His mama named him Tommy

The folks just called him 'Yellow'.
-Kenny Rogers

I've got two kinds of yellow roses. Sunny Knockout opened its first bloom yesterday. It's funny. I never even noticed the bud. I think the fading daffodils had me confused.



Golden Showers on the perennial arbor is budding. This is a reblooming climber.



The last "last" daffodil has opened. I think. Maybe there will be another later blooming variety after this one. These came from the mixed bags I planted in the fall. Ignore the weeds. They'll be gone soon.



The last daffodil, the one that bloomed before the last yellow one has a touch of yellow in the center. Both of these have multiple blooms per stem.



The Amur Honeysuckle also contains yellow. It's not much, but the fragrance is lovely.



This bearded iris came from my sister's house last spring. I had to clear a bed of them when I planted her round flower bed. I remember them all being brown. I don't have a very good memory, obviously.



Out near the street, this has appeared. I'm not sure what it is. I know I planted a rooted weigela in that area. I don't remember anything being this color. I like surprises.



The latest columbine bloom has a hint of yellow with blue streaks.



Speaking of blue, Blue Girl hybrid tea rose is budding.



Lagerfeld is finally open and looks as it should, a pale lavender with a delicious fragrance.



Soon, the pink rose I moved from the woodsy area last spring to the perennial bed arbor, then the front porch, and finally to the swing out back, is about to bloom. I hope this year to have it identified. There will be lots of blooms. It's covered in buds.



After work yesterday, I repotted most of the tomatoes into individual containers. They're still tiny. I gave them a very weak dose of transplant solution. I also stuck cuttings of euphorbia in the cloner. I'm hoping they take root. My seeds didn't germinate.





Poncirus trifolata, or Hardy Orange, has germinated well. I'll be planting these out in the gully to discourage the neighborhood kids that have twice decided to play hide and seek on my property at night. The 1-2" thorns are deadly.



It's 45 degrees. The high today should reach the mid 70s. Still no rain to speak of. Maybe Tuesday.

More new growth.

On the front slope, the daffodils are stealing the show.



A few interesting ones have popped up in the past few days. This one has three blooms on each stalk. There are 4 of them that I found. The centers are ringed with orange.



More hostas are emerging.



The Aucuba cutting I made last year is almost a foot tall now. It's really shot up in the past week.



A hydrangea in the corner with heuchera. I've never seen the hydrangea bloom. It's a mophead variety.



Columbine. It was labeled "purple". This one was wintersown December 2008.



Ginger lilies. I moved them a month or more ago as soon as I saw new growth. They need more sun than I had given them. I hope for many fragrant blooms this year.



It's 54 degrees. The high today should again reach into the mid 80s. There's a chance of afternoon thunderstorms around 3pm.

Regarding Daffodoils.

In the fall, I planted 4 bags containing a little more than 100 mixed daffodils each. Obviously, they weren't quite as mixed as I would have liked. I counted 5 non-yellow blooms this afternoon. Three are on the front slope and another two in the backyard.

The slope.



The backyard.



The uncommon one.



Though it's hard to see, the dogwood leaves are the size of mouse ears.



It's 63 degrees. The sun is shining, sometimes. It's a nice day to work outside. More rain possibly this evening.

Winter lasted 3 months.

Our first heavy frost of the winter was December 5, 2009. It was late in coming. We had a light frost in October, but nothing took much notice. If the forecast holds, our last frost of this year will be March 9, 2010. That's just over 3 months of winter. I'm not holding my breath just yet. I've seen snow in April. Our average last frost date is April 15.



Today, I'm going to piddle about the yard a bit. I might cut the grass again and do some more weeding and edging. My real plans focus on the gully and seed scattering. Farmers Almanac proclaims today and tomorrow as the best days to start seed and flowerbeds. I'll be doing just that in the gully.

Last summer, I collected cosmos seeds from all my orange and sometimes yellow blooming plants. I'll be scattering these seeds in the area where the ivy and periwinkle have been trampled hauling firewood all winter. I have no doubt some of them will be taken by the birds. Others will fail to sprout for whatever reason. But some should take hold and germinate before the ivy recovers the area. I've also got Forget Me Not seeds for the back side of the perennial bed. I used the weed eater last week to remove many of the winter weeds and give me a little access to the soil there. They'll enjoy the shady nature of that space and should bloom until the heat of summer takes them out. They reseed readily once established. Cosmos do too.

Other plans include moving the tiny maples I marked with pink tape last fall. I chose saplings with brilliant orange or yellow foliage. They're just beginning to bud right now, so moving them shouldn't cause too much stress. It's still wet back there, but the red maples can handle a bit of water.

Finally, I'm going to do what I've been wanting done for several years. In the Wild, the area between my yard and the neighbor's plot, I've got large clumps of daffodils that never bloom. I intend to dig these out today, scattering bulbs in the perennial bed, the shrub border, and along the back of the house where I've neglected planting anything for spring color. It's probably not the best time to move daffodils, but I've got nothing to lose. These clumps need the attention.











I figure I'll get at least another 100 bulbs from these, maybe more. If time allows, I might possibly consider maybe scraping some paint from the trim on the north side of the house, preparing it for the paint I need to apply soon. I'm still unsure about how to handle painting the South side, where the ridgeline is 3 stories off the ground.

It's 39 degrees this morning. The high today should be in the mid 70s. There is also laundry to do.

Wind day.

I'm off for two days starting just over an hour ago. It's been a long day. I left piles of things for others to get done while I'm not there. I don't expect much to be accomplished in that time. They're going to be too busy with temperatures in the mid 70s and sun in the forecast.

Out back, the red clover in the meadow has burst forth.



The peach tree is still blooming. I got buzzed by a couple of bees this afternoon.



The redbud is about to put on a show.



More periwinkle. The whole backyard is covered in blue flowers.



Out front, the daffodils are looking good. Over the next few years, I will add more each fall, either from purchases or through digging my own from The Wild. One day, I'll rebuild the ugly steps. I'm waiting for a sale on concrete.



In the perennial bed, lilies.



Clematis



The dark maroon tip of a stargazer has emerged from the leaves.



Green and variegated sedum foliage is holding up fine to both wind and cool nights.



Bloody Dock.



The only brown patch left in the yard is designed to be that way. Compost and leaf mulch will be spread soon over cardboard to create the new fragrant bed.



It's 64 degrees and sunny. The wind has been blowing all day. Tomorrow, 75. I can't wait. I already need a nap.

Odds and Ends.

In the backyard, there are three clumps of daffodils that I look forward to every year. These were planted by Mrs Russell, I assume. One day, I want to divide and move some of these to other areas of the yard.



The periwinkle along the edge of the woods is blooming. It's spectacular this year even though I hate the stuff. It spreads everywhere and is so invasive.



The annual seeds are doing well on the rack outside. Marigolds, convolvulus red and blue, African Daisies, and salvias have all germinated.



In January, I stuck tip cuttings of Carla's Black Mission in the hoophouse. They're putting out new growth and a few have started rooting. I pulled one from each container to check.



This morning, the skies are gray and blue. It's a little cloudy at 52 degrees. More rain will be coming in this evening. It should be in the low 60s most of the day.



I'm still exhausted from the weekend.

A lot of green.

If it weren't for clover and broadleaf weeds, I wouldn't have any "lawn". It's really greening up out there right now. The perennial bed is growing by leaps and bounds.



We've got rain in the forecast for this evening. At 69 degrees, that's going to make things pop. Three of 200 have bloomed with almost all the others showing buds.



It's 43 degrees, but it feels warmer.

Spring 2010

It's jumping in the garden center today. My clinics were a flop, but people have been stopping by to ask all kinds of questions about plants, fertilizers, even veggies, compost and pruning. It's been a great day. I've got two more hours to put in after lunch.

The peach tree is in full bloom.



And the daffodil on the slope has a new friend. I hope the next ones to open will be other colors. Even so, it's going to be fantastic when they're all in bloom.



It's 73 degrees, hot and sunny. A single cloud just passed by.