The Apple Tree in Bloom

Since we didn't have fruit last year, I've been worried about our old apple tree in the front yard.  We were talking about how to prune it even, until the big snow brought down one of the three trunks.

The gardening books say this has to be taken care of by March, and to cut no more than a third any given year.  Since we lost one of three trunks, I figured, no pruning this year. 

Now, the reason we didn't get fruit last year is that there was a late frost that came while all the apples in Page County were in blossom, so no fruit was set - several friends and neighbors have told me about this. 

This year, our tree is covered with blossom, and it looks like the weather will hold long enough that we will see some apples in September.  The tree is the first photo above, and I watched it during the morning on Sunday as the sun moved onto it - plenty of bees and butterflies working over the flowers. 

The showy red buds are out right now too - the big one at home in Alexandria is putting out quite a show.  Here's a photo near the parking area of one of my weekend hikes with a red bud and naturalized apple together.

At this altitude, above 2,500 feet in the Park, spring wasn't quite all the way up in the mountains.  So the rest of the hardwoods haven't leafed out yet.  A couple of days more of this weather and they will be.