Saturday
Mar122011

My Garden in Early March

I recently watched a flock of robins strip the last shriveled berries from the branches of a dogwood tree. Dogwood berries are high in fat, up to about 24% fat. This is important to birds who need fat for energy and to provide insulation against cool temperatures. But new buds are swelling and a few blossoms are already open on the same dogwood tree, signaling that spring is headed toward its peak.

Spring came in quickly during the first days of March. It's hard to believe, but one month ago we had snow on the ground! Yellow daffodils were among the first spring flowers:

 Other flowers are now blooming throughout the garden:

Above, row 1: Magnolia 'Jane'; Phlox divaricata. Row 2: Epimedium; Hepatica. Row 3: Camellia 'Red Candles';Camellia 'Something Beautiful'. Row 4: Pieris; Winter daphne.Low maintenance trees and shrubs provide interest year round. A colorful shrub border in the front garden includes red camellia, yellow forsythia, and orange flowering quince, while redbud trees temper the background with pastel lavender pink:

It is a joy to be outside this time of year. Although the fickle weather has brought some cold temperatures and dreary rains, other days have been gorgeous. I have been busy, working hard to beat the warmer temperatures I know are coming. I have pruned trees and shrubs, raked leaves and spread new mulch, sprayed ecologically safe horticultural oil, fertilized, transplanted a few shrubs and planted many new ones. Yesterday I bought two serviceberry trees, a gift to the birds. I will plant them within a few days, along with an Alabama croton, a rare native shrub I also found yesterday.

An ongoing project is the removal of invasive nandina domestica and mahonia from the woodland garden and replacement of them with native shrubs and other non invasive plants. You can read about my decision to do this in Should I Rip Out My Mahonia and My Decision. Some of the new deciduous hollies and viburnum are still leafless and aren't noticeable yet, but here is a sneak peek at part of the renovated woodland garden: 

I will do a more extensive post on the woodland garden later. Meanwhile, there is still much to do. Happy gardening!

 You may also enjoy My Secrets to a Low Maintenance Garden.

Sunday
Mar062011

Chapel in the Woods

Be at peace. She is well.

Last week we traveled to Georgia for the funeral of a beloved cousin, and on the way home we stopped at Callaway Gardens in Pine Mountain. It is not the best season to visit. The spectacular azalea displays were still slumbering, and only a few blooms were visible here and there. But I appreciated the serenity of the lakes and the forest, and my breath was taken away when we came upon the Chapel in the Woods.

The Ida Cason Callaway Memorial Chapel is a little stone church set amidst the woods, nestled beside a lake and bubbling brook. I breathed in the tranquility of the setting. It was easy to hear the voice of angels in the music of a stream and in the melody of birds, or the wind in the pines whispering words of comfort. Inside the chapel, extraordinary stained glass windows depicted the woodlands.When your heart is filled with pain, may you hear God's words of hope and restoration.  Deborah