Hey folks, Perhaps some of you are wondering about the conditions at Rhododendron State Park. The hybridized and “improved” rhododendron bushes that can be seen in landscaped plantings are in full bloom in southwestern NH, but they are all very different from the rhododendron species found at the park in Fitzwilliam. It is a native […]
Rhododendron Bloom Reports
Weekly updates on the status of blooms at Rhododendron State Park.
Rhododendron Bloom Report: August 5, 2016
Welcome to this year’s last posting of the Rhododendron State Park bloom report: Last week I posted a fuzzy picture of an orchid (Epipactis helleborine – an exotic plant but not terribly invasive) currently in bloom at the grove. I took a much better quality photo this week. A close-up view reveals a pretty flower, […]
Rhododendron Bloom Report: July 29, 2016
Well, folks – the 2016 blossom show is over at Rhododendron State Park. I did not see a single bloom this week. There is lots of evidence of a very dry spell – is it a drought? Not really, but dry enough to affect all those plants with shallow root systems. But wait a minute […]
Rhododendron Bloom Report: July 22, 2016
Although there are a few blooms left here and there (look above eye level along the path), most of the blossoms in the Rhododendron State Park grove are past and gone. A number of the dropped flowers can now be seen on the ground. It seems that the warm temperatures and dry conditions may have […]
Rhododendron Bloom Report: July 15, 2016
July is here with an abundance of heat and humidity (and not all that much rain). The grove at is a bit cooler, but even with the rain we got this weekend it is still quite dry. There has not been much in the way of mushrooms to be seen so far, but we will […]
Rhododendron Bloom Report: July 8, 2016
It is still hot and dry here in southwestern NH, although the weekend forecast called for cooler and wetter weather. It is my guess that the warm temperatures have contributed to the early bloom at the Rhododendron State Park grove this year. What else is it? A mystery. Many theories are offered, but as logical […]
Rhododendron Bloom Report: July 1, 2016
Hot and dry seems to have been the general condition for the month of June this year. Although there is evidence of a slight amount of rainfall at the grove (most likely it came and went in the form of a sudden quick shower), even the usually wet areas are dryer than “normal”. As shown […]
Rhododendron Bloom Report: June 24, 2016
As the cultivated rhododendrons in landscaped house gardens are fading for the season, the native “rose trees” at the rhododendron grove in Fitzwilliam, NH are still not ready to bloom. It may be another two weeks or so before they are fully in blossom. The temperature and rainfall usually have an effect on timing of […]
Rhododendron Bloom Report: June 17, 2016
There has not been much obvious change to see in the grove from last week to now, although discreet changes are certainly happening on the cellular level that we cannot see without looking very closely with a microscope. I have included photos of both leaf and flower buds taken a week ago as well as […]
Rhododendron Bloom Report: June 3, 2016
Hey folks- Welcome to the 2016 series of bloom reports from Rhododendron State Park. A new posting should be published for this “blog” each Friday until the bloom is over for this season (perhaps mid-August or so). As usual for this species of rhododendron (Rhododendron maximus – a native North American species), the actual bloom […]