Monday, February 25, 2013

When a Thing is Wick...

...it has a life about it. 


The garden is at that point where signs of the approaching end of winter are everywhere.


 Signs like chives and hyacinthoides hispanica (spanish bluebells) growing at an almost visible rate, fruit tree flower buds showing color as they swell, rose leaves bursting out along the canes of the climbers. 


Life!

That is all one can think when walking through the garden and seeing new growth where just days before there looked to be nothing. New growth barely emerging from the recently dormant echinacea, 


tender leaves at the base of the agastache, 


and wisteria buds all point to the life that has the will to grow and grow.


It's waiting for the right time, and that time is almost here!

And in case you are wondering what that talk of 'wick' is all about ...



Friday, February 15, 2013

Garden Blogger Bloom Day February 2013

Vibernum tinus Spring Bouquet

The nights are still a bit colder than normal but I am not constantly concerned that it will freeze and, in any case, I have used up my quota of worrying and unless something unusual happens I am not trekking out to the fountain with hot water at midnight again until the Christmas lights are back up. Yes, I'm a weather wimp and have only so much patience with extremes.

Loropetalum chinense Sizzling Pink
  The sight of early blooms has me excited and has also gotten me going on getting the garden cleaned up. I am trying to control myself and hold off on pruning back the freeze damage on the citrus but ferns, salvias, lavenders, and a crassula ovata or two that were too big to move under the patio cover have all been cleaned up a bit. I will have to rethink that judgement about the crassulas next fall. I am a bit heartsick about the damage to those.

Narcissus Avalanche
 Narcissus Avalanche has begun to bloom in the front and back garden, the first of several narcissus varieties that will be appearing. Narcissus Erlicheer is just beginning to open. I have Elizabeth at Gardening While Intoxicated to thank for these. She spoke so highly of them some years ago that I started adding them and have had wonderful early blooms ever since. They last for days if not weeks and brighten up the garden wonderfully.

Narcissus Erlicheer


Argyranthemum
Here and there are argyranthemum, dianthus, iberis, and allysum also adding, for the most part, yellow and white exclamation points to the edges of the borders.

Fava Broad Windsor
The favas are a bit short this year. Perhaps they will continue to grow but they are beginning to bloom and I think the blooms are almost reason enough to grow them. I do so love favas and pasta though so even if the blooms weren't lovely they would still have a place in the winter vegetable garden.



Tulbaghia fragrans
 Also just beginning to bloom is the tulbaghia fragrans, a sweeter smelling, earlier blooming relative of society garlic. This year, with our stretch of freezes, the plants themselves look a bit bedraggled but the blooms are just as pretty as always.

Leucojum aestivum
Leucojum aestivum, summer snowflake, is beginning to bloom in the back garden. They are my compensation for not being able to grow snowdrops!

Garden Blogger Bloom Day was the idea of Carol at May Dreams Gardens seven years ago. Hop on over there to see what's blooming today all around the world!