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.

A Slug and Other Critters

Somewhere skies are blue and the sun is shining. . . but not here. Here in my part of Illinois, the temperatures have warmed up from the frigid cold of a few weeks ago, and the snow is slowly melting away. But in its place an endless gray cloud seems to have descended along with either rain or fog. These non-stop gloomy skies have zapped what little energy I had and have turned me into a couch potato. I understand completely how people with S.A.D. must feel at this time of year, but my problem is not depression so much as a lack of motivation. I have been substitute teaching for several days, which is probably a good thing because otherwise I would have never left the house this past week.


There are many projects in the house I would like to get done before spring, and I have accomplished a little . . . very little. After a few hours of sorting papers and getting rid of some of the clutter in my office, I'm bored. When the post-lunch slump hits, I'm likely to "rest my eyes" for an hour or two on the couch. By late afternoon I'd much rather visit awhile with my friends Oprah and Ellen than get back to work. And then it's time to fix dinner . . .



Even my amaryllis is drooping . . .



Since I've been such a slug, let's see what other members of the household have been up to.






We had an unusual visitor a few nights ago. This opossum came up to the patio doors and peeked in, perhaps looking for a late-night snack. When Sophie spied him, she went crazy, as you might expect, and didn't let up barking until the possum had checked out every inch of the patio and finally disappeared. I wasn't about to let Sophie outside at that point, not knowing what would happen if a possum tangled with a dog. Apparently, this guy has taken up residence here, because last night when I let Sophie out for a final "business trip" before bedtime, I spied him out in the far back yard. Again I worried what would happen when Sophie saw him, but it was sleeting and the driveway was so slippery, I wasn't about to venture from the safety of the garage.



I knew Sophie saw him--her ears perked up, and she soon broke into a full gallop to reach him. Apparently, opossums are much smarter than I've ever given them credit for--this critter was unfazed by Sophie's appearance and meandered past her in his slow gait till he disappeared into the nearby shed. Sophie wasn't expecting this--no game of chase?? Well, that's no fun! After watching him go by and sniffing the strange scent he left behind, she finally returned to the house, disappointed.




The birds are much more fun. Mr. Procrastinator trimmed some limbs and cleaned up brush into a big pile shortly before the cold set in. The sparrows love this brush pile and gather here several times a day. Part of Sophie's early morning routine is to check out the birds and then chase them as soon as they fly off.

On warmer days, Tarzan likes to join in the fun. "See, Sophie, if you want to catch a bird, you have to be able to climb trees like me and sneak up on them quietly."

Please note: No animals--four-legged or two-legged--were harmed during the filming of this post.

I prefer to do my bird-watching from indoors. During the cold spell two weeks ago, juncos, cardinals, bluejays, and woodpeckers could all be seen from the comfort of the living room.

A pair of downy woodpeckers were regular visitors at the suet feeder. (I took about 40 pictures one day, only to discover I should have adjusted the settings on my camera to adapt to the shadows. As bad as this one is, it was the best of the bunch.) Now that much of the snow has left, so have the downys and the juncos. I hope this means that they're finding natural food sources and not that they have left for the winter--I just stocked up on suet cakes!

Toby is disappointed, too, that the front-yard birds have disappeared. Still he sits patiently every day hoping for his afternoon entertainment--in between naps.

Speaking of naps, Tarzan discovered that the bed left behind by Coconut (Youngest Daughter's Pomeranian now residing in Oregon) suits him just fine. He, along with Sasha and Marmalade, have always been primarily outdoor cats, but when the cold weather hit, I let them stay in the garage. That was fine with Marmalade, who was too shy to have her photo taken here, but it wasn't good enough for Tarzan or Sasha.

While Tarzan has taken over the doggy bed, Sasha finds the top of the dryer and the recycle bags are quite comfy. Toby doesn't bother her here--he has grudgingly accepted the fact that these two are now living indoors, though he is still king of the roost--and Sophie can't reach her.

Speaking of Sophie, someone once asked how the cats got along with Sophie. She still likes to indulge in a game of chase with them at times and gets very jealous if Toby crawls onto my lap, much like a young sibling. But otherwise, they tolerate her. Toby has been known to box Sophie's ears if she gets too rambunctious . . .

. . . but Tarzan is the master of dog manipulation. "I have as much right to this bed as you, Dog, so don't expect me to move."

It's hard to argue with that . . . besides, Tarzan's purring is quite hypnotic.

Hmmm, that bed does look inviting . . . maybe I'll just "rest my eyes" for a few minutes again . . .

ABC Wednesday: A Panoply of P's

This week ABC Wednesday celebrates the letter P, a perfect one for any Plant lover like myself.







While most of the Perennials, like these Purple Coneflowers, are now hibernating for the winter, there are still a few brave blooms in the garden.

The Pelargoniums ( I usually call them geraniums, but of course that doesn't begin with a P!) seem unfazed by the first frost this past weekend.

A few brave Petunia blooms hang on amidst the dying foliage.

The now Purple-tinged leaves of "Let's Dance in the Moonlight" add another dimension of color to this beauty queen who is aging gracefully.

Not to be outdone, even the "Endless Summers" are now sporting rosy-tinged foliage.

This year has been the prettiest I have ever seen the hydrangeas.

The Purple Petals of my poor confused clematis are undaunted by the cold.

A last trip in search of bargain plants yielded this basket of Pansies.

They look especially good with a display of Pumpkins.

And speaking of pumpkins, I have a confession to make. The photo of the jack o'lantern I posted last week was actually carved by my daughter last year, since I hadn't yet had time to carve one. The jack o'lantern above is the one I made this year. Not too bad, huh? It's actually quite easy to create intricate designs like this using a Pattern.

There are still gardening chores to be done, like planting bulbs and cleaning out Pots. This one, though, may stay like this all winter; it actually looks rather pretty covered with snow and provides some "winter interest."

And this sedum still needs to be transplanted to replace the one I suspect was eaten by voles. I couldn't pass this one up, purchasing it at the bargain Price of $.39!

P is also for Praying Mantis, of which we had much fewer this year than last. There were plenty of grasshoppers, though; I'm not sure if I were this guy, if I'd get too close to Mr. Mantis:)

And P is for Pine Cones, which are in plentiful supply here . . .

. . . thanks to all our Pine trees that stand guard around the Perimeter of our yard.

I would be remiss if I didn't include at least one Pet. Tarzan, my constant gardening companion, is just one of the pets here who make life always interesting.



And finally, on a much more serious note, P is for a Prayer for Peace.

Our community lined the streets on Tuesday to welcome home a fallen hero.

Let us pray that scenes like this will soon come to an end.

For a plethora of other P posts, check out the ABC blog hosted by Mrs. Nesbitt.

GBBD July: It's all about the Coneflowers...

Today is that special day of the month, Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, and I am so glad! It seems for the past few weeks I have been focusing on other people's gardens that I haven't shown much of what is blooming in my own garden. So put on your walking shoes, and let's wander around to see what is brightening up my little corner of the prairie.



Everywhere you look these days, the purple coneflowers are in bloom, and my garden is no exception. They have been multiplying like crazy, threatening to take over one corner of the main garden next to the house. Next year I will have to get an earlier start on digging up and transplanting the seedlings, but I don't really mind--they are my favorite plant, and I can never have too many coneflowers.

The same is true of the roadside garden, where they are obscuring some lovely daylilies. Coneflowers are native plants and attract bees, butterflies, and other winged creatures . . . but I've mentioned this all before; if you want to know more about coneflowers, you can read my post from last year's July Bloom Day, where I focused on coneflowers more than any other plant. They also make great photo opportunities since the center makes a nice landing spot for bees and butterflies. Sadly, I haven't seen many butterflies this year, but I've taken dozens of photos of the bees on the coneflowers, including one on yesterday's post.

One plant that also has attracted bees, as I expected it would, is the bee balm, name unknown, but it is a dwarf variety. This plant's blooms have faded, but since it began blooming the day after the June Bloom Day, I thought it deserved a shot on this Bloom Day post.

Another plant that has been blooming for quite a while is the hollyhock. They began blooming about the same time the Japanese beetles arrived, so many of the leaves now look like green lace.

All my hollyhocks are the old-fashioned variety, originally planted by my husband's grandfather or from my grandmother, transplanted from my mother's garden. I don't know why I bothered to collect seeds last year, when they self-seed so easily. This hollyhock plant is the tallest and fullest of all . . . and it's growing out of my compost heap! (Shhh, don't tell anyone what a lazy composter I am.)

Last month the only daylilies I had to share were my Stella d'Oros. Thankfully, I have a few others that are now blooming, but not nearly as many as I would like--I've been envying all the beautiful daylilies I've seen on other blogs, and I intend to plant more, just as soon as I can figure out where! Above is a new one I purchased last year, and the tag is around here somewhere . . . this is another good reason to add labels to your blog posts, because I also can't find the post from last year when I planted it.

Other lilies here have no names; this one was an "accident", I think, in the midst of a planting of Stellas.

Another unknown variety, this deep rusty-red was a passlong from my aunt.

As were these. I find it hard to get the true color of reds and deep pinks to show up in my photos; dark coral is the best way to describe their true shade. Although I transplanted several of these, the rest of the lilies are planted behind the roadside coneflowers, something that needs to be remedied next year, because they really deserve to be seen by passers-by.

Another common flower, the yarrow, is surrounding this large boulder. As the blossoms fade, I just snip them off--no worries about hurting this plant:)

Also blooming for several weeks now, the Coreopsis "Moonbeam" re-blooms after a good haircut.

A new bloom since last month is the Russian Sage. Not a very good photo, but since it's a bee magnet, too, I'll have plenty of opportunities to get a better photo later.

Another plant that I can't photograph well is the Baby's Breath. I always thought this was hard to grow, but this plant has survived and thrived here for several years.

In the shade garden, the hostas are sending up blooms, too. I have many different varieties of hostas, providing a steady succession of blooms.

I know not everyone likes these blooms--after all, it's the foliage of a hosta that is the beauty of a hosta. But I like these blooms, some of them quite dainty, and I think they add some vertical interest to a shady area.


Our Bloom Day hostess, Carol, has asked what differences we are noticing in our garden this year. I think some of my flowers are blooming a little earlier than last year, but overall the biggest difference I notice is that everything is doing better this year. With the regular rainfall we have had this summer, my garden is fuller and healthier-looking than it's ever been. This butterfly weed, Asclepias Tuberosa, is just one example. Not only is it blooming, but it's probably three times the size it was last year. Now if I only had some butterflies!

Nowhere do I notice the benefits of steady rainfall as much as with the hydrangeas. I lost one "Endless Summer" over the winter, but the two older "Endless" are fuller and taller than ever before and rarely wilt in the heat. They have just begun to put out a few blooms in the last two weeks, but many more buds are showing.

The first hydrangea to bloom this year was my new macrophylla, "Let's Dance in the Moonlight." I bought this at an end-of-the season sale last year, so this is the first time I've seen its blooms. This photograph doesn't do it justice--though the plant is smaller than the "Endless Summers," the blooms are much larger and fuller. I think "Endless Summer" may have been just an infatuation; instead, I want to dance in the moonlight a little more with my new love:)

But maybe I shouldn't give my heart away too soon. There's another new beauty looming on the horizon--by the next Bloom Day, I will hopefully have some blooms to show from another new hydrangea, "Limelight."

That's the joy of gardening. While July is the height of summer blooms here, there will be something new next month.

You never know what might be peeking out of the ground next time.

To see other blooms from around the world, be sure to visit Carol at May Dreams Gardens. Thanks, Carol, for being such a great hostess!