Star Magnolia

Photo Stars of the Day

Magnolia stellata

The above photos of the white star magnolia shrub were taken today at noon, in the church garden where I volunteer. Saturday I had planted the pansies. They were smallish plants from a flat and I hope they fill in fast, before the inevitable hot summer weather necessitates their removal and replacement with petunias. The winter this year was such that the pansies I had planted last fall did not come back with early spring vigor. They were alive--and I transplanted them to a spot behind the fountain.

Kaufmanniana Heart's Delight Tulip

My Photos of the Day

A Month of Spring and Whaddya Get?

One month after the start of spring and what does Michigan weather bring?

April 18 Spring Snow

I brought the pot of pansies back into the sun room. Even though the temperature at the time of this photo was 34 degrees, they looked miserable. They were from the greenhouse just a few days ago and had not yet been "hardened off" to April temperatures. Pansies are cold tolerant but that doesn't mean their little pansy faces are actually happy in this kind of weather.

I have a spring surprise as well--inside. An old veteran cactus that has been ugly and doing nothing by the window, behind the loveseat, in the sun room, after a season of neglect, with a little encouragement, is blooming like crazy!

April 18 snow outside--blooming on the inside

April (Snow) Showers Bring (Dis-) May (-ed) Flowers--Before and After in my Yard

Kaufmanniana 'Heart's Delight' Tulips - April 17

Kaufmanniana - April 18

Hyacinth - April 17

Hyacinth - April 18

Primrose - April 17

Primrose - April 18

Photo of the Day - Tete-a-Tete Daffodil

This little early bloomer is vertically challenged--perfect for rock gardens or for forcing in pots for indoor use. It naturalizes and is so eager to bloom it will push through the snow for an early tease of spring color.

Daffodils in the Pachysandra

More Spring Blooms Today

Lenten Rose

 Puschkinia

Daffodils Blooming

Sunday it was sunny and low 80's and everything green and sleeping leaped into growth. The daffodils seemed to literally burst into bloom. Our spring season has been a little slow this year and the abrupt heat caught me a little off guard--everyone is loathe to turn the air-conditioning on in April here in Michigan. I stayed outside where I could catch a little breeze, but it was HOT.

My husband was in Chicago where it was even hotter--I think a high of 85! He viewed the home his elderly parents are moving into soon and it was insufferably hot and stuffy--systems are unprepared to switch over just yet. Daughter Marissa said she finally thawed out and experienced happiness in a tank top for the first time in many months.

Weather changes are always a mixed blessing it seems. Skiers pray for snow. Gardeners pray for rain. Golfers pray for no rain.  Early spring heat can make buds and blooms pop too soon, only to get nipped by frost-- if the deer and bunnies haven't already had them for lunch. Daffodils don't taste good and are tolerant of frost--and they are happily blooming!

Catkins Turn Yellow!

One week in the house and the catkins are blooming yellow

Catkins from a Garden Raffle - Winning Again

Salix discolor 'Rosea'

You wonder, what is a catkin? It is a spicate inflorescence, or in common language, a furry flower cluster. You say, what is an inflorescence? It is a cluster of flowers or a budding and unfolding of blossoms. As in the closeup above, the furry catkins are often silver, sometimes tinged pink, and turn yellow as they open up. The word catkin comes to us from the Dutch katje, meaning kitten, because of the resemblance to a cat's tail. Catkins can be flower clusters from other than a willow, but a salix is a willow. Here is another picture of the catkins, showing the length of the stems:

If you haven't figured out by now what I'm talking about, I am avoiding the p word, especially in combination with pink (Rosea) or the French variety, Salix gracilistyla to avoid any possible google search result that might not be for the common fuzzy stems that we cut and enjoy in the early spring!

Last night I went to a garden series lecture which included the raffle of shovels, fertilizer, books and plants. Two years ago an attendee won the aforementioned "willow" shrub. This year she brought back some stems to share and I was the lucky winner! I helped hold the door for her as she arrived and wondered what she was doing with the long stems (tied together with pink ribbon) that were almost as tall as she was. Now I, too, will pay it forward by attempting to root the stems for planting in the gardens of my friends that didn't win a prize.

I have that large teak vase from Indonesia and had been thinking I should put some tall forsythia or "willow" stems in it, so this was fortuitous for me. Every year I win this garden raffle. Next time I will leave my name out of the basket--I am embarrassed that I always win. Last fall I won a shrub and couldn't decide where to put it, so I over-wintered it in my sun room and will plant it in May:

Here is an after-dark unedited flash photo of the cute catkins. Somehow the flash reveals the pinkness which is not that evident to the naked eye. The photo at the top of the post was taken against a black sheet, raised high by my husband, so I'm sharing some credit with my assistant, whose arms quickly tired, held above his head. I feel like the photos are false, but this is how they turned out with flash and I rather like them.

Purple Crocus, Red Leaves & Yellow Stems

Quite a few crocuses are now open at Aunt V's. Charlie, with unbounded young dog energy, occasionally knocks a few blooms off.

Bergenia Cordifolia

I love the red emerging leaves and stems. The mertensia (Virginia bluebells) and the dicentra spectabilis (bleeding heart) are also springing up with fresh reddish stems that will soon turn green and bloom in blue and pink, respectively--before April showers bring May flowers.

Mertensia

Yellowed Daffodil stems

These are yellow daffodils--but they are not yet blooming today. This clump was smothered under leaves. With more than a week in daylight, including some very sunny days, they have not regained their green color. A lesson learned--clean up daff patch in the late fall or before spring, unless you like this bit of faux color in your garden.

I should have made this my April Fool's joke and just labeled them as first daffodils to bloom!!