We thought this was some sort of weedy tree when we first moved in. The home inspector said we should trim it back because it was so close to the house and roof. Then a month or so ago it started blooming spectacularly.
It's called
Tecoma stans, or Yellow Bells. It's also known as
esperanza, which is a name I just love. In general it's a shrub, meant to grow about 12 feet tall and 6 feet wide. But here it is at least 20 feet tall, towering over our home. The branches are so loaded down with these fantastic, sweet-smelling flower clusters that some of the branches have bent and broken.
The bees and hummingbirds are going absolutely nuts over this Southwest native. And I am too! It's going to bloom all through the winter.
I'm going to try trimming some of the long branches with blooms on the end and using them inside as cut flowers.
We thought this was some sort of weedy tree when we first moved in. The home inspector said we should trim it back because it was so close to the house and roof. Then a month or so ago it started blooming spectacularly.
It's called Tecoma stans, or Yellow Bells. It's also known as esperanza, which is a name I just love. In general it's a shrub, meant to grow about 12 feet tall and 6 feet wide. But here it is at least 20 feet tall, towering over our home. The branches are so loaded down with these fantastic, sweet-smelling flower clusters that some of the branches have bent and broken. 
The bees and hummingbirds are going absolutely nuts over this Southwest native. And I am too! It's going to bloom all through the winter.
I'm going to try trimming some of the long branches with blooms on the end and using them inside as cut flowers.
Wow, impressive and beautiful! What a nice thing to find on your property!
ReplyDeleteThanks, the surprises have been coming one after the other! It's a neat aspect of moving to an older home (built 1960s) ... established landscaping that has survived this climate for decades.
ReplyDelete