Our Favorite Early Spring Bloomers
Signs of spring are showing up in every direction. Bright blooms seem to emerge overnight from what looked like sad sticks in the winter. Glimpses of vibrant yellows and soft pinks catch your eye as you drive with your windows down for the first time in the new year. Add the first signs of spring to your yard with these top 6 early spring show stoppers:
Forsythia Show Off(TM) Starlet
Forsythia, or Yellow Bells, are one of the first bloomers to catch our eye each spring. Show Off Starlet is a new variety of a traditional southern favorite. It’s a dwarf variety that produces masses of clustered yellow flowers from the base of the plant to the tips of the branches. This deciduous, compact growing shrub reaches a mature height of just 3-4 feet tall and 2-3 feet wide. This forsythia blooms on old wood and prefers full to partial sun.
Bonfire Patio Peach
Make your patio peachy with this unique and showy small growing tree. The Bonfire Patio Peach provides excellent flower and foliage color with double pink blooms followed by bright red leaves. Barren winter branches become loaded with buds in early March which burst open in spring to reveal stems filled with flowers. This small growing, deciduous tree can reach mature size of 4-6 feet high and wide. This Patio Peach prefers acidic soils and produces fruit that are ornamental and great for wildlife..but not so tasty for humans.
Lily of the Valley Shrub (Pieris)
Pieris japonica ‘Tiki’
Pieris japonica ‘Valley Valentine’
Clusters of unique, pendulous flowers in shades of pink and white are the perfect early spring addition to this evergreen shrub. Pieris shrubs prefer part shade to shade and are a great accent plant for a tree lined landscape. After flowering in early spring, many varieties of Pieris produce vibrant red new growth contrasting beautifully with deep green foliage.
Double Rosebud Weeping Flowering Cherry
A beautiful weeping tree to create a focal point in any yard. Double pink blooms open in early spring on delicate weeping branches. New green leaves begin to appear shortly after blooms have shown. This slow growing tree prefers full sun and can mature to 15 to 20 feet tall and wide. Be sure to allow plenty of room when planting near a home or structure to allow for growth in width.
Camellia japonica
Camellia japonica ‘Romany’
Camellia japonica ‘Goggy’
It’s hard to beat a frilly double flower on a blooming Camellia. Camellia japonica are vigorous, upright growers with a wide array of cultivar and flower choices. Many varieties bloom from late winter through early spring. Camellias are great accent plants but can also be used as hedges or screens. These evergreen shrubs prefer full sun to partial shade.
Holmford Flowering Pear
This bright white blooming tree is a springtime staple. Known as the “New Bradford Pear” this tree has improved, strong branching structure and is disease resistant. Large masses of white flowers cover the branches before leaves emerge in early spring. This deciduous tree prefers full sun and can grow 20-25 feet tall and 20 feet wide.
Spring is coming, put some pep in your step!
