Looking for some warmer weather...

 I know it's still winter, but I'm sure ready to see a little sign of spring from our weather.  It has been so cold lately.  We're used to the rain (although I'm tired of it right now), but it's the cold that's really getting old to me.  Our average high for this time of year is 51 degrees, we're barely getting above 40 right now.  I don't mind getting a little wet while I garden, but wet and cold is just no fun.  Between rain showers I decided to take a look around the garden and see how everything was looking since it snowed.  We spent so much time working in the front yard that I've hardly noticed anything else.
I found that the plants are trying to grow.  I think it'll take a couple of warm days and then there will be lots of new growth.  Peonies are sending up their bright red new growth, Clematises are all starting to leaf out and the buds on the pear trees are fattening up.

 Corsican Hellebore (Helleborus argutifolius) is just beginning to bloom.  It has flopped all over the ground it's gotten so big.

 I love how the leaves on this Saxifrage 'London Pride' look all wet.  This was given to me last year by Linda.

 Ribes sanguineum 'Kind Edward VII' has it's first flower bud showing!  This one was new to my garden last spring.  Last year at this time my other Ribes was already blooming.

 A few of the Snowdrops I planted last fall are blooming.  I expected them to be small, but are they really this teeny tiny?  From the ground to the top it's about 3 inches high.

 I moved Hellebore 'Red Lady' out front by a Hydrangea 'Preziosa' that I just moved during our front yard make over.  'Preziosa' still has leaf buds growing so I think it survived the move, now I hope it'll bloom.

 Tete-a-Tete Daffodils are so close to blooming, last year at this time they were in full bloom.

 The Crocus are closed up tight from the cold.

 And this pile in the shed keeps growing and growing just waiting to get planted.

 The garden is definitely behind from last year.  At this time last year I had Winter Hazel, Camellias,  the cherry tree, Muscari, Bleeding Hearts and several other plants blooming on March 1st.  I know they are getting close, they just need a little warmer weather, just like me!
All words and photos in this post are property of A Gardener in Progress.

Up high and down low - Fertilizer Friday.

I love this time of year, I look up I see flowers and I look down and I see flowers! And of course everywhere in between has flowers or buds that are very close to blooming. But, one plant I've been anxiously waiting to see bloom is my Lilac. I've been patiently driving past many houses in town admiring their Lilacs and trying not to feel too jealous. I wonder if some of the homeowners even pay attention to them. Are they going out and smelling them? Cutting fresh bouquets of them? Well, my patience has begun to pay off...my Lilac finally is deciding to bloom.

Lilac (Syringa vulgaris) 'Ludwig Spaeth' is a beautiful deep purple and it sure has been worth waiting for. I am so lucky that it decided to bloom on some lower branches this year which makes it much easier to smell. I even saw blooms on the lower back which will be perfect to cut and bring inside.

And also blooming up high is the Pink Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida). It's at it's peak right now. The windows at the front of the house look right out at it, and I find myself stopping and looking out frequently. It definitely has some years that bloom better than others, and this is a great year for it.

I just love those flowers!

At the base of the tree is Deutzia 'Pink Minor' which I showed about a week ago. It looks just perfect with the Dogwood, the flower colors are almost exactly the same.

The Iris from my sister's yard are getting flowers. Last year I just had a couple, this year I see quite a few buds coming up. I wasn't even sure when Irises bloomed here because I hadn't grown them before.

Saxifraga 'London Pride' has blooms! Linda brought me this when she came to visit. This is the neatest plant, I love the variegated leaves.

And over in the raised beds in our side yard up high the Fig tree 'Desert King' is leafing out and producing it's first crop of fruit which is called the breba crop. The breba crop grows on last years growth in the Spring. Another crop will grow later in the summer. 'Desert King' is a variety known to do well in the Pacific Northwest.

Down at the Figs feet are strawberries. This combination seems to do very well. The strawberries have lots of time to fruit before the leaves of the fig are fully leafed out.

Speaking of fruit the Meyer lemon tree which has been growing inside all winter in a pot has now moved back outside. That one little lemon is still growing (the Littlest Gardener's hand gives an idea of the size) and I'm guarding it with my life ☺

Fertilizer Friday is hosted each Friday by Tootsie at Tootsie Time. Visit her to join in or see who else is "flaunting their flowers."