False Snow

Our Mayday tree is nearing the end of a prolific bloom. As a kind of grand finale, the flowers shed their white petals all at once. A slight breeze may release thousands of them, sending them swirling down to settle on the concrete apron below. Before long, the fallen petals look like skiffs of false snow swept into place.

Mayday trees, native to northern Europe and northern Asia, are the first of my flowering trees or shrubs to bloom in spring. Interestingly, just as the Mayday begins to brush off its blossoms, the nearby chokecherry—first cousin to the Mayday, but native to Montana—is only now beginning to unfurl its fragrant flowers.

—Mitchell Hegman