There are so many trees in New York that have already begun to bloom — from the conspicuously elegant petals of the magnolia to the modest green florets of the maple. Among the most striking are the trees in the rose family, their flowers always featuring five petals and often found in shades of pink and white. The family includes stone fruit trees, like peaches, plums and almonds, as well as apple trees.

The song in this video is a traditional melody from Japan. The translation I found refers to the “sweet plum blossom” tree, a species found throughout East Asia. But because of those common family traits, you can adapt the song to sing about whichever rose family tree you happen to encounter on a walk. Whether it’s a white and very pink cherry blossom or, in this case, a white and slightly pink apple.

Song:

“Apple Blossom”
Adapted from a traditional Japanese song

Apple blossom pink and white
Did you open in the night?
Yesterday your tree was bare,
Now it’s covered everywhere.
One and two and three and four
I can’t count how many more.