Beautiful PA

This past weekend found me in PA for the annual Lilyhemmer meeting. It was terrific, as usual, and a longer post will follow. But first, I just wanted to share how beautiful the drive up there is this time of year....





Gorgeous! Love those autumn colors!

Appropriate for the Day....Happy Easter

Spring....

....is here! This year the saucer magnolia takes my breath away! I can't think of a single year...so far...and I'm a bit worried about mentioning it right now...(knocking on wood)...where the bloom has been so....WOW....I mean, there are usually hard frosts which turn the blooms brown, shortening their life, etc., etc. Fortunately, this one continues to pump out intermittent blooms so all is not lost...but, this year....woohoo!


Stepping back....


It's simply covered in blooms...and the pruning has really helped it have that lovely vase shape... Another stunner which frequently suffers from the same frost prone end-of-show worries, but not this year, is the magnolia stellata...




The other day I had someone over to give an estimate on some work that needs to be done on ye olde house and as he came around from the back, he exclaimed, "That smell! It's so nice!" ...and turned around and stuck his face into...


...Pink Dawn viburnum...I often post about its early bloom as it starts showing off before most things....and I think I often mention its fragrance....but, just in case you forgot, I thought I'd share with you someone else's reaction... Just beginning are the camellias....here's one of the first...

It's not all pink or pink/white, though...




Reliable (and oh-so-common) Ice Follies are in bloom in a bunch of places in my yard...the group below has a couple of solid yellows joining in this year....


This is probably not February Gold (below)....still pretty, don't you think?


It seems most of my early daffodils are not-what-they're-supposed to be....one day I'll reorganize them...one day.... This is supposed to be Hollywood, but I'm not sure that it is...such a fun bloom, all upright and facing the sky...


Now for a few that are what they're supposed to be... Sideling Hill...


First picture of this one (excuse that horrible foliage...yikes...gotta get that out/off)... Minor Monarque...


Loch Hope...



Easter Bonnet...



Sweetness...very faithful....produced a ton of bulbs last fall....most of which just got planted recently (oops)....however, this picture is from the fall replanted group...and why they're blooming on time...

Cum Laude...blooming in two spots....the first where I apparently failed to dig them all up....ha...and the second where they were all moved to...



One of my favorites, Cum Laude, is worth two pictures!....There are some other things going on, like a little mix of iris reticulata....


Some of the very small bulbs...Glory of the Snow or Chionodoxa...one of two colors blooming right now...


....and, last but not least, just getting going (if you look very closely)...Brunnera variegata...

Update

I'm in Florida for a bit. Not the beaches part of Florida, but nonetheless it was 70 degrees here yesterday; a welcome change from the snow. Unfortunately, I'm not here for pleasure but to see about my mother who has had a quadruple bypass.

While I grew up in Florida, it has been many years since I have been back.

I had forgotten about the Spanish Moss in the trees...

Tree Ornaments Part 2

You may remember last year when I posted about my...uhmm....tree ornaments....? I thought I'd update you....


Yes, indeed, one year later, it is still here...admittedly, more ragged and less of it, but nonetheless, still clinging. The good news is that this will definitely be its last winter here as I am going to have the tree taken out (not because of the bag!)...as well as two or three others. Here's hoping there will not be a Part 3 of Tree Ornaments...

While walking around looking for things photo worthy, I remembered that the Pink Dawn Viburnum tends to bloom about now...and sure enough, it has buds all over...and would you believe...this?


I must say, this caused me to take a second look. It's a ribbon, a cloth one, with a bow and everything. All I could think of was that it must have blown out of someone's Christmas trash...but does this mean I haven't been over here to look since then?? I guess so...I mean, we had the big snow and it tends to be wet and then icy over here....

It was...almost...attractive. I mean, it's certainly better than the grocery-store-plastic-bag type of ornament, but, really...shouldn't the privilege of this...decorating...be left to me?? I guess I expect too much. Luckily, I can easily reach this one and remove it.

Call me a purist, but I like my trees the way nature intended them.

Today's Finds: 061209

I meant to post this a few days ago...


glorious magnolia bloom...

The rain continues here. I think I would be cheering it on (more) if I had had things in hand. Now, the weeds are threatening to over take everything and it has become perilous to try to see the seedlings and other daylily blooms in the backyard.

Here's where I skidded to a stop, sliding in the mud...


I have about a two inch layer on my muck boots...

Nonetheless, there are moments of such beauty...


This is Beloved...a new rose (as I tortured the last one) this year....love the color, even if it does lack fragrance...I have to dig out another rose near this one as the rootstock is blooming (only)...interesting, on a rose that was bought as an own root rose (not)...it does provide the opportunity to consider a new rose, but I will either plant it (the new rose) this fall or next spring.

I have finally, I think, learned my lesson(s) about planting in the heat of summer, especially with water restrictions, as we have had in the past. A recipe for disaster and frustration and who needs that?

I know this...and still...the one tomato plant I got into the ground by the end of May is doing terrific...getting tall with tomatoes and blooms for more...while all the others, look pathetic and are probably not even worth putting out...my intentions were good, but I just ran out of May.

This morning, one of my very favorite daylilies, VELVET RIBBONS, was putting on such a show...it has such personality. Here it is looking like it would like to leap out of the garden bed...


Look how it laughs at the weather...


I could take pictures of this one all day...

The early daylily blooms are getting going...here's some of what I saw this morning...

This was bought as SILOAM SUNDAY MUSIC, but I am not sure that it is...


The description says pink and this isn't pink...I should contact the seller, but I was not happy with this seller (with another daylily)...so, I will ponder what I want to do...

A new daylily here, BECKYWECK, with its ffo...


A short daylily, that I need to remember to move to the front of the bed...sporting poly blooms...

SCHNICKEL FRITZ...


Here's INKY FINGERS...


CHARMING CHARLIE...with a bit of weather damage, still looking pretty good on its ffo...


One I really wanted and finally got....SMILE AGAIN...blooming in the driveway pot ghetto...


DAINTY IS THE WORD...


FOX HUNTER...


An oldie but goodie, BARBARA MITCHELL, recurving except for one sepal...


SILOAM EXTRA SPECIAL with a bit of weather damage as well...


Something found MOON OVER MONTEREY a bit tasty...


A mini, showing its doubling, TROPICAL DELIGHT...


APPLIQUE continues to make me smile...big robust blooms...looks like its dancing...


A better look at SIMPLY GLORIOUS, moving more toward pink, which I like better...


As you probably know, I do like the spideries....here's MOVING ALL OVER which I have planted next to WAITING IN THE WINGS...something I should change, to give them both a better chance to shine...



So you can compare....WAITING IN THE WINGS...


That's all for now....it's actually sunny outside....I could probably pull some weeds...maybe...