What Blooms in March

Daffodil

Cheerful trumpets that naturalize beautifully and return stronger each year.

Hellebore

The Lenten Rose. Elegant nodding blooms that thrive in deep shade.

Ice Follies Daffodil

White petals frame a wide, ruffled cup that opens yellow and fades to cream. Multiplies fast.

King Alfred Daffodil

The classic golden trumpet daffodil. Naturalizes into massive sweeps that return for decades.

Bergenia

Bold rubbery leaves provide year-round structure and turn burgundy in winter. Early pink flowers arrive with the hellebores.

California Poppy

Golden cups that carpet hillsides across the state. Closes at night and on cloudy days.

Crocus

One of the first signs of spring, pushing through snow with jewel-toned cups.

Dutchman's Breeches

Finely cut foliage and clusters of puffy white pantaloon-shaped flowers in early spring. A charming ephemeral that disappears by summer.

Eastern Redbud

Magenta flowers erupt directly from bare branches. Spring showstopper tree.

Forsythia

A wall of golden yellow on bare branches. Spring's loudest announcement.

Glory-of-the-Snow

Star-shaped blooms that appear as snow melts. Naturalizes into drifts.

Grape Hyacinth

Tiny grape-like clusters that spread into rivers of blue over time.

Hyacinth

Dense, intensely fragrant spikes. One bulb can perfume an entire room.

Lenten Rose

Nodding flowers in late winter when nothing else is blooming. Evergreen foliage adds year-round structure to shade gardens.

Lungwort

Flowers open pink and turn blue on the same stem. Silver-spotted foliage looks great all season.

Scilla

Carpets of brilliant blue that naturalize under trees with zero effort.

Snowdrop

Delicate nodding bells that bloom fearlessly in late winter cold.

Spicebush

Clusters of tiny yellow flowers appear on bare branches in early spring on a fragrant native shrub with blazing yellow fall color.

Tulip

The classic spring icon in almost every color imaginable.

Virginia Bluebell

Woodland ephemeral with sky-blue bells. Disappears by summer, returns faithfully.

Winter Aconite

Buttercup-yellow blooms that push through frozen ground before the crocuses.

Witch Hazel

Spidery, fragrant blooms on bare branches when nothing else dares.

Callery Pear

Masses of white flowers in early spring on a tough, adaptable urban tree.

Desert Marigold

Cheerful desert wildflower that blooms almost year-round in warm climates. Thrives on neglect.

Fawn Lily

Mottled leaves and nodding white flowers with swept-back petals emerge in early spring from Pacific Northwest woodlands.

Magnolia

Goblet-shaped blooms on bare branches. One of spring's most dramatic moments.

Oregon Grape

Holly-like evergreen with yellow flower clusters followed by blue berries. Tough, shade-loving native.

Peach

Early spring pink blossoms smother the branches before juicy peaches develop.

Piedmont Azalea

Fragrant pale pink to white flowers open before the leaves in early spring, filling lowland forests with sweetness.

Serviceberry

White spring clouds, edible berries, and blazing fall color. Four-season native tree that deserves more attention.

Anemone de Caen

Poppy-like flowers in jewel tones bloom in mid-spring over ferny foliage.

Arnold Promise Witch Hazel

Spidery yellow flowers with sweet fragrance on bare branches in late winter. The earliest tree to bloom.

Chinese Witch Hazel

Spidery yellow, sweetly scented flowers bloom on bare branches in late winter.

Draba

Tiny alpine cushion plant smothered in bright yellow flowers in early spring. Perfect miniature scale.

Green-and-Gold

Bright yellow star flowers appear for months above mat-forming foliage. The best spring ground cover for the Southeast.

Jasmine

Intensely sweet-scented white stars. The scent of warm southern evenings.

Manzanita

Smooth red bark with urn-shaped flowers that feed hummingbirds in late winter. Sculptural beauty.

Persian Buttercup

Ruffled, rose-like blooms in vivid colors brighten cool spring beds and pots.

Pieris

Chains of lily-of-the-valley flowers dangle over colorful new growth. Year-round structure for shady borders.

Red Flowering Currant

Among the first shrubs to bloom in Pacific Northwest gardens, dripping with rosy-pink racemes that hummingbirds arrive for before anything else has opened.

Sweet Olive

Small clustered flowers perfume the garden with an apricot-like scent over a long season.

Yoshino Cherry

Clouds of pale blossoms cover the tree in early spring, later followed by small bird-edible cherries.

Bougainvillea

Explosive cascades of papery bracts. Covers walls and fences in color.

California Lilac

Electric blue flower clusters on an evergreen California native. Hummingbird and bee magnet.

Camellia

Glossy evergreen with rose-like blooms in the depths of winter.

Carolina Jessamine

One of the first vines to bloom each year, smothering itself in fragrant bright yellow tubes in late winter and early spring.

Coral Aloe

Flat coral-orange rosettes produce vivid flower stalks in late winter. One of the hardiest aloes.

Gulf Coast Penstemon

Nodding tubular flowers in soft lavender shades brighten moist woods of the Gulf Coast.

Hawaiian Hibiscus

Large tropical blooms in vivid colors appear repeatedly from spring through fall.

Meyer Lemon

Sweetly scented white blossoms appear intermittently year-round and set thin-skinned lemons.

Rosemary

Aromatic evergreen herb with tiny blue flowers loved by early bees. Needs excellent drainage.

Winter Daphne

Clusters of pink buds open to white, intensely scented blooms in late winter.

Bird of Paradise

Sculptural, crane-like flowers in orange and blue. Unmistakable.