One of the
most beautiful sights in spring in Maryland is coming upon the flowering trees
– the redbuds, the dogwoods, those cherry blossoms. Florida has a native species that reminds me
of dogwood trees – the Flatwood Plum (Prunus umbellata). It’s a small tree that will grow to about
20-feet (height) and spread about 12-20 feet (width). It is deciduous, and so loses its leaves in
the Fall. In that sense, I find it
reminiscent of northern trees. Around
February, little flowers start to appear.
These
half-inch blooms may be followed by one-inch-long, edible, purple fruits which
vary in flavor from very tart to sweet. These plums are very attractive to
various forms of wildlife.
I find it restful to look at the leaf-less tree in fall and winter, and
look forward to seeing the flowers begin to appear. From my office window, I watch the
mockingbirds, cardinals, finches, sparrows perch on the branches to scope out the
neighborhood, before landing on the bird bath.
RESOURCES:
https://www.fnps.org/plants/plant/prunus-umbellata
http://sfrc.ufl.edu/extension/4h/ecosystems/_plants/Flatwoods_plum/index.html#:~:text=Flatwoods%20plum%2C%20also%20called%20hog,Mississippi%20Valley%20to%20southern%20Arkansas.
https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/st521
Flatwood Plum’s Spring blossoms
(photo by Shirley Denton, from
www.fnps.org)
September 2018, two Flatwood Plum trees, planted in July 2018, in a bed with Florida Privet, Pinelands Lantana, Chapmans Goldenrod, Bee Balm
2019 March – one of my Flatwood Plum trees, flowering