Colors And Sweet Scent
I really love this time of year when at every turn I see beautiful colors and the air is filled with a sweet scent. The ‘Kanzan’ cherry tree (Prunus Kanzan) in the front yard finally blossomed. Half of the tree is covered with white flowers; the other half with pink (it was grafted that way). This year the white one didn’t seem to be all that happy. The flowers dropped faster than they used to.
The Purpleleaf Sand cherry (Prunus x cistena) are also covered with flowers. This large slow growing shrub has a very interesting combination of leaves and flowers: deep red leaves and pure white flowers. But the best of all is the strong honey fragrance. The lone Dogwood (Cornus florida) in the front lawn is still covered with white flowers. It responded well to feeding in the last couple of years. So, it went from hardly blooming to profuse blooming and now produces berries for the birds at the end of the summer. I will have to learn when and how to prune since we now have to bend down to walk under these trees. But cutting healthy branches off the tree makes me feel a little like cutting my own limbs. We hired a professional landscaper to ‘top’ the trees that are too tall and too close to the house as it’s become necessary now. But, if I can convince myself that it’s just like pruning the roses…
Petals and Wings 