Okay, there really is more going on here than just bulbs! My white lilac is blooming, too. (actually almost done as of yesterday)......and the mason bees are filling their nesting tubes... ...'Candy Stripe' creeping phlox blooming and creeping (but not creep-y)...
...'Blue Mouse Ears' hosta representing the name well. Several of my hostas are really slow to emerge this year, in fact 'Aphrodite' is barely above ground! I would have thought all the snow last winter was good insulation, so maybe I have an underground pest or something.
Gathered a nice bouquet for the house...

....and even fading out, "purple haze" still looks great! (I just had to mention it :) ...
...and not to be undone, 'Samabor' geranium is contributing some purple to the area...
...between the blooms and the foliage, I'd say this is my favorite geranium!

I love this variegated solomon's seal my mom gave me! It's really multiplying, too...
....and this 'White Feather' hosta that I got last year looks like a ghost as it emerges...very cool.

My shooting star is blooming better than ever this year... ...I think they look like artsy street lamps. I even found babies growing near the mother plant-yay!
'Little Plum' bitterroot blooming nicely, and the flowers are usually pink like this...


...but look at this orange one! I never saw one like this on any of these plants last year...strange.

This flowering almond bush has pretty blooms but an odd feature I never noticed before... ...the flowers appear to be sticking out their green tongues! Something to do with pollination, I'm sure. (Yea, I forgot a lot of botany from high school...obviously :)
Spurge coming along nicely...

....the pasque flower has seed heads that are as pretty as the flowers, IMO.... ....very cool how the raindrops stick to them.
This clematis is 'Markham's Pink', and the only sucessful grower I have besides 'My Angel' (no idea why)...

...I like the shape of the flowers...
...even un-opened!

This variegated lilac is one of my favorite purchases from last year!
This is an interesting annual, I'm pretty sure it's "New Guinea impatiens". I'd never bought it before, so I hope it enjoys my accomodations.

This wildflower/hosta bed is coming along nicely...I like how long the trillium last. (They have faded somewhat since this was taken about a week ago.)
Even these newcomers are growing well...nice jump from "plant plugs" for the meadow rue. These epimedium were bought just last year from Busse Gardens, and I'm super happy with them! This is 'Rubrum'...
...and he looks nice next to this lemon trillium........this one is 'Sulphureum', and quite a cutie as well... ...but the white one (grandiflorum) has these long spurs, like a spider! Very nice.
Now this annual may work into perennial status....
...this is the tag, "Variegated Lysimachia"....

...."hardy to zone 6"? Hmmm.....
....way too pretty for just one season! Maybe if I put it by the house where it can get heat from the foundation, and if I mulch good, etc. Hey, if anybody can squeeze a perennial performance out of an annual, I can!
Right Bentley? Hey! What was that wink for?!

Okay, maybe sometimes I get lucky! :)

My Indiana home....well, first we have to pass this place to get there. I sure don't mind though, I like Chicago just fine!Anyhow, when we get there, the first thing I notice is how humongous the trees at my mom's are! (Exactly how long have I been gone?!) Matt's inspecting his old swingset...looks like something's amiss...or this is an attempt to create a "Rambo-style" jungle scene.......uh, yea. To take a swing on that, you'll need a cup! These are persimmon trees suckering like there's no tomorrow......and her iris looks happy too.This is looking toward the back of the property. I used to love this time of night, when the sky is so light but the land is dark. It looks really cool from a two-seater airplane! (Thanks D.L.! ;-)These ostrich ferns seem to be trying to prop the old shed up. Mom has clay soil which holds a lot of water...fern paradise!Storm front whizzing past to reek havoc elsewhere...thanks!This rose standard is huge! (Like 7 feet tall.)


Nice roses, too!
Her "snowball bush" is blooming like crazy. I always loved this thing as a kid, you can play with the bloom clusters like softballs, snowballs, whatever.

Like I said, fern heaven......mom kept saying that she needs to "clean this up", but I think it looks terrific! All the hostas and sweet woodruff and bishop's weed, blending together in drifts...
...after all, this 'Sum and Subtance' can hold its' own... ...I mean, what's not to like?
I thought these were tall garden phlox, though it's too early for them to be blooming, even in Indiana. Mom says they're some kind of wildflower...

...but they look like tall garden phlox, and smell like them too!

This peony is huge, beautiful, and sweet-smelling.....
....but this woodchuck hole-not!
The virginia bluebells are unmistakeable though...very nice!
Exhausting drive, but well worth it!

Last annual purchase...because I still have empty containers! :) This pink/white verbena is new to me...it's a trailing variety, too. So what goes good with this? Another one in solid pink, of course! (I wonder what Kim would say about this?;-)
Also new to me: variegated blooms on slavia! Nice twist on an old favorite...

....so I got some of both.
They had these stocks listed as perennial, so I got a 4-pack. I think stocks are usually listed as "half-hardy annual", but we'll see. I love the double blooms, and they smell great! Okay, that should finally be enough annuals for this year...I think...unless I fall victim to a sale of some sort! ;-)

The show goes on...which is why I like bulbs so much! The blooms really last, which tides me over until my perennials finally wake up. I like the color of this one... ...and these are not only blooming great, but multiplying every year. This is 'Carnival de Nice' , emphasis on nice!
I only planted one bulb per hole originally, and look at them go!
Very pretty!
Even with all the overgrown grass, tulips just pop with color and draw the eyes toward them...
...I can't wait to see the bloom on this trout lily . I'd never planted these before, but last fall I got three. They all came up, and I really dig the spotted foliage.

This yellow group was planted a few years ago, and bloom improves every spring.
This was my first year with these muscari muscarimi , but I will absolutely plant more! The scent is just divine, and very strong (especially for such a tiny flower). The foliage is a powdery blue, and I think the flowers are very cool even though they aren't that colorful.
These are species tulips of some kind (planted before I kept track), and they multiply every year too. They have been here about 6 years so far... (Update:I did a search and found these online at Brent and Becky's Bulbs , and they're called 'Little Beauty')...
...love the colors!
All these pictures were taken last week, but still represent the way the blooms look in my gardens. Spring bulbs last a long time up here, especially in cool weather (which we've had plenty of). I usually still have tulip blooms in late June...definately worth the investment for me!