Introduction to the Bloom Calendars

In Bloom Month by Month

Click on a month to see what's blooming in a central Austin garden.

Jan |  Feb |  Mar |  Apr |  May |  Jun |  Jul |  Aug |  Sep |  Oct |  Nov |  Dec

Where Are These Plants?

This is a very narrow observation on which plants bloom together in my own garden in Austin, Texas (USA zone 8). Not only is this information specific to zone 8, and to Austin, it is specific to my yard. I notice elsewhere around town, even in my neighborhood, that some of the same plants begin blooming much earlier. This might be because my yard gets a lot of shade, or because my yard is on the northeast slope of a hill, or because I don't water all plants as much as they would like.

The dates of the first and last bloom vary quite a bit from year to year. The amount of rain we receive seems to make the largest impact. In the spring, late frosts often kill off flowers just as they are opening.

What's Included?

This bloom calendar is valid only for plants I actually grow. Usually, I include only plants I've grown for several years. I grow but a fraction of the plants that can be grown in Austin.

Why Are Some Years Missing?

I've only been tracking this succession of bloom since 1995. If a plant does not have a bloom date for a specific year, it is either because I acquired it more recently, or it has died since. I'm trying to keep better records of when I acquired a plant. The first year planted does not provide a reliable indicator of bloom; a plant needs to settle into the environment in order to reset its internal clock.

Obvious gaps in information likely reflects incomplete record-keeping rather than a drastic change in the cycle of the seasons. At the beginning of fall and spring, I'm anxiously checking the flowers every day to see what new one has bloomed. But as the season wears on, I don't note every flower in the garden. I'm often too busy in the garden to be sitting at the computer.