I keep waiting for the other cold-shoe to drop and technically it still could since it's only the middle of February. For now, however, things in the garden are just peachy. Yesterday, I had the good fortune of capturing photos of this little visitor--a painted lady butterfly! How sweet she was, sharing nectar with the bees on my blooming viburnum.
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| Winter-blooming Viburnum bodnantense 'Dawn' |
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| T-Shirt weather! |
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| My covered-patio thermometer is even happier. |
More evidence of spring, baby tadpoles in my outer pond!
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| Lots of algae for them to eat. |
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| Fortunately my patio pond is much clearer. |
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| Daphne odora 'Aureomarginata' in bloom. |
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| White crocus or as I like to say "croakies" |
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| Purple croakies |
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| Brunnera macrophylla is beginning to bloom |
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| A few tiny Oxalis crassipes blossoms to add to the mix |
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| Check out the enthusiastic Impatiens omeiana babies |
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And I'm happy to see that my Impatiens omeiana 'Silver Pink'
survived what was admittedly a mild winter. |
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| Impatiens balfouri and I. glandulifera seedlings abound which means the soil is warming. |
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| And Kenilwoth Ivy (Cymbalaria muralis) is popping up all over. Some people hate it but I love this stuff. |
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| Even Tetrapanax is happy with the weather. |
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| I'm surprised how big my Allium schubertii are getting |
How about a few befores and afters?
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| Looks like a mess, doesn't it? |
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Most of those tiny leaves are Geranium x cantabrigiense 'Karmina.'
According to my records, I planted it in 2002 so its spread is understandable, but a bit of tidying is called for. |
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| Another angle |
Afters
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| I replanted all the Geranium bits and cut back the ferns. |
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| Yes, it's the little things! |
Finally, just a few random photos of the garden waking up. Still so much to do!
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| Here is a shot of this whole bed, including the aforementioned, tadpole-filled outer pond. |
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| Another angle |
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| A tall Kale holding on with raspberry canes in the background |
Finally, to all of you are still under the grip of old man winter, I hope these photos
are helping. Spring really is just around the corner.
