daffodils before the freeze

It's going to be 24 degrees F tonight...

...and the daffodils began to bloom yesterday.

 Wondering if the budding hyacinth and front tulips will survive?

The nantucket cuttings are leafing out on the back fence (above) along with the 'garden sun' climbing roses out front (below).

Other things coming to life this week:

Last year's delphinium, a biennial.

creeping Jenny creeping over dead Jenny.

Overviews of life in a few spring beds, before the freeze:

Nearly empty vegetable patch, Vika's strawberries in the foreground.

Bulbs peeking out in the patio flower bed.

Daffodils, roses and boxwood on the east side.

finally, the vernal equinox

As we await a house vote on the health bill this eve, I'm nursing a bit of a sunburn.  I enjoyed some time in the garden on these first two days of spring. Pruned the roses on the archway and sprayed them with a baking soda concoction, gave the wisteria a buzz, spread some corn gluten meal on the grass and cleared out the leaves that didn't make it to the compost pile last fall. 

Buds, buds everywhere.

 

chindoxia blooming.

wisteria trimmed and ready for the growing season (yeah, I know it doesn't look trimmed, but it is).

 

hydrangea coming to life

Forsythia buds signal its time to spread corn gluten meal on the grass in the rear garden. A natural source of nitrogen, it acts like a fertilizer and supposedly inhibits the germination of weed seeds. This is the third year I've used it, in tandem with hand pulling, and I'll be interested to see if I notice a difference during the growing season.

bulbs emerging....

on a 70 degree March afternoon.


Spring may indeed be coming early this year. While the health bill may see some reconciliation this weekend, the smallest petals in my garden are welcoming the return of the honey bees. How busy it is underneath my feet this morning.

purple crocuses coming up.

daffodils out front seem to be starting slower than the tulips this year.

winter rye in a few of the vegetable beds ready to turn under.

 

more crocuses.

 

rear tulips coming up for the 3rd season.  I'm not sure if they'll bloom at all this year, even though they are supposed to be the 'perennial' type. Unless they are growing in the region that was once the Ottoman Empire, I don't think any tulip is truly perennial.

Amid all these signs of life, the wisteria doesn't seem to be catching on yet.

starting seeds

heirloom tomatoes, mini watermelons, and fennel this week

the weather breaks

spring?

in my backyard, a single snowdrop has emerged from under the massive snowdrifts of the last weeks.


and the early crocuses are blooming too.

Allotment planning: commence!