March 6th, 2010

Grand re-Opening of the Garden Diary Blog got postponed last night because of nefarious activity on the part of the little men who have taken up residence in my computer.

I wrote a nice little record of the state of the garden, and posted some really great pictures depicting the return of Spring. Previewed the post, - all was well, - went to Publish, and some bodies snatched away all but the last sentence, right in front of my eyes!!!! Why didn't they take the last sentence too, - I don't know. Guess it just didn't tickle their fancy.

So here is tonight's effort, - a blessing on it and may it reach the Publish state successfully.

The weather has been beautiful the last few days, - the quail are coming in twos to the feeder. Sometimes threes, and then there is a squabble about which male has primary rights. The bees are buzzing amongst the Lenten Roses, and the trees have a faint aura of green - things are electric - everything is jumping!

Charles has been pruning shrubs and I have been removing old dead stalks and leaves from the perennials - it is beginning to look quite ship-shape.

The daffodils, - on the verge and passionate about being amongst the first on stage!



The Lenten Roses, delicately hosting the few bees that accompany the robins' song with a buzzing bass.



Over in the shade of the curly willow a bleeding heart unfurls its ferny stems and leaves.



Small clusters of violets hug the emerging iris and peonies.



The tiny Daphne is preparing to release its gorgeous fragrance as its petals open wider each day.



The sweet blue of the sky makes a perfect background for the maples, stretching out their white limbs festooned with scarlet buds.



A small border pansy from last year is the first spot of sunshine yellow in the garden.



The rhubarb is up, and yesterday I bought seeds for salad greens and peas which I plan to quickly plant in the veggie boxes.

We have been down to the Lost Garden and clipped a few branches from the Korean Viburnum in the hopes that we might be able to propagate it, - Charles snipped off extraneous bits, some of which contained buds and ended up in a small vase on the kitchen window sill. It has such a beautiful fragrance, and it has been impossible to replace it in the five years since we had to leave it behind when we moved.

While we were there I saw that the beautiful forsythia that Charles pruned so carefully and creatively is almost in bloom, as is the Star Magnolia. The Trumpet Vine has not been pruned and I longed to bring some of it home to see if it would grow roots for us. (large sighs)

It is a vulnerable time, especially for the fruit growers, but all signs point to a blessed and genuine early spring, God willing!