“The beautiful spring came; and when Nature resumes her loveliness, the human soul is apt to revive also.” ~Harriet Ann Jacobs
For all my handwringing in late March, because spring did not seem to be sticking around, I was noticing many signs that indeed spring was here….just taking her sweet time to fully reveal herself. The beginning of April has also been chilly, even downright cold with snow, so spring is hiding…she must be shy this year. Come out, come out dear spring!
Patience is not my strong suit, but I am trying to show up in the garden with a positive attitude as I wait to start working in the garden and planting early veggies like peas and radishes.
Our 4 feet of March snow fully melted just as March ended, and I was happy to see it gone even though the garden was sodden and in many places puddled or under water. But nothing seemed to deter the garden from growing despite many a night in the 20s and hoar frost when I awoke more than once. Above is the pond that has been freezing and thawing for weeks and weeks since late March.
These crocus grow at the foot of the trees in the back so they are well insulated. Those at the top of the post popped up in the front and back in open areas.
And I was surprised to see these hardy cyclamen growing through the thick leaf litter between the trees out back.
Winter aconite like the other blooms are defying the cold weather and growing. It is amazing how resilient my early flowers are. I often forget that….and they remind me that I am resilient too.
My heart was fluttering when I finally saw one iris reticulata blooming before Easter. They are my absolute favorite. More are finally growing, so I should see them blooming soon.
Many clumps of snowdrops, that had begun to grow in our very warm February, were back with the retreating snow and blooming.
I was also shocked to see the maple flowers, on the tree near the house, already blooming in late March.
Too bad the bees were not out to enjoy them, but there are more maple flowers still in the bud in the meadow waiting for the bees to return.
And one of the biggest surprises, I spotted, was my dwarf willows already sporting their pussy willows tight in the bud. Once we warm up, the pussy willows will open more to give up their pollen.
The returning male songbirds, like this American Robin, came right on cue for spring in March even with our snow storms. But the females were delayed by a couple of weeks due to the cold, wet weather. They arrived as April began.
The three sisters, our orphan baby deer, have survived and are growing.
And their coats are shifting from their thick winter coats to their lighter spring ones. So many signals that spring really is here, just not as warm and settled as we gardeners would like. So I will continue to seek out more and more spring delights in my garden and nature. My garden has been so anxious waiting for spring….almost as anxious as I am!
How has spring been treating your garden? Has she shown up with bells on or has she been shy?
The First Early Spring Vase
These early snow crocus are between a front tree and our cement porch….a warm spot that melts fast and is warm enough for these to open first. I have watched them everyday, and they have lasted for weeks. I finally decided to cut a few for a sweet little vase….my first spring vase from my garden.
You can see they have virtually no stems. The little bottle I placed them in was found when I was cleaning out a few cabinets in the kitchen. Perfect for tiny flowers.
I adore their simple beauty. And with spring slowly rolling along, I know a few of the flowers from the post above will end up in another vase soon.
I am joining Cathy@Rambling in the Garden for her wonderful In A Vase on Monday meme. The pictures shared here were created with my iPod Touch camera and two free apps, Pixlr and Prisma.
I am posting poetry, almost weekly on Sundays, on my other blog, Living From Happiness. You can read my latest poem here.
All original content is copyrighted and the sole property of Donna Donabella @ Gardens Eye View, 2010-2018. Any reprints or use of content or photos is by permission only.
Yay! Spring has arrived for you Donna.
Cold, wet and snowy but yes it is slowly coming alive especially this week. It will be fun to see the garden warm this week and watch all the flowers finally bloom.
You must be so thrilled to have your first spring vase, Donna, and it doen’t matter how tiny it is as it will surely lift your spirits 🙂
And indeed it has lifted my spirits Cathy as has the sun even with the 27 degree weather I just walked in….I know we have turned the page finally.
A lovely post as always. I think we are in the same zone (5) but we just had more snow this morning and nothing much is happening yet. Maybe later this week. Fingers crossed!
Yes zone 5 here and our forecast is showing spring weather for the long range starting this week so I hope it comes your way too!
Well great! Spring is finding you after all. The crocus are adorable in the vase and you have many other nice things. I love the iris reticulata.
Yes the garden is growing and warming finally….and I adore my little irises too! Looking forward to more of them blooming this week.
Such lovely blooms! Spring has unfortunately not arrived in our garden yet, although I don’t have any early spring bulbs planted (yet!). They are on the list once the beds are adequately cleared of invasives – this year, if we’re lucky. And loving the vase of crocuses!
Yes those early bulb blooms make all the difference especially once they naturalize. Here’s hoping those invasives are gone so you can plant in their place. Crossing my fingers for spring to find you.
Hooray, spring, although shy this year, has arrived in your garden! Your vase of crocus is a beautiful spring celebration. As always, I’m very impressed with your photo editing skills. Each image is a work of art.
Oh Peter thank you. Your words of praise mean so much.
Like you, I have to look carefully to see the subtle signs of spring. It surely is coming with warmer temps later in the week. Enjoy the day!
Thanks Eliza. Wishing you warm spring weather very soon to get your garden going.
So glad to see that spring seems to have finally arrived there. I planted my first Iris reticulata here last fall and they popped up and have already flowered. I was disappointed that they didn’t seem to last long. Love your little Crocus arrangement!
Yes the little iris can fade fast but I think in our cooler weather they will last longer. One bonus of cooler weather.
Winter may not give up easily in your part of the country but spring can’t be denied! I love crocus and I enjoy seeing them in your post. While they’ll grow here, they don’t return and they don’t last long in the garden when they bloom so I’ve given up planting them except when bulb suppliers send freebies with other purchases. Spring is already peaking here in coastal SoCal and we seem to be on an express train headed toward summer.
I am pleased to give you some pleasure with my crocus Kris. They have just started on other areas.
So glad you are seeing signs of spring at last Donna! And you even have flowers from the garden! Wonderful! Our spring has come suddenly and is lovely and warm. Enjoy watching those flowers and buds open up! 🙂
Thanks Cathy….I certainly will enjoy every bloom!
It is an exciting time isn’t it? I will freely admit to daily (and sometimes more often) walks through the garden in spring to see what has popped through the ground and how it is doing.
I have to confess I do the same thing Soosie…obsessively so!
It seems as though you are getting there though it is painfully slow. Your little blooms are indeed resilient, I’m always amazed anything can survive the snow and wind but plants are amazing as we all know. Pretty pictures of your crocus.
Yes spring has been so very painfully slow but we will enjoy every bloom and warmer day!
I am glad to see all the signs of spring in your garden despite the cold. And, oh my goodness, baby deer! How wonderful!
Thanks Terri. Yes spring is slowly emerging. And our baby orphaned deer are precious.
Happy spring, Donna! Yes spring is shy this year. Four feet of snow…woah! We’ve only had three feet of snow all winter, although that is significantly down from our “normal.” Beautiful spring bloomers in your garden and a beautiful vase!
Thanks Beth. Yes winter has dominated late and spring is just not warm yet.
Spring keeps trying to pop around here but it keeps getting frozen. Lovely post!
Right now, I have NO garden. The winter is eternal and just when the tulips and daffodils were breaking ground… more snow and freezing temperatures. It is just so annoying. I am yearning for spring and to see my flowers bloom.
It has been a most distressing and frustrating season so far….not really started. I am teased by these little signs and the torture is unbearable as we continue with cold, gray, wet days and more snow and ice. I hope the weather predictions are correct and that by midweek, we both see a warm up finally so we both have our gardens come to life!
The ground here is still cold but last week I noticed grass had started growing and during the week the leaf buds on some trees are breaking. Hoping that having got off to a very slow start the heat will not blast us too soon and nature will not run away with us.
I share your hopes Lucy….we are on hold again this week for any real warmth but hoping it is coming by weeks end and will stay a lovely spring warm for a while.