Now that spring is sprung and the growing season is well under way, we can enjoy some of the real glories spring has to offer.

 Flowering crabs have been putting on a show in recent days, and one of my all time favorites for eye popping color is the Prairiefire Crab.  Prairiefire seems to blossom just a few days later than some of the other varieties, but it’s brilliant reddish pink color makes the brief extra wait worthwhile.  If there are certain crab trees in your neighborhood that cause you to take a second look because their blossoms are so rich and deep, there’s a fairly good chance it’s a Prairiefire Crab.  Excellent disease resistance is another good trait along with the pleasing round shape that grows eventually to a mature size of 20 feet tall by 20 feet wide.

 Another mid-May show stopper is creeping phlox.  This low growing perennial comes back year after year to offer intense early season pink, blues, violets and white in 4″-6″ high drifts.  Plant your creeping phlox in nicely drained soils with plenty of sun.  Often used as a border plant, and when not in bloom, offers a nice finely textured mass of green throughout the season

I am also sharing my blog here with the Northfield News.