Friday, April 9, 2010

Who says Florida doesn’t have seasons?

After the coldest winter many Floridians can remember, spring has finally arrived. The races are long over, the bikers are gone, the snowbirds have departed, and the spring breakers have returned to campus, leaving the natives here to enjoy the gorgeous weather.

Garden Statue 2

Tom and I went to Winter Park today to visit Leu Gardens, a botanical park between the cities of Orlando and Winter Park. The park was not crowded and was lovely. Tom took his camera, and captured some beautiful shots.

Live Oaks Crossed

The azaleas were past peak, but the cold weather has prolonged the camellia season. They were beautiful.

Camellia Pink 6

Camellia White 2

Camellia Pink

In one of the demonstration gardens we both caught a whiff of a delightful fragrance. Having grown up among this scent, I should have recognized it.

orange_blossoms

A few minutes later, we discovered a citrus grove in bloom. there were grapefruit, oranges, satsumas, tangelos, lemons, limes and varietals I had never heard of. I just couldn’t get enough of the glorious smell.

The woman at the information desk had suggested we visit the orchid tree, a little off the beaten path. It was worth the search.

Hong Kong Orchid 3

The visual prize of the day, and Tom’s best photo was of a yellow tulip tree.

Yellow Trumpet Tree 3

After lunch at Too Jays Deli, we headed home. We’ll go back another day.

2 comments:

  1. Lovely! A visit to this garden is on my "to-do" list. Better hurry while the blooms are still so fresh.

    ReplyDelete
  2. It is worth the trip in any season. It is so beautifully planned that there would always be something in full bloom.

    ReplyDelete