Beautiful blossom

Written by James Walsh

Priorwood Garden with apple blossom in foreground and the house in the background

Apple blossom in Priorwood Garden, Melrose

Every year our gardens burst into life with the arrival of the spring blossom. The dainty flowers, bright colours and heady scents are one of nature’s most dazzling displays.

The spectacular blossoming of our fruit trees and hedgerows each spring is a sign of all the great things to come in the months ahead, as well as an abundant source of inspiration and joy.

Here’s our handy guide to blossom and our favourite places to see it.

Blossom is the tiny flowers of fruit trees

Lots of trees flower, but ‘blossom’ normally refers to the small, delicate flowers of fruit trees like apples, cherries and plums, as well as rowan, blackthorn and hawthorn.

These trees rely on insects to help them pollinate; putting on a colourful and sweet-smelling display is their way of tempting precious pollinators to help them bear fruit.

A honey bee flies into a pale pink blossom flower, almost silhouetted against a deep blue sky.

It all starts in spring

As winter winds down and temperatures start to rise through March and April, the blossoming begins. In most cases, blossom comes and goes fairly quickly, so don’t forget to enjoy it while it’s on show!

Different species and varieties of tree bloom at different times, leading to a blossom season in Scotland that can last from March all the way to May and even June (depending on where you are and what the conditions have been).

There are lots of types of blossom

As you’d expect, different trees produce different kinds of flowers, although most of the dainty blossom you’ll see in Scotland will come in shades of white or pink.

To brush up on your tree-spotting skills, why not try to identify different trees by their blossom?

A close-up view of a sprig of apple blossom.

A crab apple tree is absolutely covered with pale pink blossom flowers. Daffodils grow beside the tree.

A close-up of the end of a branch, with small and delicate white flowers growing beside little green leaves.

A close-up of a branch of blackthorn blossom, showing delicate white flowers and green leaf buds.

White hawthorn blossom on a branch, with a deep blue sky in the background.

A close-up of a cluster of densely packed rowan blossom flowers on a branch. They are creamy white with feathery tendrils.

But the most famous blossom of all is ...

Cherry!

Cherry trees are known around the world for their sumptuous pink and white blooms, but have a special connection to Japan. Here, cherry blossom is known as ‘sakura’ and the tradition of travelling to view the blooms stretches back over 1,000 years. Every year as spring arrives, huge crowds of people gather at festivals to celebrate the arrival of the cherry blossom (a symbol of life and rejuvenation).

But you don’t need to travel too far to see cherry blossom in Scotland: it grows happily in lots of places, including Edinburgh, Glasgow and Dundee.

Large cherry trees, laden with blossom, stand at either side of Newhailes House and the sweeping gravel drive.

Cherry blossom at Newhailes

Come and see blossom at our places

We’ve got gardens galore, and with a Trust membership you can visit as many as you like, as often as you like.

Come and see the apple blossom at Pitmedden Garden and Fyvie Castle, or discover the wonderful array of different blooms on show at places like Falkland Palace, Greenbank Garden and Priorwood Garden. Alongside the typical fruit tree blossoms, you’ll see other gorgeous flowering plants that you might think of as spring blossom, including lilac and viburnum.

At the right place, at the right time, you’ll be treated to a spectacular display of natural beauty – so keep your eyes peeled and your nose on guard!