Spring is Here!! Well Maybe Not.

Spring has been here in bits and pieces so far this year. Last weekend we had temperatures in the mid to upper 50's. I checked the buds on most of the flowering trees and even saw a few buds opening on the Star Magnolia (magnolia stellata). Mid week we had a low of 19 degrees. Most of those buds are now a dirty brown. It has been a chilly rainy weekend so I spent my time looking at some older pictures and realized that this time last year we had lots of bloom.

 

Prunus subhirtella



The weeping cherry was in full bloom.

 

 

 

There were tulips blooming. They must be planted close to the house to keep the deer from eating them, so they are always special when I get to see them bloom.

 

 

These were the blooms I could see from my kitchen window last year. There are only a few green leaves up this year.

 

These photos were taken on March 22 of last year. Even though there is part of me wishing this is what I was seeing outside today I know that it is probably better to wait a while longer because I also remember the late freeze we had in April of last year that ruined most of the first rose flush and so many other plants that were rushing to bloom because of an extra early spring.

 

I will be content to wait for the weather to warm just a little more, and enjoy the pictures that I took last year to remind me of what lays in store. Spring just has to be around the corner now!

 

 



Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day March 2013

The Ice Follies daffodils are beginning to bloom and there are still lots of buds to open....

 

 



 

More of the older unknown daffodils are still blooming too.

 

Ivory Prince

 

 

The 'Ivory Prince' hellebore is beginning to bloom. I've read that the old leaf stalks should be cut down so that the blooms are more visible. I didn't have to do that....something did it for me. So far they haven't come back for the blooms. We know there are herds of deer on our property, but there are also lots of rabbits, and other wild critters. There are several other hellebores in the garden but the others did not fare as well from being eaten back.

 

 

 

I am probably too anxious for more blooms since it is still just the middle of March, but I am still searching for signs of buds on any warm day. Until there are more I do have a few moth orchids to enjoy inside.

 

 

Hoping your enjoying your gardens and thank you to Carol at May Dreams Gardens for hosting the bloom day each month. There are so many beautiful gardens to see.

 

Sue Ellen

Still Blooming after all these years

 

 

When we moved into our home 40 years ago this past month, it wasn't long before these bright flowers greeted us. They are still the first of the daffodils to bloom here. It is so good to see them because for me they are the herald of spring.

 

It was warm enough yesterday and today to work outside for part of the afternoon. I have started to clean up a few of the perennial beds and I am delighted that there are small signs of plants waking up and letting me know that they have survived another winter.

 

The beds are not that great looking yet, still too much of last years stalks waiting on the gardener to get them cleared away. It doesn't take many warm hours for me to be anxious to spend as much time as possible in the garden. I am just thankful for another season to enjoy the beauty that nature has in store.

Waiting for Spring

I am anxious to get back in the garden, eager for there to be a few days in March that will be warm enough to venture out. There are signs that spring  will soon be here.

 

This photo was taken last year on Feb 27 but looking out my kitchen window this is pretty much what I see today. In a bed on the western side of the house there are the old time March lilies blooming. These are plants that were here when we moved in 40 years ago.

 

I have all the symptoms of a gardener itching to get back to playing in the dirt. I am spending my weekends pouring over plant catalogs and websites making lists of plants I would like to try, staring out the window and making mental notes of plants that I want to move and noting beds that need to be cleaned up before new growth appears.

 

Next weekend promises to be a pretty one. Hope Mother Nature hasn't fooled the forecasters. If possible I hope to be very busy and happily tired by this time next week.