Canadian Columbine is blooming in my garden! Small consolation in a garden ravaged by last years drought, total lack of care and a tornado :)
I am buying too many plants from work. We can order anything at all we like from our suppliers at wholesale cost. The suppliers we use have a limited listing, but some very nice things. Mostly I have smaller plants and sedums for pots right now.
Today I go today is my day off and I am going to the "Growers Outlet" the place for overstocks and left over items that growers sell at a discount. It's open to the public and a local friend and I are going. She's fairly new here and a garden maniac - left New Orleans after Katrina and longs for her old garden but has to learn a new way to garden.
Monday the gal I work with at the garden center and I are going to do a special buy at a small local grower that sells specialty juicy plants. This is so fun! Because the business is small we can ask clients what they want or if they have a space they can't fill and choose things for them specially.
Lastly I am working on a design for a client. Right now I'm doing the front yard shade garden with a strip of sun by the road. Her favorite colors together are ORANGE AND PINK!! Ohh, boy. The design came to me late last night (I'd been waiting two weeks for it to come) and it is THRILLING to see it on paper. This garden light situation of hers can have some of the thrill of bright colored sun lovers and the sereneness of lush shade plantings. Her small 50's bungalow is crying out for some much needed new landscaping.

I still haven't found one of your purple crepes here yet Flowerlady. Now I have space to plant one too!

Hi Rainey, nothing much happening here yet but my Magnolia stellata is starting to pop the only trouble with this is it's still to darn cold so don't imagine we'll be able to enjoy any of it's delectable perfume. The weatherman is promising a better weekend temperature wise, really looking forwards to that.
Well you know the thing I call constructive staring, I wanted to send some unrooted Fuchsia cuttings through the mail and was standing at the kitchen sink one day looking out into my still well almost blah garden and came up with this idea, tried it out and it seems to work. I took a couple of cuttings about an inch and a half long, wrapped the cut end in a bit of wet paper towel, put the cuttings in zip lock baggies, blew some air into them with a straw and closed the bags quickly, so now they were sealed in their own little cocoons. I thought this might be a way of cushioning them so the don't get crushed on their journey through the mail. I took these and placed them in a box, stuck them in a corner and left them for five days. When I opened the box the cuttings looked better than when I first did it. I recut the ends and put them to root. The baggies have to be of a fairly good quality some of the cheaper ziplocks won't hold air.
I'm still slugging away in the garden, we did plant another Rhodie 'Jonathan Shaw' to replace something that had gotten to big for the space I had given it, now I'm in the process rearranging my Michaelmas Daisy bed, that is in between days of rain and hail. April is the month we get hail here, if you have lettuce planted out in the open it's sure to get shredded. Although I'm a person who doesn't fair too well when it gets over 75 I sure would like to be in your neck of the woods for a few days.

Annette

It's the in-between season: early spring pretties like bulbs and azaleas are mostly gone.

We have philadelphus blooming. It follows regular dogwood.

Dianthus will carry the butterflies until more nectar plants open. Gaillardia and echinacea have buds.
We do have a few of this and one of that: roses are starting, sweet peas are blooming.
Nicotiana is blooming nicely and the poppy show is starting.

Big disappointments: There will be few 'Black' flowers. The "Black Peony" poppies turned out to be single pink.
"Black Out" Asiatic lilies look as if they're going to be orange, while the yellow will be true.
I'm still waiting for my black violas from seed to bloom.

I've been a little under the weather, so everything has to limp along without me for a few more days.
Nell

Hello, Flower, half of the trees on my property have leafed out. I've been seeing cabbage moths for a few weeks. This week I saw a couple of butterflies.

The Speedwell is in bloom. Dianthus is beginning to put out flowers. My three lilac trees are in full bloom. I'll put a photo up in the gallery. My forsythia only has a couple of flowers. I am puzzled, perhaps the wind blew the blossoms off.

My newest dog keeps eating the tulips. She also broke the cattle fence around the asparagus, dug up half of those plants and ate them. She is an eighteen month old Samoyed/heeler cross. I've never had a heeler or a Sammie do such damage. Hopefully she will outgrow this behavior. She got a good dousing with the hose the other day, when I finally caught her in the act. That might help her to learn to stay out of fenced gardens.

I planted potatoes yesterday. The onion plot looks really good. I vowed to only do seeds this year. However, yesterday I came home from the hardware store with a six-pack of mixed dwarf snapdragons, a six-pack of mixed lobelia (really pretty), a Japanese eggplant, a marjoram, and a scarlet geranium. Crab grass has invaded a flower garden, drat and tarnation.

Lorna

Good Morning Flower and all,

Well the good news is that my first crocus has bloomed. There is still lots of snow but it is melting back from the edges, so the crocus decided it was time. There are also lots of tulip leaves showing where the snow has melted and some comming up through the edges of the snow.

The bad news is the snow has dissappeared around the base of the rhodo and it looks like it got crushed by the snow. The main stem is broken. The rhodo itself is laying flat, still under the snow. I can see what looks like 3 other stems that I am hoping are NOT broken off, just bent. This is a little disappointing. However, I am thinking of replacing it. Next fall when it gets wrapped in burlap, I will also put a wood teepee over it so the new one won't get crushed. Of course I still have to see what the rest of this one looks like first.

Still planting up a storm indoors. I bought 2 more daylily roots that are now under lights. And still sowing lots of seed, and taking cuttings. I finished planting up the impatiens in the blooming bags this week. Yay that is a big job that takes a lot of time. Some of the plant orders are starting to be delivered. They get potted up as they arrive.

I bought 2 tall bearded iris rhizomes and potted them up...and am very pleased that they are growing and doing very well indoors. Hopefully these will flower this year....as they may not be hardy enough to make it through next winter.

Sierra

I envy your butterflies, Flower :-) Please post pic's of your crape in bloom. That is such a beautiful tree.

GGG, what a thrill to be able to plan a garden for a client. Orange and pink can be a lovely combo.

Hope your feeling better soon, Nell.

*LOL* Lorna...when my Quinton was a puppy he ate two couches. Little monsters but you gotta love 'em.

The news said this morning our temp's are on the rise. Suppose to be in the high 70's to low 80's this weekend. Sweetpeas are in bloom and I couldn't be happier. The mason bee house is filling up quickly with mud plugs. The bullfrog has come out after missing for months. I thought he died but I spotted him in the pond.

Ackk! Voles! With our snow gone, I can see that at least one vole made himself at home in my little corner cottage garden this winter. The little devil made rutted trails from one plant to another as he sampled the different delights at ThinMan's salad bar. His score is seven Japanese maple seedlings with only their top halves left hanging from stakes; one nice sedum with stems intact, but attached to absolutely nothing below; a two year old John Davis rose that looks girdled; and one Henryi clematis. He had a go at my Harry Lauder'$ Walking $tick, but I think ate only two of the main roots. I'm hoping he'll survive. Harry, not the vole.

I've never had a vole problem before. It looks like I would have to put small-holed wire mesh right down into the ground to protect the plants from those varmints. Maybe next year, I'll try that.

On an more upbeat note, I was able to get a few rows planted in my cutting garden yesterday, though I was wearing gloves, a hat, and insulated coveralls to fight the forty degree temps and wind. In two or three months or so that should give me some nice larkspur, corn cockles, corn flowers, bupleurum and bells of Ireland to add to my other offerings at the farmers market this summer.

It's good to hear about all of your gardens. It actually seems to make the growing season seem longer here, when I know what's going on at your house.

ThinMan

"What's happening in your gardens?"

Well, I should probably post a pic to give you a really good idea but for now try to imagine a dozer, a backhoe and a tractor blazing down the side of my property and tearing down the mountain of dirt that was once my view out my kitchen window. I've been breathing diesel fumes and dirt/dust for two days but my gardening area has doubled so I'm over it. : ) We can now reach the back four acres without driving around our neighbor's property below ours and up through another neighbor's acreage via an easement. More room for roses - Whoo hoo!

Diana

I was sitting on the patio listening to the birds. There are a lot more here than out off town.
Confederate rose, sweet olive, and mock orange have leafed out.
I have baby tomatoes! But I was told the squirrels will get them, so I have to put some fencing around and over them. I am also trying the hanging bucket method.

{{gwi:651940}}

Here in zone 6, things are just beginning to happen. I have one lone daffodil that has bloomed and others forming buds. The columbines are starting to leaf out. So is the autumn joy sedum - and it seems to have a little baby nearby that I'm going to transplant. The crocus are blooming under the tree in my backyard and I'm hoping what I see back there is my globe allium coming back to life! I brought it from the other house and it didn't bloom last year - of course I may have planted something else in that spot...we'll just have to wait and see.

What's the hanging bucket method?

Yesterday was our plant swap, so I have been busy.
The hanging bucket pic shows a tomato plant growing out the bottom of the bucket. Then hang it and hopefully the critters can't get to the tomatoes, since it is up high.
If you want directions let me know, or do a google.

Kathy

It's done, I dug 60 M. daisies, tilled and amended the 20'x I think 10' bed. Replanted 40, wanted to give them more room so they didn't run into each other. Hopefully I've got them labeled correctly, but I did make a map last year just in case. What use to take me 1 day now takes 2 LOL. Now I just have to find homes for the 20 left over. I'm sure I'll be shovel pruning a few after they bloom, I have a feeling one of my good ones got mixed up in the leftovers so I'll have to pot them all up.
My daphne is blooming and is giving off the most amazing perfume in the pool room and can you believe this.... I went to get my watering can off a shelf, there was an old hollow form (reject) of DH's wood turning propped up against it, when I went to move it I discovered a little wren had made her nest in it sooo I wedged it in the clematis vine up a little higher, did this once before when a wren decided to make a nest in the winch on our boat trailer, moved her nesting material into one of those coconut shell birdhouses, she didn't even blink an eye.
Another beautiful spring day here, don't know how long this lovely weather is going to hold but it sure is a nice break from the cold and rain.

Annette

Well, I got 2 hours of raking in the yard today - friends dropped by earlier. I too have varmints in my grass - moles, voles....the holes and damage looks too big too be the little blind voles I remember. Again, this is my first viewing of this yard without snow. TM, the holes into the ground are at least 1 inch or more. Lots of furrows, channels cut out of the lawn, and the afore mentioned holes - everywhere but the garden!! The cats arent out hunting yet it seems, and I wonder if they will see these guys as prey.....hmmm. Also, in my experience, those stems will all take root. I have been know to just shove a broken piece into the earth.

Anyway, yes, very exciting to actually be out there. There is a garden by the split rail fence that I have cleared of leaves: in it, there is myrtle, sedum, daylilies, a few things I cant identify, daffs, croci, maybe some tulips that have no hope of blooming, they are so small. I am posting a question, but maybe someone here knows the answer - when do I divide a hosta...it is up about 2 inches. I could probably just do it now, but I have the luxury of waiting for the perfect time.

Happy Gardening, All.

Not a whole lot is happening, but it is FINALLY starting to feel like spring around here. Sunday was cold but no rain, so I cut back the perennials that had been left up for winter interest. It looked like a completely different garden with little bits of green popping up all over the place! The only thing actually blooming are some snowdrop by the side of the garage - a remnant from the former owners.

I also swept the patio - it looks sooo much nicer now that it doesn't have debris all over it.

Oh, yeah - there's another addition to the yard. Not part of my plan exactly, but Sam's Club had a cool geodesic dome climbing thing like at the playground by my parents house when I was growing up. It was only $44, so I had to get it! It is blue and yellow painted metal, with red discs where they all attach together. It's bright and cheerful, tho doesn't really match my intended color scheme! I'm trying to tell myself that I probably won't get around to planting the pink/red/white rose border near it for a long, long time, and maybe then it'll be gone...

Oh, yeah. Also for dd's 4th birthday, I gave her the garden set I mentioned snagging at the silent auction. She loved it, and we planted the seeds (zinnias, sunflowers, and cosmos) the very next day. The kids are very excited to see the sprouts, tho ds(6) is now bugging me to get some seeds for him. He also drew me a great picture of how flowers grow, including the roots underground, earthworms, and the wind blowing the seeds around!

I'm still debating whether or not I'm going to order my roses this year. Our taxes ended up nasty (long story) and I'm trying to be frugal - but it is very sad the idea that I might have to wait another year for my roses and my arbor. The perennials are all ordered, tho, so at least I will have those.

Hmmm...maybe more is happening than I originally thought! This post really grew!

Hey ya'll,
Wow sound like everyone is busy or
busy planing for spring planting.
Our gardens are in full swing. Temps
have been up and rain has been steady.
Some thunder storms and high winds
but not to bad. We planted some more
flowers in pots on the front porch
today and discovered a mocking bird
nest in our golden dew drop bush.
Very territorial birds. Didn't like
us being so close to their home.
Good luck with your gardens.
Brenda

Here is a link that might be useful: http://home-and-garden.webshots.com/album/341160218YiLpsn