I'm late this year in putting the rest of March's photos up. It's
been kind of busy with concert rehearsals, soap selling, etc. Also...
I want to WORK in the garden instead of being on the computer so
much! I'll try to do better with keeping up and in a pinch, I may put
up some pages from last season again (probably won't need to do that,
but will repeat some of them later on). It's been a pretty normal
spring except for having nearly 80 degree weather in the second week
of April... I really hate that much heat in the spring. The new
growth on the poor hellebores was wilting! It's cooler now and we've
had some rain.
This pile came from some serious pruning in the bed
between the front yard and orchard. A row of Viburnum
davidii had become overgrown and sprawly and I wanted to
open up the pathway between the house and this bed. Once
started, I got pretty liberal with the pruners... cutting
off rhody branches buds and all! The lower limbs of
these older rhodies were sometimes dead or sprawling over
their lower growing neighbors. I'm counting on the Viburnum
coming back, and if it doesn't, I'll plant something low and
evergreen to take its place. Hmmm... maybe Lingonberry would
be a nice change? The group I left uncut on the front corner
will probably be sheared later after something shoots from
the base. I didn't want to completely scalp the whole
area.
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This is what the rhodies bared understructure looks like
right now from the front entry. There are actually three
Viburnum bushes in that blank space that will hopefully put
out some new shoots. I'm not highly invested in their coming
back, so was willing to be drastic. They've been there for
over 15 years.
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This is kind of shady, but is what the alley path
looks like in late March with the crocus and
Helleborus foetidus blooming. There's a tiny
narcissus to the left as well. Looks pretty bare, but will
be hard to walk through by July!
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This plant of winter-blooming Iris unguicularis
will most likely need to be moved in the next couple of
years, as the shrubs nearby spread more. It really likes a
warm presentation. Never forewarned by fattening buds, you
just step out on the porch one day and gasp as you see a
bouquet of these in bloom. They don't last long, so you have
to appreciate them when the opportunity arises. These are
just starting to wilt, as you can see by the curling
petals.
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Isn't this just a gorgeous vista?! We had a bit of a
septic tank problem toward the end of March and the corner
of this flower bed had to be dug up to get to the source of
the problem. To the left you see the really awful part of
the back garden that I have yet to reclaim. Hope it looks
much nicer by the end of this season! Wish you could hear my
oldest son's voice when he called upstairs from our other
line to tell me there was a leak downstairs... he was in the
shower when the "tide rolled in." :-)
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You are probably sick of these, but I wanted to show
another view of the mountains. This sunset actually had more
color than you can see here, but you get a good view of the
skyline. One of the bonuses of working outside during the
dinner hour.
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I gasped one day when I looked toward the lower field
from the back fence (Ron was mowing there) and saw this
little volunteer group of Viola vilmoriniana! The
original plants are in the choked area out back and I don't
know how many of them have survived. These seedlings have
found themselves the perfect spot and have obviously been
here for a couple of years! They are a soft apricot-gold
color.
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A closer view of one of the violets shown at left. I had
to crawl under the trees to get close enough and it was so
dark there the flash came on. There's another colony of
these violets near the arbor in back. I just weeded through
that spot and was delighted to find them.
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Near the arbor at this time you can smell these tiny
blossoms of the Winter Honeysuckle (Lonicera
fragrantissima). You can see the bench behind... albeit
fuzzy. This plant is not nearly as showy as some of the
later blooming or vining honeysuckles, but it makes up for
it by its scent and time of bloom. It is a lax, twiggy
shrub.
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The sun was going down, but you can still see the blooms
on the small 'Royal Star' Magnolia stellata. I prefer
this type of magnolia to the larger tulip type. This is
growing just south of the honeysuckle. The path behind leads
to the pad where the arbor was placed.... a path that I am
slowly opening up again so we might spend some time enjoying
the arbor this summer!
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Wish I'd used a different camera setting so the violets
would have been in focus, but... oh, well. Not as prolific
as their blue cousins, these are white Muscari/Grape
Hyacinths. The violets behind are commonly called
"Confederate Violet." These plants are in the small
white bed on the edge of the north lawn.
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In that same bed grows this beautiful Pulmonaria 'Roy
Davidson.' So far... this is probably my favorite
lungwort, although our growing conditions are not their
favorite. I usually have to contend with some mildew later
in the season.
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In a container on the deck are some Narcissus 'Ice
Follies.'
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I paid for this original plant of Euphorbia dulcis
'Chameleon' but will never have to buy another. It is a
prolific seeder! At this time of year, the new growth is
every bit as showy as flowers... beautiful shades of
burgundy with undertones of pink. It is in the bed near the
deck where it is quite hot in the afternoons.
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Right under the edge of the deck is a small group of
Ilex convexa. The leaves are a lighter green because
of the sun exposure on this side of the house. I imagine
they would be a bit happier on the East side, but I don't
intend to move these. Under this little shrub are a few
volunteer Pulmonarias. They probably seeded from the
clump of 'Mrs. Moon' that was planted in the "white bed" (go
figure!). These flowers have a different shape... larger
petals that flare out and are split in the center instead of
being tubular.
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Across the path from the Ilex are some lavender
bushes and right now Muscari 'Blue Spike' are
blooming near them. They are kind of weird looking and I'd
gotten them when I was first collecting stuff for the garden
(the frenzied buying stage!). These have come back pretty
faithfully, but don't seed themselves like the species are
prone to do.
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While I was snapping pictures I was being followed around
by Goofy, the cat. He likes to be bothersome but is
rather touch-me-not if you try to pet him when he's not in
the mood. Probably the most aloof cat we have... the kind
people complain about and typify as CAT! :-) He is sitting
under the Styrax tree in front of the Primula
vulgaris.
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A woman on Robert's old paper route gave me these
primroses wrapped in some newspaper years ago and
I've managed not to kill them yet! I don't know what the
variety is, but it is a popular old one.
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A closer view of the primroses near the entry.
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In the alley bed these Dicentra 'Luxuriant' are
revving up for a long season of bloom. They were just
planted early last spring and have done very well. If you
look closely, you can see the buds coming up through those
beautiful glaucous leaves.
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I love the charm of Muscari! They seed all over
the place, but I never think they are an unwelcome
guest.
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It will never get any better than this...
Hyacinths in their first season of bloom after
planting. It will all be downhill from here on out! ;-)
There are some groups of these in the bed along the
driveway, opposite the flowering cherries (to be seen on the
April page coming soon). At the time I planted them, I had
little open space to work in and had forgotten how fat they
are when they come up! Should have allowed more space. Maybe
next year, with their smaller spikes, they will make more
sense.
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This page last updated on April 21, 1999.