I chose Prunus mume for exactly this reason: it flowers on bare wood in—yes—January.
It’s a long way to spring, even here in Southern California, but this remarkable small tree makes us feel like spring is just around the corner.
Prized for its flowering branches in Japan, it’s often used there for ikebana, the Japanese art of floral arrangement. One of these days I’ll take a class in ikebana and enjoy these lovely branches indoors as well as outside.
