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The arrival of spring in the Arboretum

By: Tony Hall - 22/02/2012


Colourful bulbs and scented flowering shrubs are brightening up the coldest days in Kew's Arboretum - with the promise of better things to come.

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There are already many colourful and wonderfully scented flowering shrubs and bulbs in this early part of spring.

Apart from brightening up our days, most of the early bulbs are a great source of nectar and pollen for bees and other insects - even the occasional, very early overwintering butterfly which bright sunny days can sometimes trick into thinking it's warmer than it really is. A red admiral butterfly was spotted in the Arboretum this year on the 27 January!  Queen bumble bees rely on  the early flowering shrubs and bulbs to feed themselves and the first of their broods.

Here are some of the highlights:

Yellow flowered winter aconites.    Large group of snowdrops             

Group of early flowering lilac coloured Crocus.

Some of the earliest flowering are the aconites, snowdrops, and some species of crocus. Here C. tommasinianus are soon to be followed by lots of daffodils and bluebells in May.

Red flowered Witch hazel Hamamelis 'Diane'   Witch hazel. Hamamelis 'Orange Peel'

The vibrant colours of just two of the many witch hazel cultivars.

Silk tassle bush. Garrya eliptica

The elegant and impressive long tassles of the male form of Garrya elpitica 'James Roof' '.

Sweet box in flower   Viburnum x bodnantense flower with hover fly feeding.

Fragrant shrub, Sweet box and Viburnum x bodnantense, brighten the coldest early spring days.

Hellebore in flower  Hellebore in flower

These are some of the many Hellebore seedlings raised from seed at Kew. The variety in their size and colour is amazing.
 

Spring morning, sunrise through the trees in the Arboretum.

Apart from flowers, you can't beat a crisp spring morning sunrise.

- Tony -
 

 

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2 comments on 'The arrival of spring in the Arboretum'

oakleaf says

29/02/2012 1:35:31 PM | Report abuse

As always your photos are beautiful. Where can I go to see those lovely hellebores that were raised from seed?

Arthur says

26/02/2012 4:40:28 PM | Report abuse

Genuinely appreciate the status report as the season progresses. The Spring morning sunrise image is quite nice.

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The Arboretum team blog includes stories about individual plants growing at Kew, information about the growing techniques that we use, and reports on our field trips to see woody plants growing in their natural habitats. You can also find out how we look after Kew's renowned world plant collections.

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