Breath of spring

Two blossoms cling to clay-splattered branches at Hutchins Farm in Concord, Massachusetts, yesterday. ¶ 

In this part of New England, spring typically begins with weeks of chilly weather that holds the blooming trees suspended under glass. ¶ 

That is followed by a sudden onset of days that are not merely warm but hot. The change is abrupt. The blossoms fall from the trees and boom, it's summer.

I was sick during the cool phase this year, so missed the pomaceous finery. But yesterday the above two blossoms still clung to a tree in Concord. They won't last much longer

The gray spots on the leaves are kaolin clay, which organic farmers use to discourage pests.

I think the prolonged cool period may have given bees and other pollinators an extended time in which to fertilize the apples. Certainly the farmers in Concord thought so, to protect their trees with clay.

Nascent apples, stamens still exposed, stand stripped of their petals.

The last two years have brought some meager harvests in parts of New England. Let's hope for a bumper crop!

Some of the trees at Hutchins Farm. Click any photo for a closer look.