Posted on by Donna

The First Flowers of May

“Every flower is a soul blossoming in nature.”  ~Gerard De Nerval 

 

I am grateful to April.  Yes, the weather was ugly….mostly frigid, with what seemed like constant snow.  And it ended much like it began...wet and cold.  But even with the wintry weather, the flowers began….three weeks late….but they started to bloom at month’s end.  And with this nasty weather and amazing garden, I was taught patience, perseverance and resilience once again. So thank you April, as we come into May.

I love May.  Maybe because it is my birth month, but mostly because the weather warms, and the garden blooms like crazy.  A tradition I started last year, was to make a May Day posy for my doorstep.  It is said to bring luck and ward off evil.  This tradition comes from my Irish heritage, and the stories about May Day and the Celtic festival of Bealtaine.

I hope to chronicle the flowers of May in many vases this month, and I will posting a new flower blooming each day in May on Instagram and Facebook.

 

 

I placed the flowers, from my May Day posy, in a pitcher made by my husband’s Aunt Lucy.  I dearly love this pitcher.

 

 

You can see daffodil, hyacinth and hellebore as these were the only large flowers blooming as of May 1st.

 

 

I was surprised when the daffs finally started bursting all over the garden in May.

 

 

So I picked a variety for another small vase.  I wasn’t sure how long some flowers would last as temps were topping 90 on May 2nd and 80 on May 3rd and 4th.

 

 

And the pussy willows were popping and needed some trimming so they seemed a perfect addition to the vase.

 

 

It is strange to see hellebore just starting to bloom in late April and early May.  I hope they last for a while as I love them, but with the sudden heat wave, I am not sure how long they will be around.  So of course I snipped a few to float.

 

 

The dusty rose color is so exquisite.  I am sure I will pick others from around the garden soon, but they are hard to get to as the paths around the back garden are flooded from recent heavy rains.

 

 

And of course all the little bulbs that come up in the cold early spring, came up as cold April ended, and warm May started.  The Puschkinia scilloides or Striped squill are a favorite of mine.

 

 

Add a few Scilla siberica or Siberian squill,

 

 

along with Chionodoxa or Glory-of-the-Snow (3 different colors growing), and voilà….

 

 

a lovely little vase to remember these flowers that will be gone quickly since they don’t usually appear in May.

 

 

And let’s give a cheer for my native Bloodroot…..Sanguinaria canadensis…..a true ephemeral especially given they are blooming in our hot start to May.

 

 

Another short-lived, early flowering native is Jeffersonia diphylla or Twinleaf.  A similar (to Bloodroot) sweet, white flower comes up as the leaves begin to grow.  But the twin-leaf foliage sticks around and is quite lovely.

 

 

And look who is finally showing up.  I was unsure the Forsythia would bloom, but they finally were spurred on by the hot temps.  The poor plant has been confused, since February, with our weather.  But it was finally safe for it to flower although only about a quarter of the plant bloomed….but I will take it.

The heat wave this week helped to catch us up, and my garden is looking only about a week or two behind.  And as we settle into May the temps have calmed back to near normal, 60s, 70s in the daytime and 50s and 40s at night….with a cold night in the 30s.  We can still have frost well into mid to late May around here so I am always careful.

 

So as you can see May has begun bloomin’ like crazy. What do you love about May?  What’s blooming like crazy in your May garden?

 

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.

32 Replies to “The First Flowers of May”

  2. So glad you are finally getting warmer weather and a burst of blooms in the garden! I floated Hellebores in a bowl and it’s a great way to display the flowers.

    1. The warmth has made this gardener happier definitely…..I hope to float other flowers too and see how they look….such a wonderful look.

  3. It’s as if early spring is happening all in one jam-packed week in May. I love seeing the daffs again I had them in Feb/March, but that’s the South for you. Looking forward to following your daily bloom posts on Instagram.

  4. Oh those picture effects continue to enhance your photos, Donna – the third and fourth photos in particular are stunning. I am glad spring is finally here for you – and I do like your May Day tradition 🙂

    1. So glad you continue to enjoy the artsy photos Cathy. Spring in May has been nice so far, thankfully.

  5. A very pretty posy and a lovely tradition. April is usually my favourite month but this year it was just hard work. So far May is doing fine and moving at top speed.

    1. I agree April was hard on so many gardeners….May is more than making up for April here and I am glad it is good for you too!

  6. Of course you love, and cherish, that pitcher.
    Daffodils are sunshine on stalks aren’t they? Even if the sun isn’t shining.
    It is cooling down here (finally) but we still need rain. Badly.

    1. I love how you describe daffs. Perfect. I am glad to hear it is cooling there and I will send rainy thoughts to seed those clouds.

  7. So many cheerful flowers! May is my favorite month. The growing season stretches before us, the world turns green and the temps are perfect. That warm spell sure pushed things along, at last! Hurrah for spring!

  8. So spring finally reached you Donna! Lovely flowers – with everything flowering at once! 🙂 Happy Spring!

  9. All your flowers are wonderful! The floating hellebores remind me of water lilies! So beautiful! I love May, too, and it is also my birth month! Happy birthday!

  10. Happy birthday for whichever day it is. I’m so glad spring has arrived at last but it is disheartening when it is suddenly so hot meaning the flowers won’t last so long. Enjoy the riches.

  11. We had the same crazy weather here, but the silver lining is that all of the spring flowers are blooming all at once! Your hellebores are beautiful. Happy May and happy birthday!

    1. I couldn’t agree more Linda about being able to pick a bouquet whenever we can from our garden!! Glad your flowers are up now too…enjoy!

  13. I’m glad Spring is barreling in despite your still-chilly temperatures. My own daffodils already feel like a distant memory, although a couple of hellebore blooms arrived late.

    Happy birthday whenever you celebrate! My own b-day also falls this month.

    1. Thanks Kris…we have had more warm weather which has been wonderful…..my birthday is at the end of the month on the 26th….and how wonderful you are also a May-baby!

  14. May is certainly a wonderful month. The Crabapples and the Tulips bloom, along with the Virginia Bluebells and the Trilliums and so many other favorites. Your May Day posy is certainly beautiful. I hope it warded off all the malevolent spirits.

  16. Happy birthday. Donna. I love the flower pics, the way you have edited them and put them in different contexts is very creative and a feast for the eyes.

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