A garden at last

I think I have wanted my own flower garden for so long. That's probably why I've been annoying everyone within earshot about how cool it is to have crocuses and TULIPS growing in my yard! For those who think it's still too chilly to really be called Spring, take a look at this evidence that Spring has most definitely sprung!!

tiny irises popping up through the leaves

crocuses and tulips, boxwood and a hyacinth-like blue flower

giant crocuses, too beautiful for words after a long winter

The full garden-- Mike put up the mulch border for me today! Got to dig out the grass and finish mulching. Click on the pic if you want to see it bigger.

another view

me doing a little post-call digging, aka, desperately trying to soak up the sunshine before falling into bed after 30 hours at work

And here is some of my indoor excitement:

the bulbs I forced indoors sunning themselves on a warm day

one of my many daffodils, just starting to bloom

a patchwork of plant starts, with dahlias that I grew from SEED already in 3 inch POTS.

I'm looking forward to a great growing season!

The stinky spray worked

At least temporarily. The crocuses all BLOOMED so BEAUTIFULLY a couple days ago, including a giant crocus and some mini yellow irises! So exciting! I'm ignoring the predictions of 2 inches of snow this weekend.

Happy Spring!

Dotted with Crocuses

I'm updating this post to include actual pictures of the crocuses:




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The bunnies ate the crocuses... again. Just about to bloom, and the little blossoms were chewed right off. Yesterday, the garden was dotted with bright purple crocus buds, enjoying the 60 degree weather. So I got garlic spray-- that actually smells like wild animal vomit-- to keep the bunnies away from them. A pediatric hematologist recommended I sprinkle dried blood around them, and of course Mike has some of that sitting around, so I'll do that too. There are tulips (I think) coming up now, and I'm horrified at the thought of the bunnies eating those! I only joke about shooting the little furry friends...

This weekend we'll get started on the stone planter in front of the house, and I have flower bulbs that I still need to order... can't decide on the final color theme. Perennials are serious business- you have to choose wisely the first time!

Time to get planning... Spring is really here!

Spring!

Spring is here! I'm not waiting for the vernal equinox to celebrate. The snow is GONE, completely gone, and it is warm, warm, warm (ok, occasionally above 50 degrees). Despite the rainy-ness today, we cleaned up my flower bed a little and measured out some things. Check out the flower garden

and the first flowers of the season!!!!

And every batch of our seeds have germinated, including the delphiniums (tiny sprouts on the upper left)! These dahlias (labeled DV) are begging to be transplanted, and I'm wishing I hadn't planted the coleus next to them with so many tiny seeds in each little pod. They all germinated!

You care for the land and water it; you enrich it abundantly. The streams of God are filled with water to provide the people with grain, for so you have ordained it. You drench its furrows and level its ridges; you soften it with showers and bless its crops. You crown the year with your bounty, and your carts overflow with abundance. The grasslands of the desert overflow; the hills are clothed with gladness. The meadows are covered with flocks and the valleys are mantled with grain; they shout for joy and sing. Psalm 65 : 9-13

Retreating and Blooming

So much excitement in the gardening world! Little seedlings are growing strong under their artificial light. I'm still waiting for the delphiniums, but the rest have begun to show their cotyledons and are photosynthesizing as I type. (Note Mike's peppers in the back.)


Outside, the snow is most definitely retreating- by the end of this week I expect no more than a few very tiny patches where it was piled up. And below you'll see some of the exciting bulb sprouting action going on despite the highs in the 40s!


I will not share any pictures of my bunny-chewed bulbs, or the rose that has been snacked on almost to the ground. It may be sad, but there will still be many blooms this growing season, starting with this beautiful hyacinth, which we didn't think would make it over the winter! The house now smells of Spring!

Update

The beautiful bulbs are doing their thing, inside and out. I now have several patches of bulbs with their tips sticking out of the mud. Unfortunately, the hungry bunnies are taking out their winter munchies out on my Spring bulbs! We're trying to entice them away with hay. Between the freezing temps and the lagomorphs, I'm not sure how well these bulbs are going to make it.

At least all the dahlias I planted inside last weekend have germinated!