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Ask Dave Epstein: When will lilacs bloom in Boston?

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2 years ago

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Ask Dave Epstein: When will lilacs bloom in Boston?


Meteorologist Dave Epstein is our go-to person for pressing weather questions on everything from winter blizzards to summer droughts. He’s also a horticulturist, meaning he’s an expert in anything that grows leaves and flowers. GBH’s Morning Edition asked our audience for weather and gardening questions, and Epstein graciously answered them on the air.

Have a gardening or weather question for meteorologist Dave Epstein? Tweet him @GrowingWisdom, email us at thewakeup@wgbh.org, or text 617-300-2008.

What flowers are blooming around Boston right now?

Flower lovers can chart the progression of spring with the blooms they see lining gardens, parks and arboretums, Epstein said.

Early April brings some bright yellow daffodils. As the month goes on, there are later daffodils and jonquils.

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As we ring in May, Epstein said to keep an eye out for tulips.

“And there’s still some flowering trees like dogwoods are starting to come on at this point, which is really nice,” he said.

After that, he said, look for lilacs, azaleas and rhododendrons in bloom.

His tip: Most people will look for lilacs on Mother’s Day weekend, which this year lands on May 12. It’s typically a busy day at the Arnold Arboretum in Boston, the Frederick Law Olmsted park that celebrates the fragrant blooms with an annual Lilac Sunday, coinciding with Mother’s Day.

“But actually the week before, which is next weekend, I tend to really like because a lot of them will be open by then,” Epstein said.

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What should go in the garden in early May?

Epstein is preparing onion plants and leeks, he said. He also suggested potatoes.

But gardeners looking at warmer-weather crops, like tomatoes, peppers and basil, should hold off for now, he said.

“I would hold off on tomatoes for another 7 to 14 days,” he said. “No, there’s no frost, but the cool wet pattern kind of promotes disease and the plants don’t really get established. So you really want to wait to put those warm weather crops and tomatoes, peppers, basil, especially until mid to late May.”

Those who wait could be rewarded with a speeder crop, he said.

“If you did some research and planted stuff May 1st and planted stuff May 21st, the May 21st stuff would catch up, if not surpass the earlier stuff because the earlier stuff just lingers,” Epstein said. “So don’t rush it.”

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Boston, MA

Boston Police Department mourns death of active-duty officer of 30+ years

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3 hours ago

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February 3, 2026

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Boston Police Department mourns death of active-duty officer of 30+ years


A Boston police officer with more than three decades on the job died Friday following an extended sick leave, the Boston Police Department announced.

The police department is mourning Officer Scott J. MacIsaac, the department said in a press release announcing his death. The department did not specify MacIsaac’s age or cause of death.

MacIsaac joined the department on June 28, 1995, the department said. Prior to taking extended sick leave, he most recently spent six years working in District E-5 — West Roxbury and Roslindale.

MacIsaac also served in districts B-2 — Roxbury, A-7 — East Boston, B-3 — Dorchester and Mattapan and C-6 — South Boston during his tenure at the Boston Police Department, the department said.

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MacIsaac received many “commendations and accolades” over the years, including recognition for robbery, car break-in and assault arrests in South Boston, the department said. One comment from his supervisor characterized MacIsaac as one of their best officers, while another from a district captain commended his efforts during the Boston Marathon bombings in April 2013.

MacIsaac has also been recognized for saving lives, such as during an incident in which he helped stop a person from jumping off a bridge, the department said. During another critical incident, he revived a person through CPR, and they survived.

Commendations from outside the police department include thank you letters from the parents of a youth he counseled, an elected official for MacIsaac’s efforts to improve public safety in East Boston and an assistant district attorney for the officer’s help in prosecuting a suspect who stole a car and tried to run MacIsaac down.

“Clearly, Officer MacIsaac made a great impact in the communities he served,” the release reads. “Officer MacIsaac was highly regarded by those he worked with, his supervisors and all who knew him, both within the Department and by those we serve.”

The department did not provide information about funeral arrangements. No further information about MacIsaac’s death has been released.

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Boston, MA

Photos from the 2026 Beanpot semifinal between Boston University and Northeastern on February 2, 2026 at TD Garden in Boston, Mass.

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15 hours ago

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February 3, 2026

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Photos from the 2026 Beanpot semifinal between Boston University and Northeastern on February 2, 2026 at TD Garden in Boston, Mass.




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Boston, MA

Major carsharing service shutting Boston office and laying off dozens of staff

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1 day ago

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February 2, 2026

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Major carsharing service shutting Boston office and laying off dozens of staff


The car-sharing company Zipcar will close its Boston headquarters, ending local operations in the place where it was founded.

Its owner, the car rental company Avis Budget Group, said it is “consolidating Zipcar’s headquarters” into its global home base in Northern New Jersey “as part of a broader effort to enhance Zipcar’s long-term operational effectiveness.”

“As a result, Zipcar will no longer maintain a separate corporate office in Boston,” a spokesperson for Avis Budget Group said Monday.

The company plans to lay off 65 employees in Boston by April, according to a notice it filed with Massachusetts state officials last week.

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Zipcar was founded in Cambridge in 1999 and debuted there and in Boston the next year. The company expanded in the years that followed and by 2009 was the world’s largest car-sharing service, according to NBC News. Avis bought Zipcar in 2013.

“Zipcar was founded in Boston and the city has been an important part of its history since then,” the company spokesperson said. “This consolidation reinforces Zipcar’s foundation and positions the business to continue serving members reliably well into the future.”

The move will not affect service for Zipcar’s members, the spokesperson added.

In addition to the 65 Boston-based employees, the company will lay off approximately 61 remote workers elsewhere in the country, the Boston Business Journal reported.

Zipcar’s regional field and fleet operations teams will remain in Boston and other cities after the headquarters closes “to support members and day-to-day service without interruption,” the Avis spokesperson said.

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Brian Shortsleeve, a Republican candidate for governor, said Zipcar’s move was the result of Massachusetts’ taxes and regulations on business.

“Massachusetts is becoming a place where even homegrown success stories can’t afford to stay,” he wrote in a post on X.

The announcement came the same week that Panera Bread said it would lay off 92 employees at its bakery in Franklin and that life sciences company Thermo Fisher Scientific said it would lay off 103 employees and close a facility, also in Franklin.

The Campbell’s Company also said Thursday it would close the Hyannis manufacturing plant of the beloved Cape Cod potato chip brand. The company will lay off 49 people, it said.

“These are not isolated decisions. They are rational business responses to a state that has become increasingly expensive, unpredictable, and hostile to employers,” said Paul Diego Craney, executive director of the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance, a conservative business organization. “High taxes, crushing energy costs, and rigid Net Zero climate mandates are making it harder every day for companies to justify staying in Massachusetts.”

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