Every day I commute 50 miles one way through eastern North Carolina, across two rivers, five counties, four stop signs, and three stop lights. This time of year I am treated to the sight of dogwood trees in bloom at literally every turn of the road, including the one I shared with everyone last year.
Today I stopped to snap shots of less than half the trees I saw in bloom. The dogwoods have started to fade after the heat and sun of the last few days, you can tell by the green buds opening up and the faded color of the flowers themselves, but they are still enough to perk up my day, and I hope they perk up yours as well.
The two dogwood trees in my yard, first as seen through the pine pollen on the windshield of my truck, and then in the clear.
Some shots taken in county #1 before crossing the first river:
Pics from county #2 before crossing river #1:
In town #1 after crossing river #1:
The last one was from the "other side of the tracks," and the dogwoods don't appear to discriminate in their location; in fact they seemed to favor the 'hood in this town, see more below:
Vacant lot, house recently removed, dogwoods still standing:
There were even more dogwoods around the bend in this shot (again, from the "other side" of the tracks):
The next few are from just outside of town #1 headed toward town #2:
One of the more spectacular vistas comes into view as I descend a slight incline into a curve and behold an entire grove of dogwoods on an up-slope directly in front of me:
Some folks like to set a line of dogwoods to mark their property line, as below (still in county #2):
Now in county #3, some folks might recognize this house:
as the home of the owner of the little IH cultivator of which Frank Currier is so fond:
The dogwoods in the background above (telephoto):
Still in county #3:
Now in town #2:
Even the better neighborhoods have an abundance of dogwoods:
Now back out in the country, across river #2 and into county #4, getting close to my destination. The tall bare trees to rear and to the right are money, I mean pecan trees. The farm sells them and processes them for others. The owners have two clydesdales and a flock of the stupidest geese I have ever seen, sheep, goats, the whole nine yards.
A spectacular specimen (again, telephoto):
The bloom has faded a bit, but you can see how the "traditional" dogwood is found natively among taller trees, hugging their shade, but peeping out into the clearing (taken from across the field):
Hope you enjoyed my spring tour through parts of eastern North Carolina --nothing could be finer.
No need for a PUI (Posting Under <font size="-2">the</font> Influence) infraction.
