Photo of the Day - Iris with Japanese Maple

Today in the church garden

Photo of the Day - Austrian Pine

Austrian Pine in my front yard

Theme Park Gardens

Mother's Day this year found me at Epcot in Orlando with two of my three daughters. It was the final days of the annual Epcot Flower and Garden Show.

Upon entering the park all who were perceived to be a Mom (I was flanked by two 30 somethings--pretty obvious, I guess) received a white carnation. It was a wonderful day of beauty (and Beauty and the Beast), simulated rides, topiaried characters, and wonderful food--topped off with a gourmet meal at Monsieur Paul in France.

There were flowers and topiaries all over the park, but a highlight was an extra tour, Behind the Seeds. The plants grown in what looked like sand were indoor and bug free. With ideal watering and fertilizing conditions, they were perfectly productive--a little Disney magic in this park as well!

Enjoy the photos and plan to attend next year if you love growing things, theme parks and are willing to spend a few dollars. Or if you have daughters and it's Mother's Day! Credit goes to a certain daughter's phone for a few of these photos.

"Cinderella" pumpkin needs a hammock

zucchini

winter melon

Our tour guide offered us some crisp cucumber slices.

Perfect Bananas!

Perfect pansies! Oops, violas

Jack Fruit

Flower Show entry

Lion King topiary

Wednesday Wildflower Walk in the Woods

A patch of trillium

ramps

The usual garden club April wildflower walk was postponed  because April was indeed a month of showers. On Monday I had  lunch on an outdoor deck, enjoying some celery and parsnip soup with a garnish of ramp pistou--that was a new one! On Wednesday the temperature approached the mid-eighties and the wildflowers were (almost literally) popping out from the forest floor. The trillium were in full glory, and I saw ramps growing wild.

celery and parsnip soup with ramp pistou

After  lunch we checked out the still over-flowing river:

On the Wednesday walk in the woods I learned a few new wildflower names, but can't remember them all. I will have to look them up. But here are some of the lovelies I have names for:

trout lily

Bloodroot

Dutchman's Breeches

                                                                                     

Mayapples

Photo of the Day - Hedge of Forsythia

A Good Year for Daffodils

A section of the hosta garden at Aunt V

The daffodils were out today in full glory. I think winter's back has finally been broken. One sunny daffodil brings cheer but a whole patch of them is pure joy.

Another view of this large hosta and sweet woodruff garden that has been raked and tidied a bit this spring--the daffodils masking the emerging purple hosta pips. The garden awaits a top dressing of fresh new teak-colored chips that are in a giant pile and will be spread as soon as the hostas reach six inches or so--maybe not until June, depending on the weather. But I think this garden looks pretty good for a late-spring April.

A closer view of the nodding heads basking in late afternoon sunshine.

Red Amaryllis Rising

With a long winter and slow spring--and no trips to warm climes, I have had very little floral beauty to capture so far this year.

So I took a lot of photos of my amaryllis. My one and only. Blooming indoors. Year three. In triplicate. Natural light, nighttime flash, or full sun through the skylights--it was a beauty.

February 16, 2013

April 10, 2013

April 14, 2013

April 15, 2013

April 16, 2013

Added this year was that third bud, which grew to full size.

April 19, 2013

Purple Crocus in April - Photo of the Day

Geraniums Bud in the Bag - 2013

3-16-13 

This year only 2 geraniums lived for another day--out of about a dozen. Why some live and sprout and others turn into dead dry stems is something that I have not figured out in all these years. My methods are certainly not ideal, but I always like to try a city yard waste bag full of them--toss them in once the dirt dries a little, close the bag and throw it in a corner of the basement! If they die, I just set the bag out on the street when pickup resumes in April.

As you can see outside the sun room window, it is certainly not springy yet. It's hard to imagine the 80 degree days we had in that spring heat wave last year. Come soon, Spring.

No Flowers in February

I always overwinter a few plants in my basement laundry room, such as the pot of succulents above. Over the weekend I brought a few upstairs, sprinkled them and set them near a sunny window. I also have several geraniums in pots--but nothing is in bloom.

I checked with the the site of Chicago Botanical Gardens. Of course they have indoor tropicals etc. blooming, but outdoors it seems they have a bit of witch hazel that was beginning to bloom in the January thaw, but not much else.

So we are all awaiting Spring, here in the Midwest, longing for a color fix, or even just some sign of green growth sprouting!

Saturday it was sunny and I treated a few lucky basement plants to a day in the sun.

New growth on a bergenia cordifolia was welcome--I uprooted it in fall cleanup at my aunt's house and since it barely had any roots attached, I decided to pot it up and try to save it indoors.

Bergenia cordifolia with new green growth

I again saved the amaryllis that bloomed for Easter last year. Nothing is sprouting yet, but I have been treating it to some upstairs warmth and natural light and expect something from this large green bulb soon:

The red & white amaryllis

I don't know how this pathetic little african violet has survived in such a small pot:

Tiny African violet

I am so starved for growing things that I even set this red onion in a pot, since it seemed so eager to grow:

Next month will officially be Spring. I will have to enjoy looking out the window at the snow while I can. Check out the Martha Blog--she has 72 gorgeous photos of her farm in the newly fallen snow, posted February 15, 2013.

Photo of the Day - October Annuals

October 2, 2012 After a funeral at church

Late September Afternoon in the Garden

Late to be planted, the dahlias are finally blooming today

Limelight hydrangea and salvia

Asters and celosia

Morning Glory growing up on variegated porcelain berry vine

Photo of the Day - Rain on the Pergola

Photo of the Day - Flowers by the Pond

Photo of the Day - Pink Hibiscus

Begonias in a Circle - 2012

Begonias and companions at church have thrived in the heat wave.

Photo of the Day - 'El Desperado'

'El Desperado' daylily, know for its high bud count, blooms today at Aunt V's