By the time we are in March New England gardeners are often itching to get outdoors and grow something. Some of us may have scratched that itch by sowing seeds indoors – getting a jump start on warm season veggies or giving perennial flowering plants a go, but nothing quite beats signs of spring arriving outside. Of course, when that actually happens is dependent on the type of winter we have had, but whether it trickles in battling winter’s reluctance to leave or arrives big and bold due winter’s early departure the splashes of color that herald the beginning of spring are always a welcome sight.
Bulbs are one of the earliest groups of plants to bring color to our yards. While spring-flowering bulbs need to be planted in the fall, not everyone has the time to get round to it then. However, as the weather warms all is not lost if you wish you had bulbs in your yard. In spring here at Weston Nurseries, we routinely carry sprouted bulbs – 4” pots each containing either daffodils, tulips, hyacinths or grape hyacinths. Not only are they great to add an extra pop of color to flower beds but are ideal for containers and window boxes where they can be combined with other early season perennials and annuals. Other spring flowering bulbs that with planning will herald winter’s retreat are snowdrops, crocus and various types of dwarf iris.
However, continuing the theme of great garden plants that also lend themselves to spring containers winter heather (Erica carnea) is a great acid-loving plant that given sun and well-draining soil will perform well in gardens. With clusters of long-lasting bell-shaped flowers in colors of white through various shades of pink it is also a useful plant for early bumblebees. It is evergreen and needs just a light shearing after flowering to keep it neat and tidy. In mild winters it is not unusual to see it flowering in December, but if the weather turns cold it will remain in a sort of suspended animation until warmth returns.
Hellebores, particularly the hybrids of Helleborus orientalis, the Lenten rose, are also early season bloomers. The Christmas rose, H. Niger, blooms in winter as its common name suggests, but it is the Lenten rose with flowers in many shades of white, pink and red that our customers look forward to seeing as spring returns. This is a great garden plant, being evergreen, long-blooming and best of all, deer resistant. Taller than heather they also make a colorful addition to containers and window boxes and can easily be added to the landscape once it is time to change out container plantings.
Among the plants that Weston Nurseries stocks as spring annuals are primroses and violas, both of which can live for several years under ideal conditions. Neither of them is a fan of the extreme conditions that our summers can bring, but where they don’t dry out and receive some shelter from midday summer sun they can reward you with several years of flowers. Along with pansies, violas’ annual cousins, these plants bring cheerful color to the early growing season and are among the earliest of the season’s annuals.
While these plants are all vibrant in their own way, and naturalized lawn plantings of spring bulbs can be extremely impactful, on the whole you need to get up close to really appreciate the delicate beauty of these flowers. However, there are trees and shrubs that also enhance our landscape at this time of year with their flowers.
Witch hazel (Hamamelis spp.) is one of the earliest flowering shrubs and on warmer days the scent of its whispy yellow or orange flowers can fill the surrounding air. Flowering before the leaves emerge enables its delicate flowers to be appreciated. Most of the varieties sold are hybrids of Chinese and Japanese witch hazels and they make large shrubs/small trees for sunny conditions. For those who wish for native plants, H. vernalis flowers in spring, while H. virginiana flowers in fall, just as its foliage turns a similar golden yellow. The hybrid witch hazels also have stunning fall foliage, which in their cases comes in shades of orange, red and purple, depending on the cultivar.
Cornelian cherry, Cornus mas, is a type of Asian dogwood tree which also blooms before leaves emerge and is another small tree serving to indicate the arrival of spring. Its tiny yellow flowers are held in multiple clusters, the sum of which create the overall effect of a golden colored tree while in bloom. It grows a similar size as witch hazel and makes a great companion plant.
For native trees look no further than pussy willow (Salix discolor) and red and sugar maples. Pussy willow is another container favorite, adding height and color interest with its fuzzy catkins before the leaves emerge. Red maple bursts forth with tiny clusters of red flowers while sugar maples adorn their branches with small yellow-green blooms.
Following just a bit later will be our native dogwood trees (Cornus florida) and redbuds (Cercis canadensis) which produce their pea-shaped pink flowers on not just the branch tips, but all along the branches and even on the trunk to some degree.
Lastly, I will mention just one shrub, Mahonia or Oregon grape, which while appreciating a bit of shelter here in New England will produce clusters of scented yellow flowers. Like winter heather, if the season is mild it will come into flower relatively early.
This is a selection of the earliest flowering ornamental plants for New England. Once spring is truly with us, we will be spoilt for choice among flowering trees, shrubs and perennials, of which our region is home to a number of spring ephemerals and native trees. However, in that brief moment before spring has well and truly sprung, these plants can lift our spirits.
