This spring I studied the flowering cherries. I thought I should get some clear ideas about them because, in my head, the varieties mostly run together.
Then the crabapples bloomed. What a relief to be able to let go of the cherries and just enjoy the crabs. Their fragrance is as fine as the lindens, and it’s as free. In many crabs the buds are deep pink, but when the flowers open, they are white. I keep an eye on the crabapples for the day when the two-tone effect peaks.
The cherries bore me, but the crabs are a delight. I don’t know why. The extravagance of both is comparable. And objectively, most of the cherries are better garden trees: they have a tidy habit compared to the crab’s awkwardness, more disease resistant foliage, better bark and fall color. But the blooming crabs, especially the straight species Malus floribunda, are a high point of spring for me.
I think knowledge and involvement with plants only serves to sharpen these kinds of preferences. And it’s a good thing. Preferences should be exercised. Gardens holds together when there is an abiding taste behind the thousand choices that guide their creation. They go wrong when they try to have a little of everything.
Then the crabapples bloomed. What a relief to be able to let go of the cherries and just enjoy the crabs. Their fragrance is as fine as the lindens, and it’s as free. In many crabs the buds are deep pink, but when the flowers open, they are white. I keep an eye on the crabapples for the day when the two-tone effect peaks.
The cherries bore me, but the crabs are a delight. I don’t know why. The extravagance of both is comparable. And objectively, most of the cherries are better garden trees: they have a tidy habit compared to the crab’s awkwardness, more disease resistant foliage, better bark and fall color. But the blooming crabs, especially the straight species Malus floribunda, are a high point of spring for me.
I think knowledge and involvement with plants only serves to sharpen these kinds of preferences. And it’s a good thing. Preferences should be exercised. Gardens holds together when there is an abiding taste behind the thousand choices that guide their creation. They go wrong when they try to have a little of everything.
1 comment:
I like what you say about developing taste. I think it helps me to perceive more. I am a big lover of cherry blossoms, but now that you point out the beauty of crabapples, I'm torn!
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