Blossom Time In Manchester

[PeteMHW]

Caption: A picture of blossom and blue sky with the title if the post superimposed.

It could never be said that Manchester is the most beautiful city in the UK, with its post-industrial heritage and high brick buildings echoing the dark days and Satanic mills* of its past BUT there are some secret little open spaces and some larger better known ones that do beautify the area especially in April and early May when they burst into blossom in Spring time and beautify the environment significantly. They are mostly within walking distance (but a couple are a short tram ride away).  So if you find yourself on a sunny Spring day, with a couple of hours to spare, grab a takeaway drink, and maybe a bite to eat, and spend a bit of time chilling in one of these places:                   (*William Blake quote)

Let's start right in the centre at St Peter's Square - where adjacent to the Central Library and around the cenotaph, trees in bloom change the whole feeling of the bustling square, bringing refreshment and revitalisation after the Winter. Not only that, but the foxglove trees (named after the flower they look like) are superb at absorbing some of the city centre pollution.

Caption: St Peter's Square in Spring time, with the Central Library in the background, and beautiful foxglove trees bringing refreshment and renewal to the heart of the city.

Not a a ten minute walk away, and much quieter, is Parsonage Gardens - previously much bigger, and providing food for the students of the collegiate church (now the cathedral) this area has been surrounded by buildings now, and set to lawn - providing a much needed oasis of calm in the middle of the Spinningfields Business area. In spring time the whole area is alive with beautiful cherry and magnolia trees.

Caption: Parsonage Gardens in the early part of the day, alive with the blossom of cherry and magnolia trees.

And again, not very far away, easily walkable and in Manchester's Medieval Quarter is the magnificent cathedral surrounded by gardens which when in full springtime bloom have an almost ethereal beauty.  It's wonderful to lie on the grass in stillness under the blossom, and watch the bustle of other people go by.

Caption: Manchester Cathedral in the background, golden in the Spring sunshine and surrounded by beautiful blossom trees.

There are many other beautiful locations in and around the city centre - unfortunately I haven't got pictures of them - so my task this Spring is to edit and add to this post.  This year's destinations Sackville Gardens,  Rochdale Canal Basin and Locks 87 and 89, and the newly opened Mayfield Park.

If any Local Guides local to Manchester would like to contribute photos of blossom in the area, or friends from around the world want to contribute photos of their own favourite blossom spots, it'd be great to hear from you in the comments below.

[Annaelisa]

@PeteMHW 

Blühende Pflanzen sind immer eine Wohltat und die gezeigten Bilder sind ein schöner Anfang 

[PaulPavlinovich]

Mate I find old historic industrial heritage much more beautiful than flowers, admittedly I'm weird but am looking forward to some of those aspects of Manchester when I visit @PeteMHW 

Paul

[AdrianLunsong]

Nice post @PeteMHW !! Oh how I miss Manchester!!! A few more weeks and I'll be back!!

Here are some shots that I've taken through the years showing spring time!! Caption: View at Sackville Gardens (April 2021) with the cherry blossoms in full bloom.

Caption: View at Rochdale Canal Lock 92 (April 2020) where next to the canal is a beautiful cherry blossom tree.

Caption: View at St Peter's Square (April 2017) where the trees planted there (I'm not sure what they are) have a very distinct bloom at spring time.

Caption: View at the Manchester Cathedral gardens (May 2016), again with the cherry blossoms adding some lovely vibrant pink hues to frame an already beautiful building

 @deadmanjones @ZoeOooe @TimBull @Johnbhewitt @Castlefield_David Do you folks have photos you can add? Surrounding areas outside the city limits are welcomed as well! 😊

[Annaelisa]

@AdrianLunsong 

Ich meine bei den Bäumen auf die Petersplatz könnte es sich um Kastanien handeln 

[AdrianLunsong]

@Annaelisa I did a quick search online and it looks like they are called Princess Tree (also known as Paulownias, Empress, or Foxglove tree). They seem to be native to central and western China 😊

[Annaelisa]

@AdrianLunsong diese Namen kenne ich nicht 👍

[PeteMHW]

Ha @PaulPavlinovich - we have our fair share of those around Manchester too!

[PeteMHW]

Thanks for the great photos to add to the feel of this post @AdrianLunsong.  You're right about the name of the tree in St Peter's Square - as I identified in my text and caption, they're known as Foxglove trees in the UK, but it's interesting to know their names elsewhere.  They are apparently exceptionally good at reducing the level of pollution in inner city spaces - so well done The Foxglove tree!

[deadmanjones]

Here's me and @ZoeOooe in our mini outside The Blossoms pub in Greater Manchester photographed by the Google Street View car, does that count @AdrianLunsong ?

Link to Google Street view

This was five years ago. I got very excited when I saw the Google car in front of us.

I feel sure this particular pub will meet all @PaulPavlinovich 's post industrial needs too. Plenty of Greater Manchester music connections too.