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.

Early Spring

Well, winter finally seems to be in actual retreat. The chindoxia was blooming on April 2. The front tulips that I planted last fall survived several freezes in March and a late snowfall and were up 3 or 4 inches at the beginning of the month. The snow-in-the-summer seems to have never gone dormant all winter and is taking over the west side of the front wall. The hydrangea are starting to emerge, although the front three only from the base. Perhaps they needed some protection this winter?