Every Summer these little plants bloom in the pipeline right-of-way behind our house… For a few weeks they become a bee beacon on our daily walks.
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The land next to us once belonged to a family with a passel of kids.
They never lived there, but visited it every weekend and some afternoons.
At the back of the property they built this swing-set and some other structures for the kids to play on.
Then it was open field at the edge of the woods.
Now…The woods win…
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I have never really harvested any apples from my apple trees. We live just too for south. It gets way too hot way too soon for the fruit to get any size. I usually eat a few each year, the birds eat even more. But, if for no other reason, I am glad I planted these two trees when we moved out here 15 years ago just to be able to take pictures of the flowers. I never tire of taking new photos of apple blossoms. You’ll have to forgive me…
My mother gave me some cuttings of these long ago. Everytime we get some cold weather they freeze to the ground and we have to start over. But when you see a 12’ tall bush covered with theses huge flowers…It’s worth the wait.
Brugmansia are large shrubs or small trees, reaching heights of 3–11 m, with tan, slightly rough bark.
The leaves are alternate, generally large, 10–30 cm long and 4–18 cm broad, with an entire or coarsely toothed margin, and are covered with fine hairs.
The name Angel's Trumpet refers to the large, very dramatic, pendulous trumpet-shaped flowers, 14–50 cm to 20 inches long and 10–35 cm across at the wide end. They are white, yellow, pink, orange or red, and have a delicate, attractive scent with light, lemony overtones, most noticeable in early evening. Flowers may be single or double.
One of my fondest memories from my childhood is the taste of that single drop of honey when you pull the base free. Every year when spring brings forth the first honeysuckle flower and the smell drifts across the yard I slip back in time to those early, carefree years…
Honeysuckles (Lonicera, pronounced /lɒˈnɪsərə/;[1] syn. Caprifolium Mill.) are arching shrubs or twining vines in the family Caprifoliaceae, native to the Northern Hemisphere. There are about 180 species of honeysuckle, 100 of which occur in China; Europe and North America have only about 20 native species each. Widely known species include Lonicera periclymenum (European Honeysuckle or Woodbine), Lonicera japonica (Japanese Honeysuckle, White Honeysuckle, or Chinese Honeysuckle) and Lonicera sempervirens (Coral Honeysuckle, Trumpet Honeysuckle, or Woodbine Honeysuckle). Hummingbirds are attracted to these plants.
A picture of one of my poor, neglected apple trees. The Texas coast is not a friendly place for apples…