Springtime brings with it vibrant colours and lush greenery; snowdrops may appear as delicate snowdrops while blooming daffodils bloom into blooming daffodils if you are lucky! Plus you may spot wildlife.
As temperatures warm up, male cardinals begin to sing to attract potential mates as the season transitions, while deciduous trees begin buding and bearing leaves once again.
Spring flowers
Spring flowers symbolize new beginnings and renewal, adding color and freshness to gardens or homes alike. Their vibrant blooms come in all shades from classic white, yellow, and pink to those more unusual hues like magenta and violet. Their distinctive aroma also invokes spring’s freshness; making these blooms ideal for weddings or other special events as well. These gorgeous blooms can either be purchased from florists or grown at home – no matter the occasion!
Some flowers such as tulips, crocuses and hyacinths bloom early spring while other varieties such as lilacs, roses and peonies appear later. All of these blossoms make popular selections for bouquets and arrangements and each type may hold special significance depending on its color or flower type – for instance pink tulips symbolize love and romance while blue ones stand for sincerity; daisies also make popular choices and can symbolize new beginnings and positive thoughts!
Spring daffodils are among the first flowers to make an appearance each spring, sporting cheery yellow or orange trumpet-shaped blooms reminiscent of sunshine. Daffodils symbolize rebirth and new beginnings and can be planted both outdoors or inside containers around your home or business. Rain gardens or moisture-retaining garden beds often feature them too – popular favorites among both children and adults.
Tulips are popular garden flowers and boast an array of vibrant hues that are sure to please. Perfect for planting in the garden or adding as part of a bouquet, tulips have long been associated with Easter celebrations. Hyacinths also come in an array of vibrant colors; similar to daffodils they boast similar shades but with less intense hues – perfect for bouquets! These fragrant blooms boast pleasant fragrances while being easy to maintain.
Pansies are an iconic spring flower, providing gardens and containers with an eye-catching burst of color during a drab spring weather. Though perennials, pansies can also be grown as annuals in warm regions as an easy option. Not only are these perennials great choice for containers or garden beds; their rapid growth also makes them very hardy.
Hellebores make excellent shade-loving plants, with beautiful blooms lasting two months or longer. Easy to care for and cut-flower worthy, hellebores also attract bees and other pollinators species which make for beautiful cut flowers!
Red squirrels
Red squirrels return to the forest each spring with the sound of their distinct chatter, marking their territories against other tree squirrels and birds while defending themselves against other squirrels and birds. Once active during summer digging underground caches for winter food. Finally, in autumn they tap sugar maple trees for sap harvesting by biting into tree trunks with their teeth while leaving behind their vessel-carrying “vessel” to evaporate until finally sucking up all that remains on trunk and branches as syrup!
Red squirrels construct an irregular nest called a “drey” from twigs, leaves and strips of bark high up in trees. Red squirrels may build multiple dreys within their territory – this could include multiple on the ground, in tree holes or excavated from witches’ broom (an abnormally dense vegetative growth caused by fungus) or decaying organic material. Females lay up to four eggs during late winter or early spring which hatch blind and helpless young that must be weaned off by 7 or 8 weeks – eventually reaching maturity at maturity at around one year old.
Squirrels are herbivores, feeding on foods such as acorns, hazelnuts, seeds from coniferous trees, willow catkins and buds, willow catkins from trees other than willow, poplar buds from poplar trees, mushrooms and lichen. Red squirrels will store away nuts for winter time to avoid starvation when food sources become limited.
In the United Kingdom, native red squirrels are in decline due to invasive grey squirrels which outcompete native reds for food and habitat and carry disease such as squirrelpox. You can help support red squirrel recovery by reporting any sightings to your local wildlife trust.
Woodpeckers can be heard tapping away with their unique “tin can” call as another sure sign of spring, with great-spotted woodpeckers being especially prolific visitors to Deerpark and Beddgelert parks alike. You might hear their calls while hiking through Deerpark or stopping off at Beddgelert; volunteers participating in VCE’s Mountain Birdwatch and Forest Bird Monitoring projects document their distribution across our region.
Blooming trees
Trees covered with blooming flowers add year-round color and interest to any landscape, from small shrubs to evergreens of every shape and size. Flowering trees range from shrubs to large evergreens – there’s sure to be one suitable for every space and growing zone – such as dogwoods, lilacs and magnolias to other popular varieties like spruce elm birch trees!
Blooming trees in early spring is one of the first signs that winter is finally drawing to a close. Snowdrops are one of the first flowers to appear, followed by other blooms like daffodils and bluebells to provide a spectacular show of colors across woodland floors and parks.
Many flowering trees bloom later in the spring, such as the Japanese Tree Lilac or Sycamore (Plantanus occidentalis). Once established, this fast-growing and low maintenance flowering tree boasts fragrant blooms that attract pollinators insects – an ideal option for smaller landscapes.
Other late spring flowering trees include sasanqua azaleas, redbuds and crape myrtles – these easy-care trees adapt easily to most growing conditions. American tulip poplar is another late bloomer which adds beauty and interest with its white blooms.
Flowering trees not only boast gorgeous blossoms, but their leaves and fruit also offer seasonal appeal. Apples, plums and pears provide food for wildlife; for instance squirrels consume some tree species’ fruit as a source of winter nutrition.
Flowering trees not only add beauty and interest, they are a wonderful source of shade. To plant one in either spring or fall (if there’s no risk of frost) is best. Dig a hole large enough for its roots, backfill with soil, water well and add mulch for moisture conservation.
Apart from proper planting and regular care, another way you can help your trees flourish is with proper fertilization. A general guideline suggests fertilizing in the fall and spring; to properly fertilize a flowering tree, spread its fertilizer around its root-zone as well as where its leaves will eventually develop.
Birds
After an especially harsh winter, it’s incredibly exciting to witness birds returning to woodland floors and flowers blooming – from snowdrops that appear as early as January or bluebells which blanket forests in an alluring blue hue – are sure signs that spring has arrived!
International Dawn Chorus Day (5 May) marks the peak of dawn chorus activity each spring and it can be easily heard as you travel around. Blackbirds, robins, wrens and cuckoos begin breeding seasons at this time as well as seeing first bumblebee queens emerge after hibernation to produce pollen for production; you should easily spot their distinctive rusty-coloured bodies buzzing among spring flowers sipping nectar like little yellow sucking machines!
Birds are warm-blooded vertebrates belonging to the class Aves, with forelimbs specially adapted for flight and hind limbs adapted for perching. Their highly specialised attributes have led them to play symbolic and ritual roles across cultures; Aesop’s Fables, The Physiologus and other Middle Age moralistic writings feature birds prominently. Furthermore, religious iconography often depicts them as messengers from god or reminders of mortality – they remain one of our favorite subjects!
Few native UK mammals hibernate during spring; instead, hedgehogs, dormice and bats begin venturing out from their dens in search of food and mates. While bats tend to be nocturnal animals, spotting one as an indicator that spring has arrived is usually good sign!