With warm winter temperatures several varieties of Japanese andromeda (Pieris japonica, below) in the garden began to show a bit of color late in February. As the mid month heat wave of March has turned to cooler temperatures at the start of April, the blooms have persisted, though I expect they will begin to fade…
Month: March 2012
Trees flowering in late March
The latest of the early spring flowering magnolias in my garden is the pale yellow ‘Elizabeth’ (Magnolia acuminata ‘Elizabeth’, below). A year ago it bloomed exactly in the middle of April, which is perhaps a few days later than average, and why its flowers are rarely bothered by late freezes and frosts as the earlier…
It’s gonna be cold!
No good is accomplished by whining that the dogwoods (Cornus florida, below) are flowering too early, or that the Japanese maples are leafing prematurely and are in danger should an overnight freeze arrive in the next few weeks (or tonight). The gardener has no control over these events, of course, and no amount of talking…
Preparing the ponds for spring
The pump went out in one of the garden ponds in late autumn, and I haven’t a clue why. Perhaps it was old age. I know the feeling. Replacing the pump was a rare expense for my ponds, that is if the cost of running electricity twenty four hours a day for five ponds through…
Some are early, others late
Please, somebody explain this to me. I’m confused, the camellias are confused. The redbuds and dogwoods are totally out of whack. I’m hoping that things settle down and return to normal sooner than later, but I’m not taking any bets. It’s hot out there! At least for March, it is. Temperatures were oddly warm through…
Chinese paperbush
Conversations about the weather are just about to wear me out. I find that I repeat myself a dozen times each day, and with slight variations I’ve had the same conversation for the past three months. Yes, the warm temperatures through the winter were unusual, and two weeks of seventy degree temperatures in March are odd….
Spring cleanup
The spring clean up of the garden has begun. I usually have a target date of the start of April to be mostly finished, and most years mostly is as finished as it gets. With the abnormally warm winter and way above average temperatures over the past week I’m afraid that I’ll have to prioritize…
Early spring flowering magnolias
A few days ago I was wandering about the garden, and noticed that the flower buds on ‘Jane’ magnolia (Magnolia x ‘Jane’, on Monday and further below, Wednesday) were beginning to break, but that the buds on ‘Dr. Merrill’ and ‘Royal Star’ were still closed. ‘Jane’ usually flowers later than the others, but it is…
Lots of catching up to do
Oh well, it’s been fun! For two of the past three weeks I’ve worked at garden shows, so I’ve spent the weekdays building and planting, and the weekend days talking gardening rather than doing gardening. I’m not much of a people person, but I enjoy plants and I can (and often do) go on talking…
Winter daphne
My wife is perpetually busy with this and that so that she rarely reads my writings, unless something sparks her fears that I’ve written something about her. She is currently immersed in studies for a midlife career that will hold her over after I keel over dead at my desk one evening, so I’m quite…
More early March blooms
In this unusually warm winter leatherleaf mahonia (Mahonia bealei, below) started to flower early in January. In early March it has reached its peak bloom (or perhaps slightly past), at the time when it usually is just beginning to show color. I expect the flowers will fade a bit sooner, but the winter blooms were…
Blooming at the start of March
In recent days I’ve seen magnolias blooming in the area, with most of the flowers damaged by frost so that the edges are brown. It’s not particularly unusual for these to be flowering in early March, just as the damage is typical. By good fortune rather than good planning, I planted ‘Royal Star’, ‘Jane’, and…
Ramblin' through Dave's Garden 