My favorite tree in San Francisco, as regular readers know, is the yellow-blooming New Zealand Christmas tree (Metrosideros Excelsa ‘Aurea’) at 1221 Stanyan Street. The tree is at peak bloom right now, and it’s an amazing sight.

This tree is remarkable for lots of reasons, including its association with celebrated plantsman Victor Reiter and the Reiter family, and its source as a natural mutation of the species in New Zealand in the 1940s, all of which I’ve covered before (click here for more info). But it’s also just a great specimen - lovingly cared for over the years, and I don’t think there is any other New Zealand Christmas tree that blooms this profusely.

Go see it soon!