Spring- Early Summer 2026

I went out to New Hampshire to pick up my car, from my daughters house, and turned the chore into a 17 day, 12 state road trip progressing from very early spring to summer in the South West. Saw lots of flowers, some wildlife, many mountain ranges and a few museums. And as always, I used the trip to visit Botanical Gardens along the way. My daughter came along for part of the trip and was so helpful with the driving, navigating, checking out destinations online plus generally adding a sense of fun to the adventure.

I wanted to share some photos on the blog, more comprehensive write ups of the Botanical Gardens will appear in my Travelogue, as I write them up.

Arriving in New Hampshire at the end of April, the forested area where my kids live was still waking up from Winter. The Forsythia (shown above) was beautiful and everywhere. A very uncommon shrub in California, but in NH it perks up the gardens after the long winter.

Even the bulbs were still blooming like this brilliant red species Tulip

Setting out on the last day of April, we drove out through Vermont and Upstate New York. I booked a room in a historic home, that is now a Bed and Breakfast in Fort Plain, NY, for our first nights stay. OMG. This turned out to be an amazing home from 1883 with stained glass windows, gorgeous woodwork, and fascinating collections of antiques and furnishings from that era. The owner of the Haslett House was a delight and gave us a great background on the home and area. A very great way to start the trip! Our first impression of the place, at dusk the previous day, was that it looked deserted and maybe haunted. So glad we ventured in, jolted the owner out of his evening activities and made ourselves at home.

Loved the stop at Curtis Garden in Dickinson, NY- a Cornell University test and research garden broken into varied types of gardens. The Weeping Cedar, course leafed Pine and Weeping Crabapple is a nice example of texture and color variation. Much of the garden was just emerging from the winter freeze, but it was fun to see the bulbs and flowering trees coming into bloom. I got a double Spring this year!

As we drove south into Virginia, the spring flowers increased with German Bearded Iris and Lupine showing some intense Blue-Purple colors.

I had hoped to see some Native Rhododendrons and Azaleas blooming and as we explored the Blue Ridge Parkway and Great Smokey Mountains, I got my wish. Deep pink, white and light pink blossoms lined the mountain passes. And huge plants! I think of Rhododendrons and azaleas as medium shrubs, but they grow big in the wild!

It wasn’t all just nature and flowers! We stopped in at some fun eateries and the Hollywood Car Museum in Gatlinburg, TN to see cars like this James Bond BMW with all the memorabilia, plus the batman cars, the Ghostbusters ambulance, Bob Hope’s coupe and many more- very cool.

At the Knoxville Botanical Garden, the thick broadleaf deciduous trees provide shade and a verdant green backdrop for all the flowers and garden settings. In New Hampshire the leaves hadn’t even budded out, but as we progressed farther south the forests became lush and bright green with the new leaves. And the Peonies were blooming! (pictured above). The South East is a great Dogwood environment too. The variegated Dogwood in the photos is something special- a rare hybrid.

On a rainy day in Knoxville, I went out to the farm and living history area of the Appalachian Museum. What a treasure trove of artifacts and inclusive museum this is. Indoor and Outdoor items are lovingly displayed and notated, covering the history of the mountain folk. I loved the instruments and baskets- all handmade by the local artists and musicians. Some very humorous.

In Nashville, I visited the Cheekwood Garden. An expansive 55 acre estate (Home of Mabel Wood and Leslie Cheek) built between 1929-1932. The gardens include an area of native plants for wet or boggy areas, they have a great model train garden, herb garden, Dogwood area and children’s garden. A newer area in the forest has a sculpture walk. Lots of water features and forested path areas. Found one last bright orange Azalea blooming.

My daughter was a zoo keeper in her early career, so we often visit zoos on our trips. This suits me fine since they usually have great gardens and interesting site decorations. The Memphis Zoo is one of the nicest zoos in the U.S., so had to stop by there!

I liked their regional themes- China, Ancient Egypt, North West Passage. Each area teaches a little history along with facts about the animals.

In Memphis, I also stopped by the Metal Art Museum situated right above the banks of the Mississippi River. Decorative iron work fences, sculptures and this crazy creature from the black lagoon fountain. They have an extensive art collection, teach classes and even have a repair workshop. Really neat place.

Drove through the rain to Oklahoma City and was very lucky that it stopped just as I reached the Will Rogers Garden. This garden has a whole area with flowers and plants chosen to compliment each other and in a very unusual color palette. Salvias, Daisies, Coleus, Catmint among others, populate the borders.

It got hotter and drier as I headed east towards California, but there were tons of wildflowers lining the highway. I felt so lucky to have caught the spring flowers and that the highway crew hadn’t mowed them off. The Butterflies were probably glad too!

In Amarillo, there is a fairly new botanical garden with an Asian inspired area (pictured above), Conservatory with tropical plants, interactive vegetable and fruit gardens for visiting children, Cacti and Succulents, and a lovely Butterfly and Pollinator Garden. I had expected a very dry and desert like environment, but found this haven instead.

Two very interesting items I found here- a Banana plant with flowers all ready to form fruit, laying over a deep purple housing for the next set of flowers and fruit. You can really visualize how the Bananas will develop from this photo.

The Garden also had this spinning bowl of succulents set-up with a Kaleidoscope viewer. Children can stand on the step and rotate the bowl to see an array of shapes and colors. Such a great idea!

In Santa Fe it definitely felt like late Spring-Early Summer. The Botanical Garden there featured Xeriscapes, Cacti and native plants, that tolerate the heat of a long summer. The huge Kachina is in the museum plaza featuring Tribal and Indigenous art of the area. The multiple museums are adjacent to the Garden. So many wonderful sculptures and art pieces outside and in.

At the Albuquerque Biopark, the children have the best adventures. Check out these giant carrots and a dragon! There are tunnels, mazes, giant insects, vegetables and even a big watering can. This is an absolutely great children’s park.

The model train set up is fully landscaped and really a long route! It even has a stream!

The Biopark also has an area inspired by the gardens of Lebanon, with elaborate masonry work, color beds, and plants of the region.

I made my way home, driving through Joshua Tree National Park. I love the vastness of this place. And the crazy looking trees. There were still a few wildflowers- globe mallow, evening primrose, and cat’s claw acacia.

This was a fast synopsis of the trip, but wanted to give you a feel for the route, climate zones, flowers along the way and what May looks like in different areas of the U.S. It was a great trip and perfect timing to visit the gardens. It took me 17 days and I stayed in a few locations for 2 nights. Hope you enjoyed the pics and have fun on your Summer adventures.