We're "in bloom" down south!

One outdoor day was missed due to rain and being busy with other things, but yesterday I was out "beating the bounds" and overwhelmed by the early blooming garden. Our mild winter with no snow or damaging ice storms means the garden is ahead of schedule. I was really surprised when I rounded the house to the side gate arbor to find the 'trumpet vine' covered in blooms!  I had cut this busy clambering member of the crossvine family Bignonia capreolata 'Tangerine Beauty'  down to the ground just before Christmas!  We always wind outdoor lights around the structure and many were no longer working. To remove the old ones and add replacements I needed to get the vine off!  

On looking up this vine online I was shocked to see the price of a rather small one gallon potted one is $50.00 - however I do know it will never die or stop growing so one wouldn't be throwing money away. Mine was planted about 20 years ago, when the arbor was constructed. It has been cut back constantly as it has a propensity to travel. . . . . . . .all over the garden, even up the house which I don't want so I cut off those babies when I see them heading that way.

 

Tangerine Beauty Crossvine

"A colorful staple for trellises, archways, fences and arbors, the Tangerine Beauty Crossvine boasts showy, bright orange-yellow flowers that last from spring through fall. Plus, it’s more low-maintenance than other vine varieties, clinging easily to whatever area you choose in your landscape with blankets of green foliage and bright blooms. It’s vigorous, strong and fast-growing."

"The Tangerine Beauty thrives wherever it’s located, even on the ground – especially since it’s highly resistant to serious insect and disease problems. Its adaptability is second to none, this semi-evergreen vine tolerates heavy shade, poor soils and cold winters."

Bags of mulch awaiting and calling to us!

Spanish bluebells opening, no leaves appear to have been nibbled

 by the deer population this year, however.................

..........guess who arrived in the back garden last evening, a grey fox!

Some of you will recall we had foxes with litters of five in our garden

 for several years. Being this is the time (March/April) for birthing I'm

 hoping this was a mom perhaps looking for a home, and we may see

 her family soon. Favorite places for hiding the babies previously were

 under the potting shed and once under the gazebo, both easy to

 view from our kitchen and living room windows. 

Early blooming azaleas - many more to come and perhaps opening

 over the weekend with some light rain in the forecast.

I will share them later.

Last but not least, my favorite hosta popped through this week and

 is growing fast and unfurling those beautiful leaves. I'm hoping the

 deer, or other hungry nibblers, don't discover it!

Have a great weekend. . . . . . north, south, east or west!

Sunday in the Garden -

It's on days like this when all the hard, dirty, tiring work pays off!

Again, I walked early in the garden today to take these photos.

A little more rain during the night worked wonders and much is

 blooming. 

Unfortunately the pollen continues and air quality is poor with a gusty

breeze blowing. Not sure whether to head outside and do some garden

 work or just sit here and continue sneezing!

We still have a lot to do regarding hardscaping - a new

low wall across the back bed, re-do the pathways, and perhaps

remove a couple more very old trees, one of which was struck by 

lightning and is damaged. 

As we know. . . . . . ."a garden is a thing of beauty and a job forever."

Stop the World. . . . . . . .

 . . . . . . .I Want to Get Off!

Yes, the 1963 Tony Award winning musical starring

the late, great Anthony Newley, English actor, singer and songwriter, 

comes to mind. 

Forget the world just 'tilting'  - it now seems to be spinning out of control! 

If we could get off though where would we go?

I'm in the garden a lot. 

This morning it was raining lightly, thankfully dampening down

the heavy pollen coating everything in sight.

The photos in the collage below were taken today.

"Maybe more than ever before in my life, I’m grateful today to have a garden. What a blessing it feels like. I can’t imagine the weeks and months ahead without the refuge it will provide. Perhaps you all feel the same way". . . . . . . . Margaret Roach

The above came from famous gardener Margaret Roach (A Way To Garden.com).

 I read these words she wrote yesterday on her current post and asked her if I might

 share them with you, my wonderful readers, many of whom are gardeners. 

Margaret kindly gave me permission.

If you need information or help regarding anything to do with your own garden, 

Margaret is the person to go to . . . . . .and be sure to read her latest book, 

A Way To Garden - a hands-on primer for every season -

 and listen to her awesome podcasts with other well known gardeners also

on her website.

Yes, having a garden is certainly a blessing at this time. You know I have one,

just a quarter acre on which my cottage home sits comfortably. It's nothing

spectacular by any means and, in all honesty, it's no longer in tip top 

shape as it was when outdoor work was much easier in our younger days.

The front is neat and tidy with some beautiful trees I've planted and nurtured,

flowering shrubs, seasonal bulbs and perennials . . . . . and Bob keeps the 

lawn mown so passersby still comment on what a lovely yard we have!

After a very warm weekend the bluebells are up and opening.  

The birds are still nest building - more about the finches coming - and bluebirds

 seem interested in the birdhouse again so I'm glad I cleaned it out a couple

 of weeks ago.  

My daughter told me to hang my hummingbird feeder - rather early I think - but she

 said they are already in flight around her neighborhood a couple of miles away.

I want to stay positive in thought regarding how life is/will be perhaps for some time. 

Already some are depressed, bored, chomping at the bit to get out and live as we

 are used to.  Meanwhile please be brave, follow the rules which will be so important

 to rid us of this virus. . . . . . . . do things, make use of this quieter time, garden if 

you can, and have hope that this will end very soon.

Bless you and your loved ones.

After the storm. . . . . .the garden this week -

We arrived home from a weekend out of town and found the garden

sparkling with color. That night terrible storms passed 

through the area and I feared waking to azaleas and such beaten down,

their lovely blooms blown away or scattered across the ground in the wake 

of the high winds and several hours of torrential rain.

Monday was clean up day, mostly small branches, twigs and debris from

where the water had swirled through the garden. Flowers looked somewhat

 battered but not broken and by yesterday, with brilliant sunshine and a Spring

 breeze, everything perked up and we enjoyed afternoon coffee on the front porch

 with a friend who was kind enough to say how lovely the garden was looking.

George Taber - my favorite azaleas.

Spanish bluebells beneath the fig tree.

Bluebells and Solomon's Seal.

Hickory tree catkins awaiting wind pollination.

Hoping lovely plants are beginning to bloom in your Spring garden.