FLOWERING APRICOTS Flowering apricots are deciduous trees with very early colorful flowers.  In the mild winter areas these varieties often bloom in late January with bright reds, pinks, or white flowers.  The flowers progress up the new limbs with color for several weeks. What make them different are the bold colors as a tree that can be seen for a long distance when no other tree is in bloom and deciduous trees are still dormant. …

Shogetsu Flowering Cherry Maybe I should title this the "Tale of Two Flowering Cherries".  One is very popular and the other is hardly known.  And the one that is hardly known is, in my opinion, the tree I would plant first.  So I intend, through this blog post, to shed more light on it.   Prunus serrulata 'Shogetsu' is rarely purchased from us to the point that I really should stop growing it (which I…

About this time last year I posted a blog about the Snow Fountains® Flowering Cherries that I have growing in my yard. Well guess what - they are blooming again - and again I love them. This year they were looking really stunning and last night a storm was blowing in. So in the near dark, twilight I shot these photos before the rain and wind messed with my flowers: Snow Fountains® Flowering Cherries -…

Snow Fountains® Flowering Cherry Fall Color Autumn is one of my favorite times of the year. I am sure it is for you too. As a photographer, I enjoy seeking out the bold colors of the season and often don't have to go far to find them. This photo taken last week is what my wife and I get to see right outside our kitchen window. I decided to snap this photo just as the…

I was late to work today. Camera was calling. As a photographer, light is all important. When I can get skies with clouds that give it character and soft light (but keep the camera dry) I start looking for something to photograph. This morning was one of those special mornings. And the subject was one of my favorite trees busting out in glorious bloom. We have three Snow Fountains® Weeping Flowering Cherries (Prunus subhirtella x…

Three Year Low Bud Flowering Cherries The L.E. Cooke Co grows Flowering Cherries several different ways. For many years they were only grown as "Top Grafted" on Mazzard (Prunus avium) rootstocks. Everyone is familliar with the top grafted Weeping Cherries like the double pink flowered Prunus subhirtella 'Pendula Rosea'. We also top graft almost all the upright flowering cherries as well. For some reason that was the expected form for the ornamental gardens of the…

Question:  Is the Weeping Double Red Flowering Peach tree supposed to produce peaches? We have had it for 3 years and it is about 8' tall and it produces peaches but they stop growing shortly after the produce. We only have one tree are we supposed to have two for pollination? We have been to the nursery but they can not seem to answer our questions. Thanks,   Julie -  Prattville, Alabama Answer:  Most fruit trees…

I have a favorite Flowering Crabapple.  When it is in bloom, in my mind nothing compares to it. Pink Perfection Flowering Crabapple The Pink Perfection Flowering Crabapple out shines every other tree in our budwood orchard when it is in full bloom.  It glows.   This Crabapple is not for everyone or every climate.  There is a drawback to the Pink Perfection Flowering Crabapple. It gets scab badly. But that is only an issue of…