Garden Photos from Maureen – FineGardening

Today we’re visiting with Maureen Budny in North Reading, Massachusetts. Maureen is an amateur photographer and has shared some of her photos with us before (A Photographer’s Eye in the Garden). She sent in some wonderful photos from different seasons.

This is a stunningly beautiful shot of very unusual fall color. The shrub here is a euonymous, but I’m not sure what species. It may be the native Euonymous americanus (Zones 6–9), but whatever it is, the pink-and-white coloration is drop-dead gorgeous.

A pear tree (Pyrus calleryana, Zones 5–9) shows off its warm fall color. This species is invasive in much of the eastern United States, so it isn’t recommended to plant it, but we can still see the beauty in the changing leaves.

I love this unusual shot of fallen Japanese maple (Acer palmatum, Zones 5–9) leaves. We often enjoy these leaves when they are brilliant red and orange, but here Maureen focuses on a later stage, when the leaves have fallen and faded. They are still beautiful and make intricate patterns on the ground.

In the winter there are still brilliant colors, but they don’t come from flowers.

Tommy crocuses (Crocus tommasinianus, Zones 4–8) are always one of the first flowers of spring, pushing up their cheery purple goblets in the sunshine.

And yellow crocuses (probably Crocus flavus ‘Yellow Mammoth’, Zones 3–9) aren’t far behind, with their bits of sunshine opening up on the ground.

I can almost smell the fragrance of this dark purple hyacinth (Hyacinthus orientalis, Zones 4–8) right through my computer screen.

There is nothing sweeter than the pink-and-white blooms of an apple tree (Malus sp.).

What would spring be without daffodils (Narcissus hybrid, Zones 3–8)?

Flowering cherries (Prunus × yedoensis, Zones 5–8) make clouds of tiny blossoms in the spring that all too quickly fade. That beautiful but brief bloom period symbolizes the fleeting nature of life in Japan and the need to enjoy and celebrate each beautiful moment—something Maureen does wonderfully with her photos.

Have a garden you’d like to share?

Have photos to share? We’d love to see your garden, a particular collection of plants you love, or a wonderful garden you had the chance to visit!

To submit, send 5-10 photos to [email protected] along with some information about the plants in the pictures and where you took the photos. We’d love to hear where you are located, how long you’ve been gardening, successes you are proud of, failures you learned from, hopes for the future, favorite plants, or funny stories from your garden.

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