Azalea Garden - Early Arrivals in Nacogdoches

(Click on photos for larger version)

We're on the front end of the big "azalea pop" here in Nacogdoches.

In the coming weeks, the brilliant massive shows of color will overwhelm the eyes of happy visitors and locals alike.

But early-bird visitors to the Ruby Mize Azalea Garden on the Stephen F. Austin State University campus are getting some colorful visual treats already. The early blooming purple spider azaleas along University Drive are in full bloom. Several varieties of camelias are also putting on brilliant shows. And the tulip trees are in amazing form. Many are 20 feet tall and showing off in shades from white to rose to lavender.

Also in peak form are the dogwoods and redbuds, splashed throughout the garden, located on east bank of Lanana Creek, just south of Johnson Coliseum, between College and Starr streets.

And of course, some of the azaleas just can't help but start blooming in early March, as well as later on.

So when is the perfect time to visit Nacogdoches to see the azaleas and other blooming shrubs, bushes and trees?

Right now, and over the next several weeks!

It's a show with several acts, and a cast of amazing characters.

For updates, see http://www.nacogdochesazaleas.com/ or call 1-888-OLDEST-TOWN.

(Photos: Bruce R. Partain)