Are Hybrids Better?

I find myself making a morning visit to the plant room that double's as Forest's study room.  It's a calm place to start the day.  The orange Hippeastrum puniceum is in bloom.  Sometimes known as Barbados lily, it is indeed native to parts of the West Indies.  It is one of the first amaryllis I grew and it remains my favorite.  Early in my childhood, my grandmother, who lived next door, had one in a very modern fiberglass planter that fit into its own brass stand.  I don't think it had drainage holes, and potting soil did not come in bags in those days, so Grandma Aker's lily, as she called it, was simply planted in good loose garden soil.  Grandpa Aker had the habit of chewing tobacco and using the pot as his spitoon, which greatly irritated Grandma Aker.  It had a few dark green glossy leaves, but I don't think it ever bloomed.  Her brother Arthur gave me a bulb when I was about 12, and when it bloomed, I was astounded by the cheery orange color and grace of the flowers.  I've grown a lot of amaryllis, and got to know a lot of them when we staged an exhibit of them at the Arboretum around 2004.  Most can be viewed at the Hippeastrum Gallery we put together for the exhibit.  I've always liked amaryllis, but this species is still my favorite.

Buds are Bursting

It was actually almost hot today.  80°F just doesn't seem right this time of year, and night temperatures have been warm, too; around 60°F the last few mornings.  Everything is speeding along in its development and I noticed that the woods at the Arboretum developed that green haze that is the first indication of unfurling leaves and flower buds.  The shot above is the unfurling flower buds of Quercus acutissima, sawtooth oak.  It's not native, and may flower earlier than our native oaks, but it's amazing how quickly the buds have burst.  Soon millions of allergy sufferers in the Mid Atlantic will know that the oaks are in full bloom.  The leaves are coming out too. 

I noticed these infant white oak leaves across the road from the sawtooth oak and I was struck by their velvety redness.  It looks like the abnormal warmth will continue through the rest of this week and on into the next.  We are all wondering what signs of spring will still be around in April.