I just have time to start this thread and link to Douglas Justice's June in the Garden - UBC Botanical Garden, as usual a very good read, particularly since the focus from the start are Styrax and Stewartia, both trees I have tried to collect here in the past. The Styrax japonicus near the parking lot is so densely covered with flowers, and so fragrant. Inside the garden, not far from the back of the Campbell Building, is S. japonicus 'Fargesii'. I'm sure neither of us could tell you how it differs from the species. On the other hand, we had no trouble identifying the new addition: S. 'Evening Light', with bronze-purple leaves and pedicels. I can't say I'm a fan - white flowers are just as visible against green leaves as brown ones. Maybe these leaves that are so dark in "spring growth" will turn green, and then we'll depend on the pedicels, if they're just around, to identify these trees. Anyway, I'm happy to get to make their acquaintance here. The first two photos here are from the entrance plaza; the next two are from the Contemporary Garden, where we recognized the tree right away. The S. confusus next to the Campbell Building entrance is just beginning to flower. The blog explains how this one is easily identified. I'm out of time and space in this posting. To be continued.
Here is Stewartia serrata, sawtooth stewartia on the label, which Douglas calls nodding stewartia, near a snazzy new bridge. The flowers are almost finished and none were at eye level. I am so fond of Stewartia rostrata, beaked stewartia because I can usually recognize it by the half-red sepals and almost translucent reddish fruits. I didn't realize that the white flowers are stained pink along the petal edges, some not as much as others. This one is beautiful. I thought this tree in the Contemporary Garden would be S. rostrata, but it's marked as species unknown. It looks very much like one that was planted in the front yard of my condo building.
