Cherry blossoms are just beginning to bloom at Descanso Gardens

When and where Southern California's first cherry blossom opens must always remain a delightful mystery, but spying these pretty petals in profusion?

You'll want to head for a splendid spot that is synonymous with flowering fruit trees.

Descanso Gardens in La Cañada Flintridge is a favorite for flower fans, the regulars who know they'll find a plethora of trees covered in beautiful blooms.

Those blooms really begin to go the dazzling distance in late March and early April, when the much-sought-after "peak" arrives in the Japanese Garden.

But you don't have to wait for the start of springtime to find your cherry cheer: Blossoms are showing up now, as we head into the final weekend of February, though it is still early in the season.

There are other ethereal beauties to soak in around Descanso Gardens; camellias are still in lush and lovely bloom, and the very first tulip may soon show its colors, as often happens around late February.

Some 30,000 tulip bulbs were planted along the garden's Promenade in January, with a big (and we do mean big) bloom expected in March, probably around the middle or latter half of the month.

While we await the cherry blossoms to begin popping, we can also look to The Flower Fields in Carlsbad, an attraction that opens in just over a week.

The Jane S. Pinheiro Interpretative Center at the Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve will also open on March 1, though the poppy bloom, if there is to be a big bloom this year, will happen later in the spring.