A Story - "Her True Self" and Tree Peony, Purple Allium and Alpine Aster

 A Story

Her True Self

When she was a little girl, her grandma called her a sweet angel.

When she was in school, her teacher called her a brilliant student.

When she went to university, her peers called her a trailblazer.

When she got married, her husband called her his soulmate.

When her world fell apart, she had no idea who she was.  Friends and family tried to find the right words to stop her floundering, but their words evaporated like the mist.

All alone she reached out to God and finally she found out who she was.  His beloved child.

My tree peony bloomed nicely this year.  Although the plant is reliably hardy in my zone 4 garden, some years the buds don't make it through the winter. 

The flowers are quite fragile and if the days are hot or windy they will only last a couple of days. This year the weather was cooler and they lasted about 5 days.  Yesterday we got rain and today all the petals have fallen off.  I enjoy the lovely flowers while they last.

The purple allium is super dependable.  I like the way these plants are shimmering in the shady location. The wind was blowing the tree branches and the light kept changing making the purple flowers sparkle in the breeze.

I bought 3 alpine asters the other day.  I really like the periwinkle petals with the strong yellow centres.  They should be hardy in my zone but they need well-drained soil. I hope the location I picked will do. They will bloom for several weeks into mid summer. 

The bees and other pollinators like all of the above plants.

A Story _ "Perfect Fix" and Feathery Muscari, Pansies, English Daisy and Mini Solar Birdbath Pump

A Story

Perfect Fix

Jenna was skating on the famous Ottawa Rideau Canal, thirteen kilometers of frozen delight. Figures skaters twirled and swirled.  Turbo-charged hockey players zoomed by her.  Jenna glided cautiously, a tourist soaking up the playful atmosphere.

Suddenly, her skate pick caught the ice, throwing her down hard.  Her right knee zinged with pain.  A hero braked sharply, held out his arms.  "You need a beaver tail."

Confused, Jenna gratefully grabbed his hands and hung on to his arm as he guided her to a snack shack.  He ordered hot chocolates and delectable deep-fried cinnamon doughnuts, shaped like beaver tails.

Perfect fix.

This is a feathery muscari which isn't offered very often by the bulb companies.  This is its third spring in my garden and this is the first year that it has opened properly so that may be why it isn't seen so often. We had a lot of rain in late April and early May so maybe that's what it needs.  It is flopping a bit as the location is fairly shady. It is a lovely periwinkle blue colour unlike the regular grape hyacinths that are more dark purple. The feathery muscari grows to about 6-8" high.

I had planted four columbine in a row.  They all came up just fine but then one died so I needed a replacement plant.  I decided on this pretty pink English daisy which, where I live, will likely only last the summer. If I see the same double columbine as the one that died, I may buy another one to replace it.

Some pansies to brighten a partial shade spot.

 

I saw a mini fountain set up on the internet and decided to try one out. It is a small submersible pump powered by a solar panel (4" square).  I bought a plastic cup and drilled a hole in the bottom and cut away a bit on the top end to allow the wire to go out.  I flipped up the cup and put the colourful top on the bottom that is now the top. The pump has a suction cup to keep it in place and it goes inside the cup. The pump works when the sun shines on the panel but not when it's cloudy or dark. I had bought a green bowl to go with the green cup but it was too small and too much water was landing on the deck when the pump was at full force. I am enjoying the sound of the water and it was so easy to set up.  I am hoping some birds might like it, too. 

A Story - "The Lemmings" and Virginia bluebells, Forget-me-not, Tulips, Bleeding Heart

 A Story

The Lemmings

"It's a beautiful day for a jump," enthused Frank Lemming.  "Let's sing our happy song as we mosey over to the cliff."

The crowd around him cheered.

"Why are we jumping?" asked a young lemming.

"Everybody's doing it," was the reply.

Becky and Joe Lemming watched nervously.  They knew about gravity but people didn't want to listen to their warnings about it.

"Here we go," shouted Frank as he stepped off into space.  The others followed.  No one cried out in fear. They didn't believe in gravity.

Becky and Joe couldn't bear to watch the devastation and sadly crept home.

Virginia bluebell is a native plant in Virginia.  It makes a lovely clump of blue bell-shaped flowers tinged with pink.  When the weather gets hot, the leaves die back but it is a hardy perennial. Click on photo for full-width picture.

A couple of vibrant lily shaped tulips. At the edge of the forest something ate a few tulip flowers. Likely was a deer wandering through. They definitely like tulip flowers.

This is a combination I bought from Veseys last fall.  I really like the colour combination of the lemony daffodils and maroon tulips.  The only thing I don't like is that the tulips are much shorter than the daffodils. The bloom times do coincide which is what I was hoping for.

A nice patch of tulips that keeps coming back year after year. The cooler temperatures this spring have kept the blooms fresh for a couple of weeks. These tulips are in a bed that is a bit raised and is quite dry due to trees nearby but tulips actually like being dry in the summer and it can help with reblooming the following year.  They get full sun in the spring and will be in partial shade in summer.

Yes, I know dandelions are a weed but don't they look lovely surrounded by the mixed colours of the forget-me-nots? Forget-me-nots are biennial so they pop up in a variety of places.  Some will spontaneously bloom in pink or white.

Bleeding heart is one of my favourite spring flowers. They look pretty with the blue brunnera. Bleeding heart can be easily divided in spring or fall.  They enjoy partial shade and a humus rich soil that holds moisture but isn't soggy.

A Story - "Sharing" and video of Little Stream

 A Story

Sharing

Under the shade of a mango tree, Maggie and Morgan Orangutan enjoyed their lunch of fresh fruits and vegetables.

"Lovely lettuce, " commented Maggie.

"I prefer the crunchy radishes," replied Morgan as he routed through the food looking for the rosy orbs.

They sat companionably close as they chewed contentedly.  Once in a while, they would give each other a friendly scratch.

A worker appeared with two bright yellow bananas.

"They smell spectacular," gasped Maggie.

"Obviously meant for me," asserted Morgan.

They stared at each other, challenging.

Suddenly they each grabbed a banana, dashed away.  Unfortunately, it was a banana split.

The sound of spring.

A Story - "Garden Space" - and Dog-tooth Violets, Daffodils, Hyacinth, Windflower, Species Tulip, Blue Cohosh

 A Story

Garden Space

A chickadee plucked a ripe seed from the sunflower head that Jill had placed on her porch railing.  In a basket, crimson tomatoes were snug with butter-yellow beans, multi-coloured carrots, burgundy cabbages. A bouquet of pink, purple, magenta asters adorned the patio table.

Jill's husband had died the previous spring.  Rather than send her a short-lived arrangement for the funeral, one neighbour had offered Jill space in a garden.

It became a place to dig through her grief.  Growing flowers and vegetables connected her to life.  Beauty grew peace and happiness.  Hope and purpose started to return.

The dog-tooth violets grow wild in our Eastern Ontario hardwood bush.  They are fussy as to location and when I tried to transplant one or two, they didn't take.

They often grow near the base of a large tree like this patch, but they will also grow and flower in other spots as well. Like all native spring bulbs, they like the spring sun and summer shade so a hardwood forest is perfect for them.

A pretty double daffodil.  I really like these ones and they have a strong sweet scent.  They are vigorous and every few years can be divided . 

These little cuties are fun .  Not quite as small as some miniature daffodils, but the flowers are only a couple of inches across.

I haven't planted hyacinths in a long time as they don't tend to come back the following years. These ones are pretty though and they are planted near the lemon yellow daffodils making a pleasant combination.

There seems to be a yellow theme to this collection of photographs.   Even in this picture of the purple windflowers, there is green and yellow euonymus in the foreground.

The little species tulips which grow to about 6" high are becoming a favourite of mine.  Every year the clump gets bigger but in a well-behaved way.

This almost black plant is blue cohosh which is also native to our bush. The brownish flowers are hard to notice but they also have a touch of yellow at the center.  Later the leaves of the plant will turn green and it will produce poisonous round blue berries.

I watched a fascinating video on Youtube by Leslie the Bird Nerd about chickadees nesting in a box. She has a camera in the box so the viewer can see the whole process of nest building all the way through to babies fledging. Very well done video. Some fun antics between the mom and dad bird.

A Story - "Ballerina Tulips" and Pulmonaria, Daffodils, and Sweet Basil

A Story

Ballerina Tulips

The colourful pictures of tulips were very enticing.  Mom and I leaned close together studying the catalogue.

"My favourites are the scented orange Ballerina tulips," she said pointing with her arthritic finger.  "They're really special."

When I visited in May, Mom declared indignantly, "I watched the groundhog eat three Ballerina tulips this morning."

"Too bad,"  I commiserated.  "Maybe I should put mothballs around them, or get a motion activated squirter, or..."

Mom gazed out the window and sighed.

"No, I don't want any of that,"  she said quietly.

"He's cute and," she hesitated,"he's company."

Pulmonaria is so pretty and it is an early plant for pollinators.  Even though it was chilly here today (last night was -3C) and windy,  I saw a bumble bees buzzing around the pulmonaria this morning.  Pulmonaria likes to grow in part shade but on my property it's not overly fussy and tends to spread more than I would like. It's not too hard to get out though.  My soil is on the heavy side and I think they really like that.  I never fertilize it and it's always vigorous.  The leaves have fine hairs on them,  slightly prickly, so it doesn't get eaten by insects.
 

This clump of daffodils is interesting as I never planted plain yellow daffodils.  I had some doubles that I got years ago and I think they have reverted to their two parent plants - a yellow and a pale cream. I find it fascinating how some plants will revert over time. Anyway, all daffodils are lovely and cheerful.  They come back every year and multiply, and no little creatures like to eat them.

I started this basil from seed in January. Basil does very well on a windowsill even in the dead of winter. I am always surprised that it doesn't mind the chill by the window and the lower light levels. I have pinched off some of the top leaves to use in soup so it will branch out a bit more now.  

I accidentally bought some cinnamon basil (this is sweet basil) and I also planted some of it but I found the leaves had a strange chemically aftertaste that I didn't like.  I just watched The History Guy on Youtube and he had a video on saccharin  - the history and chemistry, etc.  Very interesting.   In the comments, some people said that saccharin tasted bitter to them and others said they liked the taste. I don't like the taste of Stevia. It's so individual how we taste things. I find cilantro tastes like the smell of skunk. Yuk.  If you haven't discovered The History Guy yet, definitely check him out .  He covers a whole wide range of history topics and produces them very well.

A Story - "Cards" and Blue Scilla, Fuschia, Dutchman's Breetches, White Crocus, Glory-of-the-Snow

A story

Cards

Marsha blinkered her view so she only saw the birthday cards in the rack.  Beside her, a young mother scanned the Mother's Day cards.

"You are always there for me with your precious love," the mother read.

"That's just right for Grandma," she confided to her baby snug in her wrap.

Marsha's throat choked painfully.  A shudder rippled through her chest as the agony of her loss shivered through her.  Quickly she grabbed a birthday card.  Her heart do-looped anguish as she struggled to the cash.  The image was chiselled in her mind.

Her mother slamming the door, gone forever.

The blue scillas are a treat to see in the spring.  They are easy to grow and naturalize. Because they are a small bulb growing only about 4" high, they are never a bother no matter where they appear. The blue is so striking that it gives a strong pop of colour even though the plants are small.

Last summer I bought 4 fuchsias and they bloomed nicely all season.  I decided to try to overwinter them in the basement which is usually about 10C.  All the leaves fell off which was fine as I wanted the plants to go dormant.  I barely watered them. Now I have pruned them , watered them more but still not a lot, and have started giving them time on the deck.  If frost is likely, I bring them inside at night. They look very bare...

but the plants have lots of leaves starting to grow.

Hopefully in a couple of months it will be full of flowers like last summer.

Dutchman's breetches, which are native to my zone 4 area, come up very early. The feathery greyish green leaves are lovely.

You can see by the flowers that they are related to Bleeding Heart.

I thought this cluster of white crocus looked very pretty in the sun.  The purplish stems and orange stamens are so cheerful against the vibrant white.

I have been increasing my collection of Glory-of-the-Snow (chionodoxa) as the chipmunks don't eat them.

Their star-shaped flowers are like little fireworks in the spring garden.

 So nice to see the spring flowers and to hear the frogs croaking away.  Lots of birds especially in the mornings and some mourning cloak butterflies are drifting around.