Spring yard provides tranquil refuge from outside world (Steve Burtt)
22.05.12
Good news from the yard -- my red maple tree lives.
There's been discussion for a couple of weeks about that tree, which is young but now stands about 8 feet tall. It's one of the trees we got in a tree give-a-way they had on the Coast.
Last summer, it just didn't seem to do very much, and then this spring, when all our other trees were blooming, this one seemed to just be dormant, no leaves, no buds, nothing.
My wife, Donna, was ready to dig it up and replace it with something native to our yard. I kept telling her that everything was blooming early this year, and that this tree might just be taking its time on its regular schedule. Then on Wednesday, I walked the yard and there they were -- three tiny redbud leaves in a small cluster about halfway up the trunk. It's alive, and I hope to see it do well this summer.
Now, the only tree on the home place that has not opened up is Donna's beloved peach tree. It is another young tree as most of our trees are. We lost many trees in the storm of 2005, so we are rebuilding the yard with lots of fruit trees and shade trees. We've seen other peach trees blooming, so we're not quite sure why this one is being so reluctant, but it's still early.
Source: Mississippi Press (blog)