All Kinds of Glory

The earth reveals all kinds of glory. Azaleas are blooming and Japanese maples have unfurled their brilliant leaves in the front garden. The woodlands are becoming a tapestry of green and white as fresh foliage emerges and dogwood blossoms open. Birds are making babies, my onions are poking up in the vegetable garden, the days are longer, the breezes are exhilerating and good smells permeate the air. Such are the dreams of spring that kept me through winter's dismal clutch on the landscape, and they have finally come true. 

The following scenes greet me as I wander through the garden, taking it all in:This Japanese maple is in the front garden, outside our dining room window.

An April view of the front garden from the patio

Another view of the front garden from the patio

Looking toward the patio from the front lawn

Another view across a portion of the front garden from the front lawn

Looking toward the wooded area next to the arbor garden

Looking across the woodland garden from the front lawn

Dogwoods in the woodlands

Top: Magnolia 'Jane' continues to bloom beautifully, despite last week's brief temperature plunge below freezing. Many of the blooms turned to brown mush, but new ones quickly took their place. Clockwise from above left: Magnolia 'Jane'; Apple 'Red Delicious' blooms; Phlox subulata grows behind an unidentified wildflower;Trillium cuneatum, also called Sweet Betsy.

The last daffodils of spring. Did you see the tiny hover fly in the top photo?

Mockingbirds are nesting in this rustic birdhouse in the front garden. The evergreen tree in the background is Cryptomeria japonica.

Spring was a long time coming this year, but I doubt that means the same of summer with its high humidity and heat. Meanwhile, I plan to enjoy every day of this glorious season! 

Note: Pease check out my revised Woodland Garden photo gallery on the sidebar, which includes newly updated woodland garden photos PLUS photos of individual woodland garden plants. Enjoy!

Early Spring in Deb's garden

Redbud trees are blooming.But the garden is a mess. Bales of pine straw are waiting to be spread. A large heap of mulch and sacks of sand and soil are off to one side. Heavy pavers for a new walkway are stacked upon a pallet. Projects are being attacked that should have been completed already but haven't been, because who wants to work in the icy temperatures that we were having until recently?

It is all very exciting, and my garden juices are flowing like the river that rushes over Niagara Falls; and I go headfirst, tumbling till I hit bottom and realize I can't do this. I am fortunate to have Lou, who is retired and is an eager helper. So I am the supervisor, and we will get it done when we get it done.

Every year is like this, and I wonder if the time will come when everything is completed, and all we have to do in the spring is to tidy up, then sit back on the patio and drink refreshing drinks while we listen to the birds chirp. I doubt it, for there is always another project on the horizon, whether or not we know it. When we become too feeble for gardening, then we will pass the garden to younger souls with stronger bodies and new ambition. Or maybe it will simply die away, a lost garden choked by weeds and held alive only in fading memories. I can accept that.

But for now, I still feel the rush. Washes of color are showing up in the gray landscape. The bright orange of flowering quince:

The magenta-pink and white of Jane magnolia:

The bright yellow of forsythia and the lavender-pink of redbuds:

Below left, the hellebores are fading but still beautiful; and though many of the daffodils have finished blooming, there are still lovelies out there, including the pristine white one below right:

Early spring in my garden is busy, busy, busy. We must get so much accomplished before summer's heat puts a stop to it. Yet what is that worth if we don't appreciate the beauty, if we don't watch the bluebirds and hawks and geese flying overhead, if we fail to hear the songs of nature or to smell the rich perfumes in the air? So I take time to sit with a refreshing drink, and I thank God for the earth He has given us to work upon.