Maryland Monday

This is a neighborhood in Western Howard County

They have a spectacular row of Bradford Pears

...and other flowering trees...

The Bradford Pears (an ornamental tree) are just finishing their full bloom right now. But their days are numbered, it never lasts very long. It's just a matter of days.

They are common in Maryland for their beautiful shape, their incredible show of flowers in the Spring - which lasts maybe one week, and their lovely Fall color. 

But they have a couple of problems:

• In late Fall they drop nasty fruit that, although it doesn't smell, it splats and makes a mess. It is easy to identify cars that have parked under a Bradford Pear in November. And lots of people plant Bradford Pears beside their driveways...
• When they are young they are gorgeous, but as they mature, their limbs begin to break, and whole sections of the tree will just break off, destroying the symmetry they are prized for. Consequently, you see fewer Bradford Pears used for new landscaping these days.