If the title of this post looks familiar to you, you are very observant and deserve a high-five.

Back at the beginning of this year (January 2nd to be exact) I shared some very different pictures of this tree in a post called LIRIODENDRON TULIPIFERA IN SNOW

Well, it’s May…

The snow has melted, the hot sun is making regular appearances again, and wouldn’t you know it, this Tulip Tree is now in full spring bloom.

Liriodendron tulipifera, aka Tulip Tree or Yellow Poplar, is native to Eastern North America (far from where this one is planted) and is the state tree of Kentucky, Tennessee, and Indiana.

Tulip Trees bloom May through June.

Big showy yellow flowers banded in bright orange at the base of each petal.

What a gift to witness these blooms! Almost surreal looking.

Generous cups of cold sherbet, vanilla and orange…

Perhaps a shaded feast for some lucky pollinators on a hot day.

As colorful as they are, it’s easy to scan the tree and not see the flowers because they don’t open up until after the leaves are fully formed, and by then they are fairly tucked in and hidden.

I’m glad I got a chance to snap these photos; I’ve never seen a Tulip Tree bloom and I was excited to share it with you. 🙂 For reference (for myself as much as anyone else) I took these with my old Pentax K-500 with an inexpensive CPL filter.

What’s blooming in your world? 🙂

Love! EK