The profusion of white flowers brightens up the landscape and signals that spring has finally arrived.
Often a tree will begin to bloom with tiny or large white blossoms in early to midspring.
Here are 14 trees with at least one cultivar bearing white flowers every year.
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Warning
Some trees are noted below as toxic to humans, animals, or both.
Think twice about adding aBradford pear tree(Pyruscalleryana)for its white flowers.
It prefers boggy, wet soil and is ideal for large rain gardens.
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Because it tends to spread, American elderberry is best planted where clustering is desired.
Berries are toxic to humans and animals (until cooked).
In cold climates, this tropical plant must be grown in containers and brought indoors for winter.
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It usually blooms from midsummer to fall, with large, sweet-smelling flowers up to 12 inches long.
All parts of the angel’s trumpet plant are toxic to humans and animals.
Leaves turn an attractive purple/red in fall.
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It is most often used in group or mass plantings, where its suckering tendency is not a problem.
This shrub has a good tolerance for wet conditions.
It is ideal as a foundation plant or for border plantings.
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Many varieties turn an attractive shade of yellow, orange, or gold in fall.
This shrub is often used as borders, foundation plantings, or as a specimen shrub.
It produces unusual pin-cushion flowers in June that are attractive to butterflies and other pollinators.
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It is also popular for naturalizing in woodland garden options.
The leaves are toxic to humans.
Fall foliage is an attractive yellowish-green but drops early.
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Azaleas and rhododendrons grow well beneath a Carolina silverbell.
It produces 4- to 6-inch-long clusters of creamy white flowers with fringe-like petals in May and June.
The flowers give way to bluish-black fruits in midsummer, which attract birds.
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The spear-shaped leaves turn yellow in fall.
The fringe tree prefers moist soils but it tolerates most soil types.
This low-maintenance tree has a good tolerance for air pollution and urban environments.
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Fringe tree is often grown in small groups or as an individual specimen tree on the lawn.
The fall foliage is not notable.
Giant dogwood is normally used as a lawn tree.
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This is a slow-growing plant that is pyramidal when young but grows gradually to a spreading, rounded form.
Seed pods open in fall, and birds are attracted to the seeds as food.
The fall foliage is unremarkable.
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If you love magnolia trees, trystar magnoliawith its bright white star-shaped flowers.
The main bloom season is summer, but flowers and fruit are continually produced.
They are favorite plants for seaside areas since natal plums tolerate wind and salty conditions.
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It has glossy evergreen leaves and produces fragrant white flowers about 1 inch across several times throughout the year.
Small, attractive fruits follow the flowers.
In climates where it is hardy, orange jasmine is planted as a hedge or screen.
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Elsewhere, it is planted in large pots and brought indoors during the cold months.
Orange jasmine tolerates pruning and can be easily shaped into hedges or trimmed to remain manageable in pots.
The tree thrives in bright, direct sun and dwarf varieties can also be grown in containers.
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The tree does well in partial or full sun.
Hydrangeas
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There are numeroustypes of white hydrangeas.
The beloved hydrangea (Hydrangeaspp.)
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Most hydrangea types thrive in fertile, well-draining soil that receives morning sun and afternoon shade.
Depending on the variety, white flowers appear in late spring with their lush blooms lasting into fall.
Note that all hydrangeas are toxic to animals.
Callery pear (Bradford pear) Pyrus calleryana Decne.Center for Invasive Species.
Growing Elderberries.University of Vermont Extension.
Guide to Poisonous Plants.
College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences.
Common Buttonbush.National Resources Conservation Service USDA.
North Carolina State Extension.