Spring Blooms in the Okanagan

April in Alberta tends to be drab and unappealing as we wait for the last snowfall and for the winter's accumulation to recede.  But in the Okanagan, while there may still be an occasional overnight frost, it isn't very long before the promise of new life makes itself evident.

One of the first flowers to poke their heads up are the Okanagan Sunflowers (as they are known to the locals).  These flowers cover the hillsides and last a few weeks before they start to fade.  Their sunny yellow lifts the spirits.

Soon the bulbs that have been dormant over the winter months send up their shoots and eventually their blooms.   Tulips, Daffodils, Crocus and Hyacinth lift their cheery heads in celebration of spring.

And then the trees begin to blossom.   The most amazing to me is the magnolia trees with their big floppy blooms.  I always wonder about the cleanup required after the blooms fall to the ground!  Saskatoon bushes also fill the landscape and the smell of their blossoms was intoxicating.  Eventually the apple blossoms started to appear - the early promise of a bountiful harvest in the fall.

It was so pleasant to experience spring a little early by staying in the Okanagan for the month of April.  On first arrival the trees were bare and there were no blooms to be seen, but by the end of the month new life was everywhere.