April GBBD: Tiptoe Through the Tulips....

While many people may be stressing out today trying to get those #*@! tax forms filled out before midnight, we garden bloggers know that April 15 is significant for another reason--it's Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, of course! Today I promise you, unlike the past few months, there will be no whining here nor any stretching of the term "blooms." This month has been the sunniest, warmest April I can ever remember--we even broke a record today as the thermometer hit 86 degrees. Spring bulbs are flowering earlier than usual, but also fading more quickly in the heat. So grab your sunscreen and your garden hat and take a walk with me before the flowers fade. Let's start early before the sun gets too hot and tiptoe through the tulips . . .

Shades of pink, like these "Pink Impression" tulips, are everywhere.

But we're an Equal Opportunity Tulip Employer, so every color is welcome

in the garden here from bold reds . . .

. . . to various hot oranges, all part of a "Color Magic" collection.

There are also a few bright yellows, the ruffled "Sunrise." These look almost look like small peony blooms, don't they?

But pastels are still my preference, like these delicate vanilla cream . . .

to the subtle pale yellows of a collection called "Monet," which includes several pastel shades

including this soft peach. It's hard to pick a favorite.

But my favorite time to enjoy them all is early morning or early evening. By mid-morning, the sun has warmed them so that they look a little blowsy. I forgot to show you some of the purple and deeper colors in the roadside bed, and there are some other varieties that are just beginning to open up, but we'll save those for another day.

Instead, we need to take a look at the early bloomers that are just about to fade. The hyacinths were in full bloom by Easter, but are starting to lose their luster today.

The traditional yellow daffodils have already faded away, but a few of the other varieties have taken their place, like this one whose name has been lost . . .

. . . or the ruffled "Repletes." All tulip and daffodil names are somewhat questionable, as the notes I took a year and a half ago when planting them haven't been as reliable as I'd planned.

But even without a name, these slender narcissus deserve a second look. These small beauties have turned out to be one of my favorites.

But there is more in the garden this April than just flowering bulbs. I must have the slowest hellebores in all of Blogland, but I do finally have three blooms on this one, which is either "Yellow Lady" or "Spotted Lady"--hard to tell when she is being so shy.

And if you've been wondering what the blue was in the background of a few of the photos, here it is--Brunnera 'Jack Frost.' I can't say enough good things about this plant, but the best part is that the blooms are really and truly blue!

Let's linger by the bleeding heart for a moment, shall we? You may not be too impressed by these blooms, since everyone has this old-fashioned plant, it seems. But after several unsuccessful attempts at trying to grow one, I'm just so excited to finally have a Dicentra that has survived in my shade garden.

Another flower that deserves praise this spring is the primrose. These are the first spots of colorto appear in my garden each spring, and I have them in varying hues from red to purple to yellow to this pink.

I know we've missed a few blooms, but perhaps you'll come back again next week? By that time who knows what might be blooming, and maybe by then I'll finally have all these flowerbeds cleaned up.

Despite the perfect gardening days we've had, I've only been able to accomplish a little each day, and I seem to flit about from one project to another without finishing any of them.

Tarzan kindly pointed out to me one day that the nepeta was ready to be pruned, and it has since nearly tripled in size.

I didn't have the heart, though, to do much pruning of the hydrangeas, which are already producing lots of new growth.

Hostas are emerging, too, and they, along with the hydrangeas, still have a light blanket of pine straw in case the temperatures decide to drop again.

You don't want to walk around here with your eyes cast down all the time, however. The spring show is just as lovely up above. The redbuds have been in flower for the past week or more. This one that sits just outside my office window looks like lavender cotton candy.

A close inspection of this redbud in the front yard reveals some tiny green leaves beginning to show. It won't be long before these heralds of spring turn from purple to green.

But there is more to come . . . the flowering crabapples are almost ready to burst into bloom. They are at least two weeks ahead of schedule. In fact, everything seems to moving in fast-forward this spring, so much so that if I don't check the garden every day, I might miss something before it fades away. I hope that all of you are enjoying each and every moment of this beautiful spring, and thanks for tiptoeing through the tulips with me . . .

Be sure to check out all the other spring blooms from around the world by visiting Carol of May Dreams Gardens, who has kindly taken time out of her new garden designs to once again host this month's GBBD.