Tuesday, May 06, 2008

The greening...at long last, my green is returning. Fully a month behind last year, but I'll take it! It's just so nice to see the green blush on the grass...
....and the yellow on the mini-daffs (sorry, i'm not sure which one this is, it was planted before I kept track).... ....see how mini? Cute as a bugs' ear, and nearly the same size!


My pink hyacinth looks smaller than last year....*sigh*...my hyacinths never look as full and pretty as the catalog shows. I feed them every year, too...I dunno, but I'm not planning to spend for more of these. Stick to what works, I say. This hepatica americana works well every year, and it is one of my very favorite wildflowers! It spreads itself around, too....
...even as the "mother clump" gets bigger. Such pretty little flowers!
Trillium just now awakening...
....these mini-irises just planted last fall are nice but tiny...
....and along with the chionodoxa (planted at the same time) they all make a nice smattering of blue. The only improvement I'll make this fall- plant more! Ah, and here we have the lovely pasque flower, anemone patens. I enjoy this flower for a couple reasons: one, because it's beautiful.....
...and the other is for this fuzzy appearance to the foliage, which is known as pubescence: according the The American Heritage Dictionary...

SYLLABICATION:
pu·bes·cence
PRONUNCIATION:
py-bsns
NOUN:
1. The state of being pubescent. 2. The attainment or onset of puberty. 3. A covering of soft down or short hairs, as on certain plants and insects.
My incredibly juvenile sense of humor leads me to believe that there simply aren't enough excuses to use the word pubescence, so here's another one: the pubescent leaves of this mountain ash are beginning to unfurl....heh...okay, I'm done. ;-D
Clematis 'My Angel' coming back to life. This re-seeds nicely around the mother plant, but transplanting seedlings has been challenging. I'm guessing seed-starting would be easier, and she produces a ton!
Red leaves on a spirea are a nice spot of color right now...

....and here's a nicer spot of color on this daffodil! I'm not sure which cultivar, but I like the citrusy-looking cup! One foxtail lily just planted last fall is popping up, but no sign of the other two. Considering our late thaw, I'm not too worried yet.

This is a first! This poor bush is Abeliophyllum distichum or white forsythia , and I'm very impressed that it's blooming! I bought it in 2001, kept it in a pot for a couple of years, then sited it near my porch on the north side of the house, when it prefers sun. Not only that, but look how small it is! Poor thing looks like a bonsai specimen or something. I like how the flowers start out closed and drupy-looking.......then open up like little stars. I checked for fragrance but detected none, but hey, you can't have everything. Then to throw a wrench in things, we had three mornings like this last week! Luckily, the damage and suffering is minimal...
...this newcomer hosta, 'Olive Baily Langdon' suffered the most. These plants are tough though, so I feel confident she'll bounce back okay...

...most of the new hostas just lost a leaf like this one...
...and this newly purchased Louisiana iris didn't seem to notice the cold snap at all.
Got some growth on my bog rosemary ...cool! I'd always wanted one of these, and I plan a regular "bog garden" in this general area anyway. I was slightly concerned that siting this right by the downspot would cause too much ice buildup around the plant or something, but fortunately my concern was unwarrented. (Heh, I'm full of crap kinda regularly :)
It even looks like it's contemplating a bloom.
Thyme 'Minus' overwinters in the base of this old stump just fine every year...

...surprises me a bit since it's pretty shallow (but clearly good enough).
Arum dracunculus growing well, and I'm really looking forward to the bloom! But poor musa basjoo looks like a goner. Oh well, I'll give it plenty of time, just in case.
I have managed to get one bouquet of flowers for the house so far........however this is exciting as well as frustrating: my largest bulb planting from last fall, "purple haze" is taking its' sweet time blooming! The upshot is that it appears they will all bloom in unison, just like I planned... ....come on dude, open your mouth already! Hooray for spring!!

17 comments:

Unknown said...

OH CRAP. I forgot to winter sow the 'My Angel' seeds. You think I can throw them in the freezer for a couple of weeks and get something to germinate after that?

Your little daffs are adorable, but I'm really drooling over that pasqueflower. I keep meaning to plant myself some, but I always forget!

lisa said...

Yea, I'd try the freezer thing, and maybe even try spring planting without a freeze. (Heck, and fall plant, too...you know how I like the "multi-disciplinary approach! :) Y'know, I lusted for pasque flower for several years, even killing a puny mailorder specimen. But finally I found a big one locally, and it's awesome. Now I want red and white as well! :)

Unknown said...

I would totally get the red. That's the one I usually drool over, although the purple is a pretty shade, too.

That sounds like a good idea. And you did send me enough seeds that I shouldn't have a problem with your "multi-disciplinary approach!" lol.

troutbirder said...

Fun blog & beutiful spring flowers. I especially liked the close up hepatica, and of course, a pasque flower is very special.

Monica the Garden Faerie said...

Ooh, I'm having hepatica envy--what a great patch! Mine should bloom any day now... Also love the pasque flowers--those are something I always mean to get and someone never have!
~ Monica

Unknown said...

Looks like your plants did well for the cold snap. I had just planted a few of mine, but they were so small they weren't affected. I'm still waiting for my plants to bloom too. I can't wait to see them in all of their glory!

lisa said...

Kim-That red pasque flower IS stunning, and of course combined with the purple and the white it's nearly patriotic! (Plus I HAVE to have the set, you know how it is! ;-) Let me know how the germination goes with 'My Angel', because she'll produce a bumper crop of seeds this fall again if you need more.

Troutbirder-Thank you! Your blog is cool as well, I like the bird pics and your beautiful German Shepherd side-kick! :)

Monica-Thank you! I really enjoy the pasque flower now that I have one, and the clump keeps getting bigger. :)

Cinj-Isn't this just the slowest spring EVER? Glad to hear you didn't have too much damage. We got another light frost last night....I am soooo over it! :(

meemsnyc said...

What pretty flowers! Those sure are small daffodils.

lisa said...

Thank you! Aren't the tiny ones cute? I'm pretty sure there are even smaller ones available.

Rurality said...

I'm glad to see you are FINALLY getting some spring! :)

(Just when it's getting almost too grown up to go out in the woods here!)

Rurality said...

I'm glad to see you are FINALLY getting some spring! :)

(Just when it's getting almost too grown up to go out in the woods here!)

lisa said...

Yea, last year by now I was spraying myself for mosquitos (and deer flies) religiously. That's the one upshot of the cooler temps-few biting bugs! But i'll take what I can get, y'know? ;-)

chuck b. said...

Are the mini-daffs fragrant? I bet they are. The Hepatica = beautiful wow. Your woodland-by-the-river is full of treasures.

Anonymous said...

Yay! Green stuff and pretty flowers!! Woo-hoo! It's finally spring at Millertime! :)

lisa said...

Chuck-They smell nice, but not as strong as the big ones. My little woodland is getting more full, that's for sure!

Vonne-Yay is is right!! :)

Phelan said...

Everything is so pretty. I cann't seem to keep myself in flowers, vegtables yes, flowers no.

lisa said...

Thank you Phelan! It seems we all want what we can't have, cuz' I'd like to be able to grow veggies, but with all the deer and rabbits I'd need a huge fence. Ah well, I can enjoy yours vicariously. :)