"One of the most delightful things about a garden is the anticipation it brings."

Friday, February 26, 2010

Last Fertilizer Friday of February.

It's hard to believe it's already Friday, what a busy week it's been with an even busier weekend coming up. I had really wanted to get to the nursery and pick up some more seeds. I'm hoping to get some indoor seeds started in the next week. We did get some Sweet Peas started outside a few days ago and I'm trying them in pots this time like I saw Joanne do in her garden last year. The place I used to have great success growing them is where I now have the Blueberry bushes, which also love the spot. Plus I thought the other advantage would be that I could move them to the deck when they bloom and we can really enjoy their scent that way.

This is the last Fertilizer Friday of February and I feel lucky to have more blooms to share:
Old Fashioned Bleeding Heart (Dicentra spectabilis) is probably one of my very favorite Spring flowers. I have several in my yard, but each Spring I feel like I need to have more. I never get tired of the heart shaped flowers. They are perfect for putting in little Spring bouquets.

Tete-a-tete Daffodils were almost covered in snow this time last Winter. The little clumps throughout the yard have been multiplying nicely.

Navelwort (Omphalodes cappadocica) 'Starry Eyes'. I can't wait until I can spell this one without looking it up every time! My other plants are finally getting larger, but they are in too shady of an area to get good pictures of.

The first Snowflake (Leucojum) is blooming under the newly moved Dogwood tree.

A freshly planted pink Pansy in the front yard, dirt and all.

Hellebore 'Red Lady' (H. orientalis) which was just planted last year has it's first couple of flowers just opening.

The Corsican Hellebore (H. argutifolius) has flowers opening left and right. It actually started blooming a couple of weeks ago, but I just think it's so pretty I had to post a new picture.

Hellebore (H. x nigersmithii) 'Ivory Prince' was bought on clearance last Spring. I was a little worried it wasn't going to bloom.

Muscari blooms are just popping up.

This is probably the thing I'm most excited about though. Our tiny Meyer Lemon Tree has got several of these tiny lemons forming. They are about 3/4 of an inch. It might not sound like much, but it's the first time we've gotten them. Guess our hand pollinating worked! Now we just hope they continue to grow.

Fertilizer Friday is hosted each Friday by Tootsie at Tootsie Time. Visit her to join in or see who else is "flaunting their flowers."
I hope all of you in the Northeast getting all the snow and wind will be safe. From what they are showing on the news here it looks like it's quite a storm you're getting. Hopefully this will be your last round of snow!
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44 comments:

  1. Dear catherine, You must be delighted with how much you have flowering already and spring has not even yet arrived. I am sure that later in the year your garden will be a mass of colour and interest.

    Sweet Peas are amongst my favourite flowers and are lovely to bring into the house.

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  2. What gorgeous pictures, I love your Starry Eyes. I miss my Dicentras, it will be some time before they are out. I have a giant one at the base of my front steps, and planted a white one last year. :)

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  3. WoW what a lot you have going. I know I'm usually right behind you but don't think so this year. I can't believe your Bleeding Hearts are blooming. Mine are barely showing. Is the wild one I brought showing any life yet? Sure hope it's alive, I have a terrible time keeping them but yet they bloom everywhere around here including the ditches. I like that little Navalwort - pretty.

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  4. Nicely done! I love your plant collection. But really, is navelwort that hard to spell.... Have a great day! It is looking rather grey down our way today I'm thinking the dock and thistle on the Farm are in big trouble, I am in no gracious mood today!

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  5. What glorious flowers! Love your hellebores, have yet to try my hand at them. Wishing you a sun shiney day!
    *hugs*deb

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  6. It is definitely spring in your garden!

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  7. My 'Ivory Prince' sulked for two years before blooming. You must have green thumb.

    Christine in Alaska

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  8. WOW! Gorgeous.
    I admire the variety you have in your garden. I especially liked the Corsican Hellebore. I've never seen something like that....have a happy weekend.

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  9. Your daffodils are blooming too! I may have to plant some Tete-a-Tete next year to go with our Dutch Master. I am jealous though, your Muscari is ahead of mine, although it's the first year for it to bloom. Maybe I planted it a little late. Your hellebores are beautiful too! I love this time of year!

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  10. Wow! Very impressed by all you have blooming right now. Normally I'm not impressed with green blooms, but that Corsican hellebore really is a knock out.

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  11. Those Bleeding Hearts get me every time.

    Seed planting: yes, it's that time we all go just a little crazy. My hopefuls for this year are another Moringa (miracle tree); 6 different papaya varieties; Emblica (Indian gooseberry); Lycium barbarum (goji berry); Myrtus Ugni (Tazzy berry) - just to name a few.

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  12. I was just thinking of your lemon tree this morning and wondering if all of the little gardeners pollinating work was bearing fruit.
    Your red hellebore is so pretty and I love your bleeding hearts. Oh, I hope mine blooms this spring.
    Have a wonderful weekend!
    Lona

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  13. Good Afternoon Catherine, What a feast for my eyes today. Your yard is looking beautiful and I am so excited about your lemons. I bet your girls are happy about the lemons too! I hope you all enjoy the weekend.

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  14. Daffodils and pansies just make me smile from ear to ear. Can't wait for Spring. Stunning photos.

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  15. Hi Catherine thanks for the link and I do hope your sweet peas in pots work well for you.

    I so envy your Dicentra they don't last well in my garden but would love to get some more as they are lovely. The Helebores look lovely sort of want to put your face in their lovely faces not sure why.
    Lots going on in your garden already.

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  16. Catherine thankyou so much for all your patience when it came to leaving a comment on my blog yesterday - I really appreciate you coming back again today to try again....... and succeeed!

    Wow - thats really all I can say here. My dicentra's are hiding under the soil.

    I can never spell those Omp Starry Eyes - I think you know what I mean. I have them in my garden too but you know something I've never looked that closely at the flowers until I saw yours today - I didn't even recognise them at first - aren't they just wee beauties. I can't wait to photograph my own now. Have a Happy Gardening weekend :)

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  17. Catherine, I'm (just a little) envious of your beautiful Spring happenings. I know that when things begin sprouting around here, my heart will be sooo happy! :-) Your hellebores are wonderful.

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  18. Hi Catherine! I am amazed by your bleeding heart. So early! Congratulations on your first lemons!

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  19. Amazing pictures! Those daffodils are incredible this time of year. I need to stop by my local trader joes and pic up a few dozen! Cheers~

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  20. Lovely flowers, but I'm still trying to picture a belly button with a wart in it, after reading about the cute little navelwort flower! My mental image isn't so beautiful :-)

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  21. All of your photos are outstanding as usual, Catherine. But I must say the Bleeding Heart is priceless. They are so much earlier this year!

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  22. I forgot to tell you that the knautia is looking good after I spilled it on my wild trip home! ;-) I looked up pictures of it - I'm going to love it aren't I? It's beautiful!!!
    Di's Poppy is blooming, my first seeds to germinate. It's in one of two containers with your poppies and mine. Hope they're right behind it. Am I excited or what?

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  23. Your Bleeding Heart is blooming already, wow. That's such a spectacular spring flower. I *love* the Navelwort. What a beautiful combination of heavenly blue and white.

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  24. I love all of your flowers, but I think the Navelwort is my favorite this week. How exciting to have lemons...all your hard work has paid off!

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  25. Hi, Catherine! Your garden is showing loads of beautiful blooms! Very nice...I wish mine looked as nice as yours at the moment!

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  26. OK, I was amazed by the blooms and jealous. Then I saw the lemons. Are you kidding me??? My tree hasn't bloomed since the first year and I never got a lemon! You need to do a post on everything you've done to that lemon tree!

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  27. Thank you all for visiting!

    Ginger - About an hour after taking the lemon picture I knocked the whole thing over, luckily I grabbed it fast enough and didn't loose anything but a pile of dirt.
    Aside from repotting it and bringing it inside in December the only other thing I've done is spread coffee grounds around it a few times and mist it when I remember.

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  28. Beautiful I just love spring. You have the same plants that grow here. I so wish I had my own place and didn't rent so I could play in the dirt again.

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  29. Ya'll have been blessed with good weather haven't you..I too am most impressed with your hand pollinated lemon!

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  30. wow lady...this is a FLAUNT! I love it all!!!
    I am really enjoying your garden this week for sure!
    that Muscari is neat! and Lemons? how cool is that!

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  31. We here at the Hollow are quite envious, and wish WE could have a Lemon tree. Fresh lemon squeezed into our teacups.... yummmm!

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  32. I am very impressed with your photos. And the Meyer lemon!

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  33. Hi Catherine. Me again!

    I think you are right about the miracle tree not growing in your area (but you can grow it in a pot). It's called the miracle tree because of the nutritional value of the leaves. And, the seeds have a most unique property: they can purify water. Yes, dirty water made clean by these seeds!

    Since you are in zone 8a (I'm in zone 11 la-la land) you can grow Goji. Check this plant out. It just about blows everything off the ORAC scale for antioxidants. It has 18 amino acids ... it's a veritable wonder.

    And the Chilean guava would be easier for you to grow than me.

    Did I tell you about my clove tree?
    I'm going to plant it next to my Cinnamon tree in the spice orchard!

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  34. Wow! What a contrast to my wintery world. I love your Corsican Hellebore and your Muscari photos!! Lovely! Sweet peas growing up your deck sounds perfect!

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  35. I'm usually a bit more patient for spring to get here at this point of the year. Maybe it's because we have been unseasonably cold the last couple months. We're finally seeing highs above freezing the last few days, though. I can't decide if seeing your lovely spring blooms is giving me hope or making me more impatient.

    I have a white and a pink blooming bleeding heart. Reading what you said caused me to think about finding more places for them. They frequently go dormant in the summer. Yours sure is a pretty colored one.

    I just discovered hellebores a couple years ago, and found several kinds to plant last spring and summer. Yours sure are pretty. I don't know if I've seen that red one anywhere else. What a beauty!

    Well, I'll be watching for the pansies to arrive, and getting some blooms in the yard in the next few weeks.

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  36. What a perfect glimpse of spring you've given us. Thank you! The Navelwort is new to me and so pretty. I have Hellebore envy seeing all your beauties. That pink one in a previous post is magical with all those blooms! Great job with the Meyer Lemon. How cute those little baby lemons are :)
    Your garden is a work of art and it's easy to see that it's a labor of love. You do a wonderful job and those sweet little girls are learning to love the garden too I see :)

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  37. Catherine, your flowers are stunning!!! The hellebores are really flourishing - love the navelwort, bleeding heart and daffodils. Thanks for sharing and have a great weekend!
    Beth

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  38. Catherine,
    I can't believe how much you've got going on in your garden. The Corsican Hellebore and Cherry Blossoms (pictured in an earlier post) are such a sight to see. I too enjoy the Old Fashioned Bleeding Heart - I have planted the white, but would like to add one in red. A very enjoyable post! :)

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  39. I'm a big fan of Muscari blooms. The sight of them make me happy.

    I've been unable to read blogs lately and see that I've missed a lot.

    donna

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  40. Oh my goodness, I'm so jealous after seeing all the spring flowers popping up. I'm watching it snow as I type this. We have a while to go before seeing signs of spring ~ THANK YOU for sharing yours.

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  41. Hi Catherine - great blooms and pics, especially love that bleeding heart one and the promise of lemons to come. Meyers are the best, my favorite!! We missed you yesterday, sorry it was at a time you couldn't make it. Next time is proposed for March 28 - hope to see you then!

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  42. Hi Catherine.

    That Navelwort is really delicate.

    I can't believe it's March already.

    Spring looks to have come early for you.

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  43. Wow,I see the spring is in your garden....we must wait for the spring......wonderful pictures! greetings from Sandra

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  44. Wow, those blooms ~ they must be your pride!

    I love those sunny looking daffodils.

    The Muscari blooms are something new to me. They look unique!

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