Saga's Early April Flowers

Rape blossoms and moss phlox follow the cherry blossoms

Tristan Scholze Apr 14, 2015 - 1 min read

<p>Rapeseed blossoms and an old footbridge</p>

<p>Nanohana closeup; these plants have a variety of culinary uses, but they flower in spring</p>

<p>Great swaths of the rapeseed blossoms line roads</p>

<p>Shibazakura, or moss phlox, are more commonly found in home gardens</p>

<p>Bright patches of purple, pink, blue, and white announce that spring has come</p>

<p>Along almost any road in early April</p>

<p>A brook rushes under a patch of nanohana with early April rainfall</p>

<p>Moss phlox appears along with tulips</p>

<p>Many streams flow from the mountains and along the rice fields</p>

The Saga countryside teems with beauty in the details at any time of year. In early April, the ume (plum blossoms) and sakura (cherry blossoms) have just passed. Deeper shades of green start to return to the mountainsides, and the rice fields are just beginning to be prepared for tilling and flooding. New flowers appear in great colorful swaths: the nanohana (rape blossoms) and shibazakura (moss phlox). Look for nanohana along rice fields and rivers and even in fields of their own; shibazakura often add life to home gardens and street corners. These photos are from the picturesque village of Mitsuse, filled with cafés and hiking.

なのはな（菜の花）—nanohana—rape blossoms (Brassica rapa) シバザクラ（芝桜）—shibazakura—moss phlox (Phlox subulata)

Tristan Scholze @tristan.scholze

I'm also known as Faer Out. I love learning about people and nature. I've traveled around the world and throughout Japan, and I hope to continue seeing and experiencing the wonder of this planet as long as I live.Based in Japan for nearly two decades, I'm a Japan Travel expert for Fukuoka and Sag...