Early Blooming Trees and Plants

Last Updated on January 29, 2023 by Paul Guzman

Early Blooming Trees and Plants.  Flowering Pear trees bloom in early spring Pyrus Calleryana ‘Bradford’ or Bradford Pear. The Aristocrat pear is remarkably similar. Both have gorgeous white blooms that last about 2-4 weeks.  The Tree will grow to about 40-50 ft. tall and wide.  Nice thick dark green foliage in spring through summer seasons. The foliage will also turn a nice red/purple color in late fall.  It is a deciduous tree which means it will lose its leaves during the chilly winter months.

Deciduous, USDA Zone 5-9

The Purple Leaf Flowering Plum.  The light lavender-pink blooms last about 2-3 weeks.  Then it gives out dark purple foliage; thus the name.  Deciduous, USDA Zone 5-8.

The Purple leaf plum is in full bloom.

The purple-leaf plum will turn a nice burgundy color after the blooms have expired.

Fruit Trees that bloom early

All fruit trees will bloom in early spring.  Apples, peaches, apricots, plums, crab apples.  From brilliant white blooms to deep pink flowers. More information on Fruit tree zones.

The Centurion Crabapple has bright pink blooms that are spectacular in mass. You can see photos of this tree over at monrovia.com

Early Blooming Trees and Plants

The photo below is the flowering Crabapple tree at full growth – Beautiful. It is a cold-hardy tree and flowering buds burst open in early spring. Beautiful cherry pink blossoms.  It is a small tree about 20ft. tall and wide.  It likes the Southwest climate and can tolerate poor soil.  USDA Zone 4-8.

Ice plants – Due to the early season, and warmer weather in the southwest most ice plants (Delosperma nubigenum) is now blooming. This yellow flowering ice plant grows to about 2″ maybe 3″ in height and can spread 36″ in width.  It will bloom all the way through mid-summer.  A perfect plant for ground cover soil erosion purposes. USDA Zone 5-9

The Redbud tree will bloom early in the spring season.  USDA Zone 5-9. An excellent tree for small yards.

The Forsythia Plant – Early blooming plant.

A nice-looking, deciduous shrub with a rounded outline on an upright form that has brilliant yellow foliage with lots of soft yellow flowers that will announce the arrival of spring! Will do well in colder climates. USDA Zones 3-8.

The Carolina Jessamine

A vine that will bloom bright yellow flowers in late winter until mid-spring.  It’s amazing how this yellow flowering vine will bloom even in snowy weather.  Learn more about this flowering vine by visiting this page. Carolina Jessamine.  USDA Zones 6-9.

Creeping Phlox

This early-blooming plant provides deep pink blooms in early spring.  It likes the full sun but may lose its flowers during the mid-summer hot sun in the Southwest. It can tolerate poor soil but will look better and last longer if planted with good loamy potting soil.  Most gardening stores will have the Creeping Phox Subulata which are the most common. USDA Zone 3-9

Lilac Shrubs

Around the Southwest, Lilacs will bloom sometime in early March and will last until mid-Spring. These plants can tolerate colder temperatures down to -40° degrees Fahrenheit. USDA Zones 3-8. They are not drought-tolerant plants so, keep them well watered during the hot summer southwest heat. Learn more about Lilac Flowering Shrub.