FLOWERY FEBRUARY

 "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

The Cheerful blooms of Prunus mume ' peggy clarke ' are a welcome sight in my garden and the bees love it as well.

I have two large beds of these early blooming Hellebores.  Even when not in bloom they have exotic tropical-looking foliage.  Hellebores bloom for 2 months.

Edgeworthia, aka, Chinese paper bush has a beautiful flower and incredible fragrance.  When the blooms die a tropical looking leaf appears.

And of course what says Spring more than the first daffodils ?  These escaped my neighbors yard and spread to mine !  I hope that they continue to naturalize and fill the garden.

                           

                             Although it doesn't bloom until later, I love this wine-                                     color Euphorbia that looks great all year round.

                             'ascot rainbow ' euphorbia's foliage is also colorful

                              all season.

    How a garden looks when its NOT in bloom is more important to me than when it is.  I have something in bloom or leaf all season.   The golden shrub above is 'sunshine' privet and keeps its color and leaf all season.

Moving on to March and the beginning of Spring.  Looking forward to developing my veggie garden and adding a lot of pollinator plants to my roadside garden.

JANUARY'S MIXED BAG

 

   

              HAPPY NEW YEAR !

It seems to me the older you get the faster time passes.  Here we are in a brand new year and this January has been, as it often is, a mixed bag when it comes to weather -first Spring-like temperatures and bam ! a whole week of below freezing, which is very hard on the garden, especially those that are beginning their bloom cycle.

   The daffodils are hardy and despite the freeze managed to bloom on schedule.

Some of my camellias were frozen in the bud and the hellebores were limp from the extreme cold. My most anticipated blooms in January are the beautiful pink Prunus mume 'peggy clarke ' which also attracts lots of bees.

 

It, too, suprised me with its hardiness and bloomed right on schedule.

New year, new plans for the garden. I have to replace most of my asters due to a rabbit that's taken up residence in the sweet garden.  My garden companion Odie, a Schnauzer-Poodle mix, is on the job and sniffing out the rascal.  I'm planning to plant more asters this Spring and keep them saturated with bunny repellent and hot pepper spray.

One of the best noses in the business-Schnauzers.  Here Odie is sniffing out a bunny that devoured my asters. He's also chasing voles.  I've been spraying their tunnels with castor oil which seems to help.

I think its more important how a garden looks when it's not in flower and I add lots of evergreens and texture so that it's interesting in every season.

January is the coldest month here in central N.C. and I'm always happy to see it leave because it means that Spring is just around the corner.

DECEMBER AGAIN A CHILD

"December finds himself again a child
Even as he undergoes his age.
Cold and early darkness now descends,
Embracing sanctuaries of delight.
More and more he stares into the night,
Becoming less and less concerned with ends,
Emblem of the innocent as sage
Restored to wonder by what he must yield."
- Nicholas Gordon

How did it happen that we are now deep in December the last month of the year? This year passed so fast. We celebrated my husband Simon's 90th birthday and even though he is frail from Chronic heart disease he still tries to enjoy each day as it comes.  We both feel so fortunate to have our immediate family around us as we enjoy our life in lovely North Carolina.  

 This month has been extremely mild with temperatures in the 60's and even 70's and I enjoy sitting on the deck and admiring my still vibrant garden.  I know that this will soon be impossible as the coldest month -January is just around the corner and its weather is very unpredictable.  

Late-blooming Japanese mums are still blooming in my December garden.  Now is the time to take a break from gardening and make plans for the coming New Year.   I want to plant more vegetable this Spring and I have lots of seeds to scatter in my wildflower roadside garden .

Farewell to December and hello to the coming New Year.