Looking for color on a(nother) dreary day.

 We are back to the usual wet and gray days we've seen so much of lately.  It was so nice to see some dry days last week after weeks of gray, wet weather.  I'm glad I enjoyed the sun while it was here because the rain is back.  There are many rivers with flood watches and we are just about double our average rainfall for March.  Between rain showers today I took a walk around the yard to see what has changed, it seems that there are changes overnight during this time of year.  The apple and pear trees and blueberry bushes are all very close to blooming.  I found flower buds on Clematis 'Nelly Moser' and 'Miss Bateman' and other Clematises seem to just be taking off growing right now.  The tulips all have buds up above the leaves now.  I found that a few plants that were "missing" are now making their way through the soil.  I also found that weeds are just going crazy too, I just need a couple of dry days to take care of them.
Here is a bit of color I found today:

 Enjoying the view of our neighbors Forsythia.  Some years he cuts it way down and we can't see it, so glad we can this year.  The ground drops about 4 feet on the other side of that fence so this Forsythia is pretty tall.

 I like the view of the path from this angle.  Daffodils and Tete-a-tetes are all blooming, but facing the fence, Golden Mock Orange and the pretty leaves of the White Bleeding Heart all pop.

 Finally the Old-fashioned Bleeding Heart (Dicentra spectabilis)  has buds starting.  They are so behind and seem much smaller than usual.

 Muscari is just about ready to be picked for little spring bouquets.

 Pink Flowering Currant (Ribes sanguineum) is beautiful this year.  It has gotten so tall and is covered in flowers.  So far I haven't seen any Hummingbirds at it, maybe they don't like the rain either.

 Marsh Marigold in the pond which needs a bigger container.

 Navelwort (Omphalodes cappadocica) 'Starry Eyes'.

The flower from this Epimedium surprised me, it's so bright it stood out against the Crocus and Bluebell foliage around it.

Probably one of my favorite container plantings I've ever done.  It is so bright!

Looks like our next chance at a dry day is Sunday, otherwise it's rain all the way through next weekend.  I'm just hoping this spring won't be as wet and cool as last spring was.  It was hard on many of the plants (and gardeners).

All words and photos in this post are property of A Gardener in Progress.

The Path garden is waking up!

 Today felt like it should've been the first day of spring.  It was sunny and warm (around 60) with a gentle breeze blowing.  I spent the majority of the day working in the front yard, but had to see how the path garden was looking since it's pretty behind where it normally is this time of year.  I was happy to see that everything is waking up, in fact I was shocked at just how quickly some things had changed since I last looked.

 A look down the path from this morning.  It's hard to see in this picture both Clematises on the arbor have lots of new growth.  I know I should prune 'Comtesse de Bouchaud' back but it's so full of new growth, some of which look like flower buds, that I've decided to leave it and will prune when it's done blooming.  Geraniums are filling in along the deck.

Golden Mock Orange (Philadelphus) is leafing out.  I can't wait to smell it's pretty white flowers soon.

Old-fashioned Bleeding Heart (Dicentra spectabilis) is starting to grow much faster now after some warmer weather.

One of my and the hummingbirds favorite spring blooming shrubs is Pink Flowering Currant (Ribes sanguineum).  I just love how it looks against the bark of the Ponderosa Pine.

Navelwort (Omphalodes cappadocica) 'Starry Eyes' is beginning to spread some.  It's flowers are a true blue, but tiny.  You need to get right down low to appreciate them.

Camellia japonica 'Marie Bracey'

Corylopsis (Winter Hazel) 'Buttercup' is a tricky one to photograph.  It has the softest butter yellow flowers.

 Solomon's Seal (Polygonatum commutatum) is popping up all over the place.  I'm so happy it continues to spread under this big rhododendron.

I also found flower buds on Epimedium, as well as tiny leaves emerging where I thought a mole's continually pushing up on another one had killed it, and flower buds on the fruiting currant bush.  Still no signs of life on a my favorite hydrangea in the path garden.   No signs of Uvularia or Virginia Bluebells yet either.
Sometimes I get so focused on one part of my garden that I sort of forget about other areas.  It's little signs of the path garden waking up that remind me of how pretty this part of the garden is in spring.  It just might be my favorite part of the yard this time of year.
Hope you are finding more and more of your garden waking up soon.
All words and photos in this post are property of A Gardener in Progress.

It's just a matter of time.

Not too long I mentioned how behind the garden was getting from all of the below normal temperatures we'd been having.  I knew a few days above 50 would inspire the plants to get growing.  Along with some warmer weather (50 degrees feels warm right now) we've had lots of rain and wind.  Yesterday we set a record for rainfall.  I'm not sure I've seen it rain that hard many times before.  In one day we received half the average rainfall for March.  But, it's hard to complain when the plants seem to be getting revved up for a nice big spring show.

The Blueberry Bushes are loaded with buds.

Camellia japonica 'Marie Bracey' is finally starting to show a little pink.

Ribes sanguineum or Pink Flowering Currant is usually in bloom during March.  It looks like it won't be long now though.

Tete-a-tete daffodils are behind too, they sure got beat up by the rain.  I love how bright and cheery they are.

Marsh Marigold has one tattered bloom.  I also saw that the Water Hawthorne in the pond is starting to bloom.

These Daffodils seem to be on time, they bloom after the Tete-a-tetes are finished.

This Pulmonaria was a seedling that surprised me a couple of years ago.  I think this will be it's first year blooming, it's got lots of buds on it.

Crossing my fingers that this Magnolia 'Vulcan' finally blooms.  We had a late frost last year that killed the buds.

The Weeping Cherry tree is starting to bloom.

This might not look that exciting, but to me it's great news.  I dug up and moved this Peony a few weeks ago, just before the big freeze and snow.  I was hoping I hadn't killed it.  I'm doubtful it will bloom, but still hoping it might.

I found this the other day at a little antique mall near us.  I can't wait to plant it.  I'm trying to decide whether to make it a small water garden or a container garden.

I spotted this Bewick's Wren in the Snowball Bush with a little tuft of what looks like dog fur.  I couldn't figure out where he was going with it.  Early today I noticed sticks on our deck under the Pine tree and wondered where they were coming from.  Were the school kids throwing them over the fence?  (You'd be surprised at what they throw over).  They were not Pine tree twigs.  After seeing this wren with it's nesting material I remembered that a few years ago Crows built a nest in the Pine tree and I found the same types of sticks on the deck.  The wind must have knocked them loose.

I probably won't be around much the next several days since we will have company staying with us this weekend.  Hopefully the next time I post some of these buds will have opened into flowers. 
All words and photos in this post are property of A Gardener in Progress.

What have we here?

We were lucky enough to have another dry day and even some sun peeking out on Saturday.  After watching a very close and nerve-wracking basketball game of Sweet Pea's (they won!), we hurried home to be able to enjoy the weather.  It was so mild that it felt more like early spring than the middle of winter.  While I started cleaning up the shed garden and around the pond both of the girls worked on the fairy garden, giving it a little "updating".  Sweet Pea showed me the 2 inch tall Japanese Maple "sapling" that she planted in the tiniest terra cotta pot I've seen.  The little pot is only about 1 1/2 inches tall itself, perfect for fairies to tend.  She plans to do a post on it soon, her blog is listed in the PNW garden blogroll.
I walked around the path garden looking for bulbs that may have popped up and found a really nice surprise...

One of the Pulmonarias has begun to flower!  This tagless one was rescued from the nursery a couple of years ago, this is the first time it's bloomed.

Even though it's only January the path is already starting to get the look of spring.  The Pink Flowering Currant's (Ribes sanguineum) buds are growing more each day, Sweet Woodruff (Galium odoratum) is greening up and the scent of Sarcococca/Sweet Box carries across the yard.  Can you see the Tete-a-tete Daffodils coming up?

Old-fashioned Bleeding Hearts (Dicentra spectabilis) are emerging.

The Fairies have hung their door at the bottom of the giant Ponderosa Pine and are busy getting the garden ready for spring.  The green coming up at the bottom of the picture are Bluebells, we have lots and lots of them ☺.

Fairies lounging by the pond.

And fairies hiding in the shed garden.  This little area is becoming one of my favorite parts of the shed garden.  This is a Flowering Currant 'King Edward VII' with Epimedium and Hellebore 'Blue Lady' growing nearby.  Epimedium has done so well in my dry shade that I plan to pick a few more up this year.

I found an interesting post on Cliff Mass' weather blog (he's a professor of atmospheric sciences at the University of Washington) talking about what has happened with the La Nina winter we were predicted to have here in the Pacific Northwest (a prediction of increased snowfalls and colder temperatures than we've had in many years).  As most of us have noticed that live here, aside from snowing a few times, the weather doesn't seem that unusual compared to most winters here.  His blog is always interesting and if you live around here it's a great one to check out.

Something to look forward to...

Is it spring yet?  Just kidding... sort of.  After the freeze we had last week the garden doesn't have much blooming besides some cheerful Pansies and Violas.  I see lots of buds have formed on Hellebores, rhododendrons, Sarcococcas and Camellias but it will be awhile before I get to see them blooming.  It's been very rainy and the ground is too wet to do much in so I've already been going through my garden photos to remind myself of what the first blooms will be.  These spring bloomers have always been very reliable in my zone 8 garden, I would plant all of them again and if I have room I'll gladly add them to other places.
Here are some of the first flowers that will be blooming in early spring:

 Hellebores (H. orientalis) are usually the first to bloom and can be blooming as early as January.  Last year I added a double and am very excited to see how it looks this spring.  I've already made room for another double in the entry garden.  Hellebores can get very pricey, but the good thing about them is that they reseed freely and will give you lots of babies to move or share, they don't usually look like the parent plant though.  The flower buds come up from the ground in late winter and seeing those buds are one of my favorite discoveries in the winter.

 Corsican Hellebore (H. argutifolius) blooms a little later than the ones above.  They also bloom on the end of the flower stems, they already have set quite a few buds.  This was a seedling from a friend and has already started reseeding in my garden.  This type can handle quite a bit more sun and gets to be about 2 feet high and 2 to 3 feet wide.

 Tete-a-tete daffodils seem to be much easier for me than the larger daffodils.  These have been multiplying like crazy over the last few years.  I love how they look popping up from the snow, the yellow seems extra bright then.

 Pulmonaria is another favorite.  It starts blooming very late in winter and then continues to bloom for several months.  This is another that will reseed which is great because they tend to be a little expensive too at most nurseries.

 Winter Hazel (Corylopsis) 'Buttercup' has the sweetest flowers.  They are hard to photograph with my camera because of how light they are.  The whole shrub is covered in the dainty yellow flowers, then it leafs out after.  It's very slow growing, which is good since it probably doesn't have much growing space where it is.

 Old Fashioned Bleeding Hearts (Dicentra spectabilis) is another flower I look forward to seeing.  It seems to start showing signs of life in late winter and once it starts coming up it grows quickly.  These remind me of my mom because when I was living in an apartment and didn't have a garden I asked her to plant one in her garden so I could see what they looked like.  I had only seen the name and was dying to know what the flower would look like.  Of course under my mom's green thumb it grew larger than any of mine have ever dreamed of growing.  I also grow the 'Alba' variety which is pure white and just beautiful.

 Camellia japonicas are early spring bloomers in my yard.  I see them blooming a month or so earlier in other gardens, I think it must have to do with the amount of sun mine get.  I know not everyone is a fan of Camellias, but they do well in my garden and I appreciate their evergreen leaves as well as the pretty flowers.

Pink Flowering Currant (Ribes sanguineum) is not only my favorite spring blooming shrub but also the hummingbirds who fight over it.  It took a few years to really get settled in under the pine tree, but now it is loaded in flowers every March.

A few other late winter/early spring blooms are Sarcococcas, Water Hawthorn (which grows in the pond), Tulips and Crocuses. 

What are some of your favorite early spring bloomers?

Frost free Fertilizer Friday.

Another week has flown by and Spring break is just about over. Yesterday, which was forecast to be stormy and even started with a little snow, turned into a beautiful day, cool but sunny skies. We spent part of our day at a fruit market which I discovered sold many plants as well, and at a very reasonable price. So we picked up Dill (to hopefully attract butterflies), Campanula rotundifolia 'Olympica', Dianthus 'Plumerius' and Chocolate Mint. All but the mint will go into the butterfly garden, mint is always planted in pots to keep them contained in my garden. We once rented a house that someone had let mint run wild in the garden. It was everywhere and impossible to remove. Even something that smells like Chocolate needs to be kept contained. ☺
The buds on so many plants are beginning to appear; Hydrangeas, Iris (a real surprise), tiny Rose buds and Columbines and the Dogwood are very close to blooming.
April 9th is supposed to be the last frost date for where I live, and that means I can begin sowing some more seeds outside now. I've got lots of things sitting and waiting to go in the ground and it looks like this weekend the weather should cooperate for me to be able to plant.

Pink Flowering Currant (Ribes sanguineum) is still looking good, although it's just past it's peak time. It bloomed early and the hummingbirds haven't found it yet, although I did see a hummingbird at one of the feeders yesterday. I always love how the flowers look against the bark of the Ponderosa Pine.

I never tire of looking at the Bleeding Hearts (Dicentra spectabilis).

Spanish Bluebells which I remember hearing had become invasive in certain places. The clumps get larger every year, but I never find them in any new places.

Bergenia 'Winter Glow' which was planted last Fall. I planted several of these along the front of the bed. These flowers are hot pink and the foliage turns reddish in the Fall. I actually didn't used to like these, they reminded me of lettuce, but somehow they've grown on me.

Apple blossoms getting ready to open. I don't think we'll have as many apples this year, I haven't found that many buds. I think with the mild winter it didn't set as much fruit.

Daffodil 'Sempre Avanti' just starting to bloom in my front yard. It has a really nice scent. After having such great luck with Daffodils this year I plan to add lots more for next Spring.

Jacob's Ladder (Polemonium) has grape scented flowers. They smell like candy.

Camellia japonica 'Kumasaka' is still blooming.

Pieris japonica 'Purity' is a veeeerrrry slow grower. I'm just glad it bloomed again.

Leopard's Bane (Doronicum orientale)

Fertilizer Friday is hosted every Friday by Tootsie at Tootsie Time. Visit her to join in or see who else is "flaunting their flowers."
I found this quote the other day, and for some reason it struck me as funny. I think because this time of year when so many plants are coming up it's hard to know if something is a real plant or a weed.

"When weeding, the best way to make sure you are removing a weed and not a valuable plant is to pull on it. If it comes out of the ground easily, it is a valuable plant." ~Author Unknown