It’s almost April, the most prolific month for trees that grow perfect blossoms–“perfect” means they have both male and female reproductive organs in one flower.
The Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival has begun with the Big Picnic and the Blossoms After Dark events. Much more to come. Here to enjoy the excitement are
(1) Prunus ‘Snow Goose’; there is a row of them edging Ceperley Meadow, west of the Pitch & Putt in Stanley Park;
(2) Prunus ‘Umineko’
(3) Prunus subhirtella var. pendula ‘Yae-beni-shidare’ both of them growing in an open area in the northeast part of Queen Elizabeth Park.
This hedge of Akebia quinata is a vine whose leaves die back in the fall and then burst forth with five leaflet leaves, three-petalled female flowers, and tight clusters of male flowers. And a wonderful aroma, hence the common name of chocolate vine. Apparently, the plant is invasive in the US, but it is not showing up yet in the Invasive Species Centre’s website.
Finally, Rhododendron ‘Crest’, identified using camera information, Nina Shoroplova’s Legacy of Trees: Purposeful Wandering in Vancouver’s Stanley Park; Kenneth Cox’s Rhododendrons & Azaleas: A Colour Guide; and the Vancouver Park Board’s online brochure, TED and MARY GREIG RHODODENDRON GARDEN, 50 Rhododendrons of Interest (at https://vancouver.ca/files/cov/ted-and-mary-greig-garden-50-rhododendrons-of-interest.pdf). This cultivar has trusses of primrose yellow flowers, grows to 4 metres, and is in bloom now.
