February's Face

"Late February days; and now, at last,

Might you have thought that

Winter's woe was past;

So fair the sky was and so soft the air."

-  William Morris  

Yes, hard to believe but that's my Clematis 'armandii' blooming smack dab in the middle of February this year -at least a month early !  Oh, and did I mention the fragrance ? Sweet, sweet clematis !

The daffodils were abundant this year, spreading their golden heads even further than last.  I'm making a note to plant more, along with some purple alliums.

The beautiful Lenten Rose, or hellebores, that I have lining the long walk from the main road to my house, have been blooming all month.  They are spreading quickly and I need to divide and transplant after they finish their long  blooms. I love the fact that their beautiful foliage is spectacular and evergreen.

I love the white Hellebores in my frontyard forest because they show up better than the others.  That's my young, newly planted dogwood in the background.  It's my aim to fill the bare spots in my forest with native dogwoods.

I thought that last summer's drought might have killed most of my Ajuga but thank goodness it didn't.  I love its cobalt-blue blooms.

In my backyard garden this gorgeous, hardy, semi-evergreen groundcover 'Georgia Blue ' creeping Speedwell is a welcome sight this early Spring.  It spreads nicely and I divide and transplant it after it blooms.

Now onto March.