I love these trees. We live in an older neighborhood and we have several of these “tulip trees”. The blooms are very tulip-like, but once the flower petals fall off green leaves shoot out and it becomes what you see the rest of the year, a pretty green tree. We have Spanish moss in trees in this area (which is what you see above).

Ok, so this isn’t technically a tulip, but the blooms are tulip-like for sure. I did some Googling, which makes me an expert, right? Ha. I’m not sure if this is true in our area, Zone 9A – it mentions problems with aphids, which I despise. We had aphids on our newly planted beautiful shrubs one year, and we had to scrub leaf by leaf. It was worth it, they’re gone now and the (many) shrubs are doing beautifully. Then we bought some orange pansies for a few pots back in the late fall. We had them last year and they were GORGEOUS. This year – filled with aphids. 😩 Our dog can get into the pot on occasion and the squirrels (and who knows what else) so I don’t want to spray with poison. The pansies are prolifically blooming so from a distance they’re gorgeous. Just don’t look too closely.

Despite the aphids, I do love this tree, it’s a sign that spring is on the way (although I prefer to stay in fall/winter). Often times they will bloom and then we’ll get a frost. Not this year, the timing was perfect! #itsthelittlethings

👩‍💻 Until next time…