae. It is named after French botanist Pierre Magnol.
-
- Growing as large shrubs or trees, they produce showy, fragrant flowers that are shades of white, pink, red, purple, or yellow – here is one flower just about to open.
-
- Rich, dark purple foliage in a cascading silhouette defines the Weeping Copper Beech when leafed out. There are no leaves just yet, but now is when one can see its very interesting shape with sweeping, pendulous branches.
-
- Up close, it is just beginning to show its beautifully colored buds.
-
- I love these weeping hornbeams, Carpinus betulus ‘Pendula’ – the branches of these trees gracefully weep creating an umbrella of foliage that reaches the ground.
-
- Hornbeam is monoecious, meaning male and female catkins, which appear before the leaves, are found on the same tree.
-
- From a distance, everyone notices the stunning golden-yellow weeping willows. Here is one grove of weeping willows at the edge of my pinetum. The golden hue looks so pretty against the early spring landscape.
-
- When the tree blooms in late winter or spring, yellow catkins such as these appear. The catkin flowers are one to two inches long, and each blossom consists of hundreds of hairlike protrusions. The flowers mature to yellow before they are disbursed by wind or rain.
-
- This is a weeping larch, Larix decidua ‘Pendula’. It has bright green needles in spring, which turn gold before dropping in fall. This curvaceous tree is located at “the triangle” where the carriage roads leading to the Boxwood Allee, the Pin Oak Allee and the woodland, all converge.
-
- Looking closely, you can see all the new spring growth starting to emerge.
-
- Aesculus hippocastanum is a large deciduous tree commonly known as the horse chestnut or conker tree. These are just two of many that I have here at the farm. These are located at one end of my stable at the foot of my long Boxwood Allee. The flowers provide a rich source of nectar and pollen to insects, particularly the bees.
-
- Here are the leaves of the horse-chestnut. The flowers are just beginning to appear. Even at this early stage, one can clearly see leaves and developing flowers. By mid-May to early June, these trees will be in full flower.
-
- Last year, I purchased 10 espalier Asian pear trees and planted them outside my stable to one side and my peafowl, pigeon and geese enclosures to the other. Espalier refers to an ancient technique, resulting in trees that grow flat, either against a wall, or along a wire-strung framework. Many kinds of trees respond beautifully to the espalier treatment, but fruit trees, like apple and pear, were some of the earliest examples. These trees are all doing excellently.
-
- I have six ‘Shinseiki’ and four ‘Nijisseiki’ pear trees. These flowers will soon be open.
-
- My orchard surrounds three sides of my pool. We planted more than 200-fruit trees here, many of which started as bare-root cuttings. These trees are all staked for added support, and they’re growing very well – in part because of the nutrient-rich soil.
-
- Here are the flowers on one of my plum trees. Prunus americana has such beautiful white flowers. It produces very sweet, and juicy fruits. My plum varieties include ‘Green Gage’, ‘Mount Royal’, ‘NY9’, and ‘Stanley’.
-
- And here is one of two weeping cherry trees down behind my stable. A weeping cherry tree is at its best when the pendulous branches are covered with pink or white flowers. These trees were in full bloom this week.
-
- Look at the gorgeous blossoms. These trees are big eye-catchers when guests are lucky enough to see them in flower. Everything is just bursting with spring life. I am so pleased with the gardens this year – I am looking forward to sharing more photos as the season progresses.
Martha Pins
Martha Tweets
