In the Garden Articles

Spring-Flowering Trees

by Joan S. Bolton

The calendar may say that spring is still a few weeks away. But tell that to the ornamental pears and purple-leaf plums that are already busting out all over town, with literally hundreds of tissue-thin blossoms lining their bare branches.

Every year, certain deciduous trees bear their blooms before they leaf out, producing an ethereal haze of white, pink and lavender flowers.

Some, such as flowering pears, plums and cherries, are fruitless versions of orchard trees. Others, including saucer magnolias and naked coral trees, are simply trees that happen to put their energy into producing flowers before they shift to making leaves.

Many of the following are smaller-scale trees topping out at 18 to 25 feet, which makes them good candidates for smaller gardens, along driveways or near patios and sidewalks, where they're not likely to lift the pavement.

Redbud (Cercis)

In another month or so, clusters of hot pink flowers will pop out all over the bare wood of our native western redbud (Cercis occidentalis), from the tips of new stems to beefier branches and even the trunk.

Western redbud comes in several forms, from a single-trunk tree reaching 18 feet tall, to a multi-stemmed bush that grows only 10 feet tall. Be sure to provide gritty soil, little irrigation and excellent drainage. Otherwise, it may grow fantastically for a few years, then topple over, as one of mine did.

If you like the look, but your soil is compacted, try the eastern redbud (Cercis canadensis). It's more tolerant of heavy soil and regular watering, and more naturally forms a rounded tree, reaching 25 to 35 feet tall and wide. Forest Pansy is an attractive selection that bears purple leaves, rather than the traditional bluish-green.

Chinese Fringe Tree (Chionanthus retusus)

This slow-growing tree breaks the rules in my garden. Its delicate clusters of snow-white slender flowers are not supposed to appear until late spring or early summer, and not until the tree has fully leafed out. But my five-year-old consistently starts blooming in March, right about the time the first leaves begin to emerge.

Other than watering a few times a month, Chinese fringe tree requires little care. It naturally grows into a tidy, rounded tree with little pruning. It's said to prefer good drainage; my tree is fine on a slight slope in clay soil.

Naked Coral Tree (Erythrina coralloides)

The framework of this bold, tropical tree bears a passing resemblance to a body builder, with muscular, horizontal branches. Stiff, succulent coral-colored flowers sit upright at the tips in spring. By early summer, immense leaves the size of dinner plates appear.

Naked coral tree is best in full sun, and grows fast to 30 feet tall and 30 to 40 feet wide. Despite its tropical look, It's surprisingly drought-tolerant. In fact, withholding irrigation during the summer is sometimes recommended to control its rapid growth. Given its size and black thorns, plant yours somewhere out in the yard, rather than close to a walkway.

Saucer and Star Magnolias (Magnolia species)

These two beautiful species are decidedly deciduous, as opposed to our more common evergreen southern magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora).

Saucer magnolias (Magnolia x soulangeana) are also known as tulip trees for their flowers, which emerge as upright, fuzzy buds balancing atop bare branches, then open to form huge, tulip-like flowers.

More than a dozen hybrids bear flowers ranging from reddish purple to deep pink, pastel pink and white. The color is often darker at the base and only on the outer sides of the thick waxy petals, while the insides are a creamy white.

Most saucer magnolias grow 25 feet tall and 25 feet wide. They like regular water and are excellent lawn trees, provided you don't damage their trunks by mowing too close.

Star magnolias (Magnolia stellata) grow more slowly. They also don't grow as large, reaching only about 10 feet tall, yet still spreading 20 feet wide.

The straight species bears pure white, nearly flat flowers, while hybrids appear in pale pink, rosy pink and even a white with a pink stripe down the middle of each petal.

Both saucer and star magnolias generally take three to five years to bloom. Frost can damage the buds of early blooming types. So if you live in a colder region, look for late bloomers.

Flowering Plum (Prunus species)

Purple-leaf plums are in their glory right now, with hundreds of dainty pink and white flowers nearly obscuring their slender branches.

Pink-flowering or Krauter Vesuvius purple-leaf plum (Prunus cerasifera 'Krauter-Vesuvius') is probably the most widely planted variety on the Central Coast. It's taller than wide, growing fast to 18 feet tall yet only 12 feet wide. Plant one next to a lawn, where the roots can tap into sprinkler water, and it will achieve great heights in just a few years. It may produce a handful of small, golf-ball-sized fruit. They're not particularly tasty, but birds seem to like them.

Purple Pony (Prunus cerasifera 'Purple Pony) is a smaller variety. It bears the same pastel pink flowers, followed by dark purple leaves. But it grows only 10 to 12 feet tall, by 12 feet wide, and doesn't produce fruit.

Atropurpurea (Prunus cerasifera 'Atropurpurea') is larger, growing 25 feet tall and 20 feet wide. It also bears a bountiful crop. If you don't want the mess, Krauter Vesuvius or Purple Pony are better choices.

Occasionally you'll find a darker-flowering variety, called pink-flowering plum (Prunus x blireiana). It grows 25 feet tall and 20 feet wide and bears semi-double dark-pink flowers that are fragrant.

Flowering Cherry (Prunus serrulata)

Like the famed trees encircling the tidal basin in Washington, DC, flowering cherry produces spectacular early-spring color. But it's tough to grow in milder areas of the Central Coast. Instead, it prefers the frosty temperatures of our inland valleys, along with excellent drainage.

Flowering cherry grows 25 to 30 feet tall and wide, forming a picture-perfect, rounded canopy. Over time, the bark takes on a bumpy, wizened character. Birds like pecking at the marble-sized fruit.

Ornamental Pear (Pyrus species)

This popular street tree is among the earliest to bloom, and you're sure to see mature specimens in older neighborhoods.

Evergreen pear (Pyrus kawakamii, aka Pyrus taiwanensis) is typically the very first flowering tree to bloom in my area. That's usually in January -- although occasionally as early as December or as late as February. Picturesque, nearly black branches criss-cross the winter sky and elegantly frame the snowy white drifts of flowers.

I've always been puzzled as to why it's called evergreen pear, since it most certainly -- though briefly -- drops its leaves. Evergreen pear grows 15 to 30 feet tall and wide and tolerates many soils. It would be just about the perfect tree, except for its susceptibility to fireblight, which rears its ugly head later in the year when afflicted branches go black, then die.

Bradford pear (Pyrus calleryana 'Bradford') and Aristocrat pear (Pyrus calleryana 'Aristocrat') are closely related to evergreen pear. But they appreciate colder winter temperatures, are not as prone to fireblight and grow much taller, reaching 40 to 50 feet tall and 20 to 30 feet wide.

Trumpet Tree (Tabebuia species)

Given the large, show-stopping, trumpet-shaped flowers that these trees bear, they should be more widely grown. Admittedly, they're gangly in their youth, and are reluctant to bloom for their first few years. But give them time and they'll stop traffic.

Lavender trumpet tree (Tabebuia impetiginosa) bears plump clusters of pinkish-lavender flowers with pale yellow throats most heavily in March. Some people aren't particularly fond of the foot-long seed pods that follow. And the early branching structure may look lopsided or out of sorts. But with maturity comes a rounded canopy and a luscious shade tree 30 feet tall and wide.

Both trumpet trees like good drainage and have a particular affinity for sandy loam. They need regular water early on, then become more drought tolerant over time. Their roots are not invasive; they can be planted as close as 3 to 4 feet from driveways, sidewalks and patios.

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Seeds of Wisdom

For a dramatic effect indoors, prune an armful of new, whip-like branches of flowering pears, plums or cherries just when their buds begin to swell. Put them in a vase filled with water and their pent-up energy will push them to bloom indoors just as gorgeously as they would have outside.