Native Azaleas and early Rhododendrons are flowering in Fern Valley

From the top: Rhododendron periclymenoides, R. vaseyi, R. minus

It was still raining at the end of the day but not too hard; I zipped down the path to the Fern Valley pond and checked out the native rhododendrons along the way.

Late Viburnums (including 'Eskimo') and Flowering Dogwoods (Cornus florida) are peaking this week in Washington

The early Magnolias and most of the Cherries are done for the year. Crabapples continue in the Flowering Tree Collection, Loropetalums are extravagantly colorful throughout the Asian Collections, and of course Azaleas are exploding everywhere. This week the Flowering Dogwoods reached their peak which is a bit deceptive because it's more like a plateau than a narrow summit. Depending on the weather, they can last as long as a couple of weeks before they start to decline. My oldest son, Max, was born on May 6 and occasionally the dogwoods are still good for his birthday. More often their half brown bracts litter the ground under our big tree. Last year was a good year. This year is starting late and, despite a forecast of 5 days over 80F (~57C), I'm betting on their being around for Max's Birthday.