Redbuds Soon To Be Pink

The Eastern Redbuds (Cercis canadensis) are preparing for their annual PINK spring celebration. Their red buds are coming out soaking up the sunshine in preparation for loads of blossoms. For me, here in the mountains, that will be a wait of 3 or 4 weeks. And during the time when they are in full bloom I will watch for foggy days when the light is just right. If that light is just right I’ll be ecstatic, seeing pink fog!

And those pink flowers have an odd practice that is shared with perhaps 100 species of plants the world over. They are cauliflorous. This means their flowers can develop on any part of the tree. The flowers can spring up on the main trunk of the tree, on twigs, or on older branches. This strange flower placement is scattered among a wide variety plant families.

Looking forward to plowing headlong into astronomical spring!

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Brenda Clements Jones

Brenda is a certified Virginia Master Naturalist, a Habitat Defender for Shenandoah National Park, and a devoted fan of Mother Nature. She lives in a cabin in the Blue Ridge Mountains near Shenandoah National Park, and hikes up to the higher elevations of her mountain often to see what nature is up to. Her constant hiking companion is a camera that captures nature as it unfolds through the seasons. It’s her goal to share the natural world around her through her photographs.