Late-Spring Highlights
Tree peonies, bluebells, lilacs, azaleas, wisteria, and more lovely plants are in bloom in late April through early June. Here’s what to see.
Lilac Collection
May is the season for lilacs, and the re-established lilac collection features over 100 plants propagated from the original specimens in the Garden’s historic collection.
Look for
- Early lilacs bred by famed early 20th-century French breeder Victor Lemoine, known for his double-flowered hybrids.
- The bicolor cultivar ‘Sensation’. It has stunning purple petals edged with white.
- The later-blooming, white-blossomed Syringa reticulata species and cultivars. Their fragrance has a spicy character and is less sweet than that of many other lilacs.
Osborne Garden
This semiformal Italianate garden is in its full glory in late spring. The lush lawn is surrounded by walkways lined with lovely, spring-flowering plants.
Look for
- Fragrant flowering crabapple trees. Several cultivars, some pink and some white, blossom in late April and into May.
- Japanese wisteria draping the garden’s ten stone pergolas. These graceful vines are hard to miss when in bloom in May and beyond, but also notice the way the woody stems twist around the columns.
- Vibrant azaleas, blooming in hues of pink, red, and fuchsia.
There are also annuals planted in beds along the Boulder Wall on the western border of the Osborne Garden. Two terraces with benches provide peaceful spots to sit and take in the view.
Tree Peony Collection
These gorgeous flowers bloom in early to mid-May. There are around 300 plants in the collection, all Japanese cultivars, and all are fragrant, especially in the morning.
Look for
- Lavender cultivars ‘Kamada Fuji’ and ‘Fuji no Sato’, which have large blooms with clear, intense color.
- Huge white ‘Godaishu’ and ‘Tama Usagi’ blossoms. Some are the diameter of dinner plates!
- Red- and white-streaked ‘Shima Nishiki’ peonies. Bicolored petals are rare in peonies, and each flower’s pattern is unique.
Also see
Mountain laurel and irises in the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden, Water Garden, and Discovery Garden.
Rhododendrons, azaleas, and columbines in the Rock Garden.
More than 50,000 Spanish bluebells (Hyacinthoides hispanica ‘Excelsior’) in Bluebell Wood.