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I Had No Idea

April 4th, 2009

Can anyone guess what kind of tree this bloom belongs to?
blooming-maple
I had no idea that maple trees bloomed until I decided to keep bees and started researching nectar sources for the bees in early spring. I must say, I think maples may be my new favorite tree. They give us shade, syrup, these beautiful flowers, and beautiful fall colors.

What’s your favorite tree?

13 Comments to “I Had No Idea”
  1. Mangochild on April 4, 2009 at 6:48 am

    Yes! I was going to say red maple :-) – okay, only reason at all I know that is the wonderful people at the maple farm gave a class that mentioned the flowering of the tree. I had no idea until that point.
    Hmm. Favorite tree? I think I’d say black laurel is up there, and I also like plum trees. I haven’t seen them grown around here, but when I lived in North Carolina there were several in my area. I miss them.

    Mangochild’s last blog post.. Local Discoveries – Things Are Out There….

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  2. Daphne on April 4, 2009 at 8:38 am

    My favorite tree is the swamp maple in the fall. They are so beautiful. I don’t love all maple trees however. I don’t love mine in my front yard. They are Norway maples and are a non native, invasive species. I do wonder if I could tap them for the syrup though.

    Daphne’s last blog post.. A Death in the Garden

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  3. Sherri on April 4, 2009 at 8:56 am

    That’s tough. Maples are by far my favorite midwestern tree. I say that only because there were so many trees I loved when we lived in AZ also. But I do love maples. And I’m particularly fond of japanese maples as well. I have two now – and know it’s only a matter of time before I get more!

    Sherri’s last blog post.. They’re Here!!!

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  4. Ryan on April 4, 2009 at 9:03 am

    Favourite tree is an easy one! Cercidiphyllum japonicum!

    http://ryans-garden.blogspot.com/

    Ryan

    Ryan’s last blog post.. Beautiful British Spring Morning!

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  5. Meg on April 4, 2009 at 9:59 am

    Birches, definitely birches for me!

    Meg’s last blog post.. Streak Plays!!!

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  6. edh on April 4, 2009 at 10:11 am

    Oh my, this is rapidly becoming my favorite web site! You have the most wonderful discussion topics/questions; I loved the compost threads last week, and now trees, dearest to my heart. I don’t think I can name a favorite, though maples of all kinds are way up there. When we first moved to downeast Maine, I also fell in love with Tamarack (also called Hackmitac, or Eastern Larch). It’s a conifer that turns bright yellow, then drops its needles in the fall. When they come back in the spring, they’re the most delicious, verdant green (is that redundant?).
    Daphne; don’t hate the Norways, tap them! They a sort of pathetic, weedy maple compared with a sugar maple, but they’re all we have here and we tap them every year. The only difference is a lower sugar content, so the yield is more like 70:1 than 40:1. Tastes just the same when it’s done though!

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  7. Di on April 4, 2009 at 1:13 pm

    Citrus tree is my favorite though I like my peach tree too. The citrus bloom just smells devine, bees ADORE the blooms! My tree has had bees on it for WEEKS throughout the current blooming season. Plus – fruit! What’s not to love!

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    • Susy on April 4, 2009 at 1:24 pm

      Oh a citrus would be nice. I have a dwarf indoor citrus, but it hasn’t bloomed yet. I keep hoping it will, although I think it doesn’t get enough sun.

      Reply to Susy's comment

  8. Teri on April 4, 2009 at 2:36 pm

    Quaking Aspen.

    Teri’s last blog post.. 93/365

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  9. Dan on April 4, 2009 at 9:45 pm

    Very nice photo. Many tree blossoms are pretty easy to miss.

    Dan’s last blog post.. coming soon… to a veggie blog near you

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    • Susy on April 4, 2009 at 11:50 pm

      So true, we’re used to looking for cherry, crab apple and other blossoming trees, but not the normal ones like maple.

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  10. Pampered Mom on April 5, 2009 at 2:34 pm

    When I saw the photo I knew it was a maple because it looked like the branches on the trees in our yards. Isn’t it neat the kinds of things that you learn along the way?

    Pampered Mom’s last blog post.. Taking a little break

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  11. Randy on April 5, 2009 at 8:58 pm

    American Beech is one of my favorites it is hard to pick just one. I saw Red Maples starting to make seeds today on a tree that had fallen in the woods.

    Randy’s last blog post.. Harvester Day!

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This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

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