I just had to stop and take these pictures of the Holly Magnolia Collection

Today was another of those days we've been having this week but more so. We went over 80F for the second day in a row, the sun shone, there was no wind. It was one of those days that gardeners live for. I just looked back a few years and while a lot of the plants that are blooming today are doing what they normally do, there are instances, like the Corylopsis and many others, that do confirm we are between a week and two weeks ahead of schedule. 

Some plants are not so easily fooled though. I was in Fern Valley for a number of years and each spring for the Lahr Native Plant Symposium (you can still register), we would cut flowering branches of native trees for decoration. It was always slim pickings. Asimina and Amelanchier were always dependable. This afternoon on the way home I drove by the Serviceberry I had harvested branches from, expecting to see anything from a few flowers to the tree in full bloom. Nothing. Nada. You can't fool those cagey native plants.