Rain = Blooms in Palestine, Texas!

It was rainy here in Palestine, Texas all weekend long (January 25-27). While most Texan appreciate the rain, we are not always huge fans of nasty weather, but in Palestine, rainy weather conditions equal great blooming conditions. 

In order to have a good blooming season we need to have good, cold rain during the months of November, December and January. We did not see much rain in November, but did see some in December. In January there was a good amount of cold rain and we were excited to the burn ban lifted for Anderson County. We are hoping to see more in February to make up for November. 

Below is a wet and GREEN Davey Dogwood Park!

We saw signs of life!

While we were exploring Davey Dogwood Park we saw buds on a few dogwood trees. They are appearing earlier in the season than usual, but our expert horticulturalist says this is a good sign that we may be seeing more blooms this year. This is good to hear. Last year, we saw fewer blooms than we were expecting due to the drought in 2011. We are hoping for a fantastic 2013, but we will have to keep waiting through February to know for sure.

Below is dogwood tree buds in the rain!

Keep checking back to stay posted on the progress of the blooms and activities happening leading up to and during the Dogwood Trails Celebration. Like us on Facebook and get involved in the 75 Days of Giveaways at www.facebook.com/dogwoodtrails.

Official Bloom Watch Begins!

It is that time of year again. Time to start watching the weather and predicting when we will see blooms. It is time for the Official Dogwood Bloom Watch!

Photo by: Rhonda Redden, 2012

The Dogwood Trails Celebration has been a 75-year tradition for Palestine, Texas. Last year, the Dogwood Trails Celebration was the last two weekends in March and the first weekend of April. This year, due to changes in blooming patterns, the Celebration will be the last three weekends in March to ensure that you come to visit during peak blooming season.

Last year was a rough year for the Dogwood Trails. We did not have as many dogwoods blooming in Davey Dogwood Park and in the Palestine area as we normally have. The drought that happened the summer of 2011 had an extreme effect on the dogwood trees and blooms in 2012. The drought did cause some of the dogwoods in the Palestine to die and for some to go dormant and shed their leaves in order to save themselves from the drought, which threw off the dogwood trees blooming schedule. On top of that, a storm came through two days before the start of the Celebration and many petals of the flowers that did bloom were knocked to the ground.

This year, we have reason to hope for a good year. Although we are still not sure about how many dogwood trees died from the drought in 2011, we have had plenty of good, cold rain which are perfect conditions to prepare the dogwoods to blooms. We will have better insight about how many dogwoods will actually bloom in mid-February when the dogwood trees start to develop buds.

We are counting down from 75 days starting today until the end of the Dogwood Trails Celebration. To start off the countdown for the Celebration the City of Palestine and the Palestine Area Chamber of Commerce, along with Palestine area businesses, are doing “75 Days of Giveaways.” Starting today, Thursday, January 17, 2013 through the end of the Dogwood Trails Celebration on Sunday, March 31, 2013 we will give away an item a day to anyone near and far who shares our statuses about the Dogwood Trails. Giveaways range from coffee mugs to hotel stays to diamonds, so be sure to like us at www.facebook.com/dogwoodtrails to learn the rules and check back for what items are up for grabs!

For more information on the Dogwood Trails Celebration visit www.TexasDogwoodTrails.com.