Why I love Loquat trees

[efmesch]

For the past month or so, the three Loquat trees in my garden have been flowering.  Loquat is the only tree that flowers at this time of year.  I've been wanting to share a picture with you of these trees and their visitors but only got around to it today.  It's chilly outside (15 ⁰ C., 59⁰F.)  The skies are cloudy, between showers, but the girls are out.  Not in the numbers that fly on a sunny day, but nevertheless, they are busy, collecting pollen.
I love the beauty of the trees, their large dark green leaves, their delicious fruits (they ripen around March-April) that can be eaten fresh or from which I can make liqueur or jam, the delicate fragrance of the flowers, and the pollen they provide for my nearby hives.
Needless to say, the bees love them too.

For some reason I can't manage to upload the pictures I took.  Maybe I'll figure it out yet.

[efmesch]

Ahhhh---at least partial success



I'm getting the hang of this/ 

[Perry]

The only thing flowering here at the moment is the Christmas Cactus.

[efmesch]

Indoors or outdoors?

[Perry]

Indoors or outdoors?

Indoors, there is nothing that blooms here at this time of year.

[Wandering Man]

Indoors or outdoors?

Indoors, there is nothing that blooms here at this time of year.

I've heard rumors that Perry has redone his honey house:




 

[Perry]

That picture is beautiful. It reminds me of my younger days (early 20's) when I was working in Alberta. I used to spend a lot of time at the Muttart Conservatory, which had these 3 huge glass pyramids that each had a different botanical theme. They even had an arid desert type one.
You may ask "why would someone want to spend time in a glass pyramid with a bunch of plants"? In Edmonton in winter it can get down to -40, which is the same in C as it is in F. Seeing something green, even if only for a little while, can become a real treat.

https://www.edmonton.ca/attractions_events/muttart_conservatory/discover-the-pyramids.aspx

[riverbee]

ef, AWESOME pictures!  thanks for sharing those!