Spring in the south

Even though it doesn't really get all that winterish here, the trees do lose their leaves and the lawns turn brown so when the flora wakes up, it does still feel like an event and it arrives on time, according to the calendar.

Spring is really the best time of year here. The days are warm but not insanely hot as they will be in only a couple of more months. The bugs haven't really arrived en masse yet and the hills and roadsides are covered with flowers. The daffodils are almost past, but the violets have started popping up and while the early fruit trees have gone green with leaves, the mid-bloomers are out in force and they're really the prettier. These cherries are just passing their peak around here, but this is a nice remaining stand in front of a local restaurant.



I haven't been able to get a good shot of the more purple ones. They tend to be thinner and cluster in the woods so I assume they're some kind of wild variant. It's difficult to find a stand thick enough to convey the brilliance of the color in a photo. The wisteria on the other hand covers the landscapes like kudzu, in its annual attempt to choke out any standing trees that dare to encroach on their ground. It's also hard to convey in a photo just how much of it there is but here's a sort of close up to show you how it thrives. It looks like this everywhere you turn these days.



Everytime I see it I think of how much work it is to establish a single thriving vine in New England. Sometimes I feel like digging some up and sending hundreds of plants to my friends up north. It wouldn't even make a dent in what's out there.