Beautiful bloomers
Sometime in early winter, gardeners are likely to glimpse the first prunus of the season starting to flower. Most likely it will be a Prunus mume — commonly called a Chinese plum or Japanese apricot — putting on a showy burst of delicate pink on bare, winter-grey branches.
Appearing in the depth of winter, these pretty flowers bring a note of joy when other plants are dormant and mark the beginning of a floral parade of deciduous prunus trees that continues well into spring.
The prunus clan includes almond, cherry, peach and plum, all familiar in the productive orchard. But these also have non-fruiting, flowering forms, often referred to
