“If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant; if we did not taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome.” ~ Anne Bradstreet
Happy Spring or vernal equinox here in the Northern Hemisphere. Our friends to the south are experiencing the autumnal equinox or fall. So Happy Autumn to all in the Southern Hemisphere!
The start to this new season has been extraordinary for most folks in the US. Warmer than usual temps; bulbs and trees blooming much earlier; birds and bees arriving sooner. What all this means we shall see. Will we get more snow? I know I will, at least a little.
As you may recall at the beginning of March, I was dreaming of celebrating spring with the idea that other bloggers would join in and send their seasonal celebrations/dreams. It is time to reveal their celebrations as we change seasons. It was amazing to see so many joined in from all over the world for the new meme.
Let’s start with our friends way down south; South Africa that is.
- meadow showing color
Christine@The Gardening Blog joined in with Autumn in Cape Town. For Christine, as the days shorten she is looking forward to the cooler weather even though the days still feel summery. As she tells it, “I love my garden in Autumn and Winter. There is always far more going on in it during the cooler seasons.” Her lovely Japanese anemones that are budding up foretell of the change in seasons.
Diana@Elephant’s Eye took us on a Walk in my garden where she showed off some rare autumn foliage. Her Mediterranean climate, does not have frost (how interesting) so it is most unusual to find any fiery autumn colors. But her Nandina in Camps Bay has managed a few red leaves and definitely a ” poster girl – For Autumn Colour in Your Garden” as Diana says.
Now let’s go across the pond to visit a European blogger.
Near London, England, B-A-G@Experiments With Plants is following a London Plane Tree.
- maple flowering
In this post we are introduced to B-A-Gs favorite tree for this celebration of the seasons; London plane (platanus hispanica) a hybrid of platanus occidentalis (American sycamore) and platanus orientalis. B-A-G will be following the tree through the seasons…I am looking forward to these posts.
As we start our seasonal celebration in the US, we’ll start in some southern gardens where spring arrived early.
In Georgia, Karin@Southern Meadows showed us her Seasonal Celebration & Lesson Learned. Daffodils start blooming in February for Karin. Mine don’t normally show until mid April. That will change this year. In March spring is described as” Everyday there are new arrivals to the party.” And then there are the bloom celebrations in Georgia. Karin describes “the International Cherry Blossom Festival also known as the PINKEST party on earth showcases 300,000 Yoshino cherry trees. It is held in March in Macon, Georgia every year. This year is the 30th anniversary celebration.” She also recommends we see the azaleas that bloom in March at Callaway Gardens in Pine Mountain, Georgia.
- Crocus ‘Spring Beauty’
Michelle@The Sage Butterfly reminded us in her lovely words that spring is a time of Emergence. We see new growth. There is emergence from rest, hibernation…the garden breathes. As Michelle says, “With spring the rest is over and production and growth begin.”
Spring Ephemerals were the topic for Sheila@Green Place in North Carolina. What better way to celebrate the spring season than to gaze upon these fleeting wildflowers….trout lilies, hepatica, wild ginger. As Sheila says, “Spring ephemerals remind me of fairies. I become a child again, crouching in the leaves to enter their world.” I agree these are such magical flowers to celebrate spring.
Now it’s off to the southwest where spring also arrived a bit early.
Holley@Roses and Other Gardening Joys in Texas taught us a wonderful lesson through her post, My Goal. As Holley says, “As I 
look forward to a new season, I will work toward my goal: Not perfection, but delight. While we can strive for perfection in our gardens, it may not bring us the delight we are after.” Her goal is delight in life in the garden, seasons changing, colors and scents. I will feel less pressured to worry about the weeds. Thanks Holley.
Stacy@Microcosm in New Mexico told us of her “blogging quandary—how can (or why would) you keep posting, year after year, about a garden when the cycle of the seasons is the same?” So she has been taking some time to find many ways to view crocuses. Luminarias is the final of these unique looks at what many may consider a common spring bulb. It is anything but that as we have learned. And this final look certainly shows us the celebration of spring, ” to revel in these flowers for their own astonishing selves: for the petals’ delicate shadings from icy paleness to candlelit warmth, and the startling solar flare of style and stigma.”
Let’s head to the northwest where spring is finally popping.
- green soup in pond
In the Pacific Northwest, Elaine@Rainyleaf told us that this particular Seasonal Celebrations is special for her. It is her favorite season because she has a May birthday (as do I). Elaine says it best with these words, ” It always seems as if all these flowers are popping up just for me! The earth releases an energy, taking us out of our winter dream-sleep. When spring arrives the world’s a better place. With spring the brightness goes from candlelight to electric light.”
Andrea@igardendaily in Idaho was Rolling Into Spring with images of tulips, cherry blossoms, magnolias, dogwoods, hellebores, peonies, irises, alliums, windflowers, etc. For her, “Thoughts of Spring really lift my spirits, so much so that even a tedious workout was debunked! It’s time to get back into the garden and watch a fresh line of spring ‘pretties’ emerge.” And we will get to see many of these flowers emerging in her new semi-shade garden.
Last but not least we will end our journey in the northern States (my area of the country) where we are also seeing a fairly early spring.
As we travel to Niagara Falls, Donna@Garden Walk, Garden Talk is celebrating the change of seasons with trees, especially Trees Dressed in Ice. Donna says Spring sometimes skips her, but I think not this year. Her entry celebrates trees. Aren’t trees such a wonderful celebration so lost sometimes in the landscape when they leaf and the garden blooms through summer, but in winter and into spring they are such a lovely reminder of the majesty of the landscape.
- first daffs 3/19/12
Beth@PlantPostings in Wisconsin really has Seasonal celebrations: oh my! Beth reminds us that, “March and April are chock full of shared holidays—St. Patrick’s Day, Palm Sunday, Easter.” With all these holidays, there are also many family birthdays for Beth in March and April. And Beth creates many beautiful bouquets for all these occasions. As she says, “It’s a great opportunity for me to get creative with colors, textures, and whimsical elements.”
We will end our journey in Michigan with Mary@Going Native who is having a ball in her Spring Celebration. With unusual temps in the 70s, she has snakes emerging along with forsythias, redbud and crabapple. Mary also celebrates with seed starting and she has many sprouts already. A perfect start to spring as we all are getting ready for the celebration that is spring in the North.
I am overwhelmed with the first response to the new meme, Seasonal Celebrations. I hope more will join in for the next solstice. I will be posting about this new season on June 1st. Please remember to visit Beth@Plant Postings as she reveals the Garden Lessons Learned this past season.
“Live each season as it passes, breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit, and resign yourself to the influences of each.” ~ Henry David Thoreau
Next up on the blog: The last color post will be next week; green for Wildflower Wednesday. Next Monday I’ll have my Word 4 Wednesday post as I join with Donna@Garden Walk Garden Talk. I’ll be updating my garden with Gardens Eye Verse on April 2nd. I am moving my Simply the Best series, that ties in with Diana@Elephant’s Eye, to the fourth Wednesday of the month to coincide with Wildflower Wednesday. As the season comes into bloom quickly and the veg garden must be planted, I am reducing my posts to 4 or 5 a month.
As always, I’ll be joining Tootsie Time’s Fertilizer Friday. So drop by to check out all the blooms this Friday. I will also be joining Katarina for her Blooming Friday meme where the theme is Photogenic. My garden is blooming so fast, it is a sea of photographs…
I hope you will join me for my weekly posts, every Tuesday, at Beautiful Wildlife Garden.
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