Thoughtful musings on various topics by interesting people at Blithewold
Spring is out of order
Which isn’t to say that anything is broken, in need of fixing. I just don’t ever remember magnolias blooming before the forsythia. Saucer magnolias are out all over town, our hedge of M. x loebneri … Read more.
Unpredictable
Yesterday a reporter from one of the local papers called to ask about the daffodils. She wondered when they would bloom; are they early; how long would they last; and what comes next? A very … Read more.
Mid-March bloom report
As we get closer to Daffodil Days here at Blithewold I keep expecting to be asked for a tally of how many are in bloom. I’m ready for it. Today there are 3 daffodils in … Read more.
Good for you
Yesterday was the kind of day that made me feel very sorry for anyone stuck indoors. High 60s, sunny blue sky, birds singing, bees buzzing: Exactly the kind of short-sleeves day we all desperately crave … Read more.
The first daff is the sweetest
A little yellow goes a long way at the beginning of the daffodil season. ‘Little Gem’ in the moongate bed is always the first of our daffs to bloom. (The ones pictured below are an … Read more.
Sweet peas and springter
I really don’t know what to make of this season. The last few days have been in the bird-song-balmy 50’s but we woke this morning to fat flakes. They have already turned to freezing rain … Read more.
Pretty things
It’s hard not to want pretty things on Valentine’s Day. Or any day for that matter. Especially any day in February. But the sun is climbing higher, the plants in the greenhouse are perking up, … Read more.
Pruner sharpening 101 (remedial lesson)
The birds are singing, the Mt. Aso pussywillow (Salix chaenomeloides ‘Mt. Aso’) is coloring buds, crocus are emerging, and it feels for all the world like early-spring outside. Given that we really ought to still … Read more.
Spring tease
It’s still January for at least for another day or so, but it looks strangely an awful lot like mid-February – or even March here and there, and feels about the same. My brain thinks … Read more.
The weight of winter blooms
Gardeners are reputed to be an optimistic group but I think we might just be stubborn. Most of us at least are prone to occasional – usually weather related – bouts of pessimism, gloom-and-doom opinion … Read more.