Purple Post

We are in the midst of 3 (so far) days of incredible, relentless wind.  And by incredible, I mean it is literally hard to actually believe that is has been this windy for this long.  Makes being outside rough.  

Still, finally got out for a walk yesterday afternoon and discovered these new flowers:

Iris

Scilla

Spring is marching on!

Weekend Updates

We came across this garter snake on the trail today... it was pretty chilly so it was moving very slowly (or not at all, until I got pretty close with my phone and it made as if to strike me).  That's my first snake sighting of the season!

I saw these scilla blooming yesterday, and the cornelian cherry dogwood -- which had fat yellow buds all week -- finally flowered on Friday!

photo by Lori B. 

Some Sketches

 I am pretty out of practice with sketching.  And I haven't the time to work on it.  I wish I did; maybe now with daylight savings time... Anyhow, today I stole about 15 minutes while eating my snack and tried three very quick sketches, then later a fourth... but I didn't really "get into" or feel great about any of them.  Ah, well.  They still illustrate what's happening today!

Siberian Elms Flowering

First Forsythia Flowers

Yesterday, the forsythia bushes had small yellow buds on them.  In 24 hours, they grew about a centimeter and some of them opened up.  It's really amazing -- you could probably literally see them grow if you had the patience.

Lilacs Buds Begin to Look Like Leaves

Crocus

Other notables today:

• 2 daffodils bloomed in our yard, although most are not even close.
• Scilla started blooming today.
• Temperatures topped 80 degrees F.

Between Scilla and Charybdis

We're not between a sea monster and a whirlpool, but somewhere between cold and warm; we're in the brown between the white and the green. In this time of anticipation, caught between winter and spring, come the scilla.

In garden news, I planted peas and spinach yesterday... carrots next weekend. The garden looks... hopeful. Empty, but that also means weed-free, with trellises waiting for the weight of vines to grab at them. The beds are so flat and rich brown and perfect. In the basement, tiny tomatoes (and friends), barely two inches tall and basking in grow light, wait for the time, 6 weeks hence, when they can sink their roots into the soil, too.

In the native world, early bloomers, like spiderwort, Jacob's ladder, golden Alexander are poking up through the dead remains of last year's plants, 2-3 inches tall...

April Fool

I'm not sure what's up with me lately... the past few days have been perfectly lovely and I have been thoroughly enjoying them... but I haven't felt like blogging too much at all. I suppose it's natural for my excitement about things to wain. Anyhow, I felt obliged to go out and snap a shot of this flower -- name still unknown -- that I photographed on April 12, 2009. I noticed them blooming on Tuesday, so they bloomed over a week earlier this year.

I also wanted to get a shot of the scilla, (which I know I blogged about last year, too, but I can't find it...anyhow...) They actually just opened up in my yard, although I know that I've seen them open for days in other places. Not sure why mine are late bloomers. So out I went to take some pictures of these two purple blossoms, when I was thrilled and surprised to find...

VIOLETS! Which were definitely not open on Tuesday, or even close (yesterday I was in the city, far enough south that many things are a couple of days ahead, so can't say what happened then). Anyhow, I posted a sketch of these violets on April 11 last year, but that was not on their first day of flowering, so I can't say if they, too, are ahead of '09. So the violets motivated me a bit to blog, and to keep exploring.

This cultivated flower also opened up yesterday or this morning. It reminds me of bluebells, and was the inspiration for me planting some of those, which I have not noticed yet so I am hoping they do come back. Now, here are some more baby pictures that I can't resist posting:

Hepatica flower buds grow in the middle of a cluster of lobed leaves, which actually seem to grow under the snow. Their white fuzz seems to almost glow in the morning sun.

Baby bloodroot.

I noticed these geraniums on Tuesday, but then they were all curled up little pink blobs (as the one leaf in the middle of the photo still is). Their color was quite pretty and unique, but today the leaves have opened up and turned reddish.

And... look how close we are to daffodils!

It's supposed to be around 80 today, and sunny, and I am going to go enjoy it... I'm just wondering... will it snow next week or something to make up for this?