WOW!

Can you identify this flowering tree? I took the photo east of Washington Park, Denver, this past Friday, May 14th, after one of my landscape spies (OK, my husband) tipped me off. I've been working as a horticulturist in the Denver area for almost 30 years now, and I have NEVER seen this plant in bloom (I know I would not recognize it without its flowers).

To the casual observer driving down the street it might look like just another flowering crab apple, of which there are oh-so-many.

But, no! The large, distinctive, four-petal display - in an almost flat formation - is a dead giveaway. This, my Front Range friends, is a flowering dogwood, Cornus florida. Ubiquitous in other areas of the US, but quite the horticultural oddity around here!

I would love to interview the homeowner and find out just how often it flowers, how old it is, what the fertilizing regime is, etc. Protection from the late afternoon sun and plenty of water from the adjacent lawn were no doubt important factors in this plant's survival.

A lovely cloud of flowers sans foliage; dreamy!

If anyone else in Colorado has been successful growing Cornus florida please share your experience with us here!