Bloom Report

New and Notable in Willowwood’s Gardens.



Click the title of a bloom report to open it and view its pictures.

  • Bloom Report Fall 2024

    As the season comes to an end, we marvel in the unraveling. The trees strip down, revealing their form. The gardeners pull and cut back tired plants from their areas, making way for our seasonal bulb displays. Slowly, the garden heads towards a long sleep.  A few brave species dare to flower now, such as Camellia ...
  • Bloom Report – September 2024

    September is both the month of abundance, but also the month that the summer starts to unravel, transitioning into fall. Pink is giving way to gold and purple in the meadows, and fall flowering grasses are sending up their inflorescences. Now, the coppery inflorescences of Sorghastrum nutans greet you as you drive in to Willowwood. ...
  • Bloom Report – August, 2024

    August is a special month at Willowwood. This is the month that I, your author, joined the team here. It is also spectacularly alive, with the constant drone of cicadas, buzzing of bees and fluttering swallowtail and monarch butterflies just about everywhere. Willowwood is no exception, as large foraging flocks of goldfinch (our state bird!) ...
  • Bloom Report July 2024

    I’m often asked what’s the best time to visit Willowwood by first-time visitors. “Will anything be blooming next month?” and to them I say of course! There are always flowers (or, as it is in the dead of winter) horticultural intrigue to be found at Willowwood. One should visit weekly in order to even try ...
  • Bloom Report June 2024

    Our unusually wet spring has continued, leaving Willowwood particularly green, lush, and floriferous as we enter into the summer. Aside from the extra maintenance, there are much worse problems one could have! Currently the Arboretum core is freshly planted with this year’s annuals, featuring colorful and tropical species that are candy for the eyes, including ...
  • Bloom Report – May 2024

    And just like that, the world is awash in the verdant green of fresh spring growth and colorful flowers. Spring really came out like a lion this year! As this year’s bulb display fades, we come into mid-spring perennials and trees. Willowwood is known for our Wisteria display, and we take great pride in maintaining ...
  • Bloom Report April 2024

    How wonderful it is to live in a world with flowers. Right now, I can’t think of anywhere that it is more floriferous than Willowwood. Although it is still early spring, many tougher-than-they-look spring flowering bulbs and perennials are up and at it. Meanwhile, swelling buds and emerging shoots remind us that there’s much more ...
  • Bloom Report – 1/15/24

    It is the dawn of a new year. Another year of growth, of progress, love, and of course, gardening!  There is not one moment in the gardens at Willowwood that is uninteresting; even in the absence of the raucous colors of flowers abuzz with pollinators that grace us in the growing season one can find interest. ...
  • Bloom Report – 10/28/22

    With Halloween just around the corner this Monday, this weekend kicks off the festivities for families throughout the state. While no festive events are scheduled at the arboretum this weekend, visitors are encouraged to come visit to enjoy the orange leaves, natural spider webs, and enjoy the trails while covered in early morning fog for ...
  • Bloom Report – June 21, 2022

    “It was June, and the world smelled of roses. The sunshine was like powdered gold over the grassy hillside.”  — Maud Hart Lovelace Today marks the official beginning of summer, the Summer Solstice. Now that the warmer weather is here to stay for the next few months, the riot of spring blossoms have faded and the gardens ...