Back home, I love trees that blossom — magnolias, cherry trees, apple trees, plum trees and crabapple trees. I love trying to capture the delicacy of their small blossoms. The other day I saw a tree in blossom that reminded me of a magnolia, but it wasn’t. It was blossoming with no leaves (like a magnolia), but it had a thick waxy bark, unlike any tree I’m familiar with.
I spotted this beauty in the yard of one of the houses bordering the marina. I didn’t know what it was so I asked the very friendly homeowner, a retired physician. He offered me a piece of the tree to take home but he couldn’t remember the name of it. He referred me to his wife, who told me that it was a frangipani and that its flowers are used to make leis in Hawaii.
She had three different specimens in her yard, each with a different colour flower: pink, yellow and white. She was generous is allowing me to take all kinds of photos of the tree and she offered me a bud to take with me. It has the most divine fragrance — sweet and light and not at all cloying. These trees usually blossom later in the spring, but the unusual and variable weather here in Florida this winter has confused them and they’re budding early.
I felt the sweet, soft buds and blossoms lent themselves to a dreamy, painterly French Kiss texture.
If you’d like to learn more about this tree (Plumeria), click here.
Sherrygaley.com 
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Oh how lovely, and how nice of the homeowners to be so generous with the tree. If leis are made from the flowers I am sure the fragrance is wonderful. Lovely artwork that has highlighted this beautiful plant.
Cheers to that!
What a generous soul you ran into, giving you a piece of his plant! Its beautiful and the artwork of course if so precious.
Beautiful, I can almost feel spring. 🙂
Yours is the correct name, Gracie. Frangipani is the common name. Thanks for your feedback!
Beautiful work, Sherry! The texture definitely works on the subject. You’ve done a fabulous job on it.
I know this plant as “Plumeria”, I never realized it’s called frangipani.
Images of buds and blossoms just convey “hope” and “possibility” don’t they?
Thanks so much, Marcie!
Yes, certainly, odd-looking is right. But the fragrance is heavenly.
Thanks, Kristeen. It is such a beautiful pink colour.
It is a really unusual looking tree, isn’t it? And the fact that it had blossoms and no leaves captured my attention.
Wish I could convey the fragrance too!
Exquisite soft beauty!
I agree that developing buds and flowers is a most wonderful thing to observe and capture on photo. I love the twirling pink buds on these.
Lovely treatment! I’ve heard of these trees but never seen one – it’s odd-looking but very pretty.
Very nicely done – it does have a dreaming feel to the image – love the colors..
Hugs
We have a frangipani by the pool and it perplexed me. They are so weird in the winter with the bare, sausage like limbs. Beautiful photo.
Love frangipani. Beautiful shot!