March 28, 2015
Summer-like temperatures arrived this past week and decided to stick around for a few days. Bright sunshine caused flowers almost as bright to appear seemingly overnight. Above is a specimen of Nemophila insignis ‘5 Spot’ which I came across growing beneath a tree. I’m pretty sure this little flower is the result of a packet of wildflower mix I tossed out last fall, as are the Nemophila insignis ‘Baby Blue Eyes’ below. Both of these flowers are annuals and reach a height of only about six inches. They do well in partial to full shade.
The first Iris of the season always seem to be white or yellow. This year they’re white. Only two have opened up so far but there’s a multitude of buds on the plants. Many of them appear to be lavender or purple, though sometimes the tint of the buds can be deceiving.
This Pink Flowering Almond Bush (Prunus glandulosa) has really outdone itself this year. While all of the bushes in the garden are flowering well, the profusion of blossoms on this one is simply amazing!
These medium-sized shrubs can tolerate various soil and weather conditions quite well. They’ve been in full bloom for about two weeks now and the flowers should probably last another week or so.
Below is a Forsythia bush that has been in full bloom for several weeks. I meant to get a picture of it sooner but didn’t get to it until today! Some of the blossoms are beginning to fade away but I was able to get these two photos of some that remain quite brilliant. Forsythia are native to eastern Asia and southeastern Europe. They add a beautiful splotch of yellow to the garden at this time of year and their foliage remains a robust green throughout the summer.
Lilac (Syringa) bushes are also blooming profusely. Some have so many flower clusters that their aroma is almost overpowering. Several good rains we’ve had this month have definitely benefited all of the trees and shrubs!
The Eastern Redbud (Cercis canadensis) is native to Texas. These can be very striking trees in the spring, as the beautiful dark pink blooms appear before the leaves do. The tree to which the blooms in this photo belong is actually located at the side of our house but on our neighbor’s property.
Garlic Chives (Allium tuberosum) are a prolific plant. They fare pretty well throughout the winter then come to life in the spring. The ones pictured below were limp and straggly only a week or so ago. They’ve rebounded from the cold weather quite nicely.
Here’s a look at the blooms of the Bugleweed ‘Catlin’s Giant’ (Ajuga reptans ‘Catlin’s Giant’) I posted about last week. Though it can’t be seen in this photo, the plant itself is beginning to send out runners. I plan to allow it to spread a foot or so in either direction but will keep it in check!
As you can see from the picture below, some areas of my garden need to be cleaned out! These Rocket Larkspur (Consolida ajacis) have really overstepped their bounds. Several Mexican Hat Flowers (Ratibida columnifera) are almost hidden among them!
I’ve been doing some planting and transplanting this week. Some different types of plants — mostly perennials — will be making an appearance in my garden and yard this year. Hopefully! A number of bulbs are starting to emerge and I hope to share their blooms and foliage in the coming months. My seeds haven’t made it into the ground yet. That’s on my calendar for this coming week!
“And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.” Genesis 1:29
― Holy Bible: King James Version–
The Transmutational Garden 
How lovely to have everything waking up in your garden and to have some warm weather. The Prunus is stunning, I am going to look out for it.
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They really are beautiful shrubs. As with other plants, I just wish the blooms would stay longer. Why can’t everything bloom all spring and summer???
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That almond bush is spectacular! Does it smell of almonds? (I’m not letting myself hope that it grows them.)
And the lilacs this year…lilac fragrance gives me headaches. Our last neighborhood had one bush that was easily avoided on our walks. This neighborhood has dozens! I’m just glad the bees like them.
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It really doesn’t have much of an aroma at all. You have to stick your nose right into the blooms to get a slight whiff of something. Not sweet, perhaps reminiscent of carnations. No almonds, though it is in the same family as regular almond-producing trees. I really like lilacs, but their aroma can be overpowering at times, especially if you snip a twig or two to put in a vase!
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You are so lucky to have such a wonderful garden. Very nice images. HAve anice week.
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Thanks, I enjoy it!. Have a good week yourself.
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Lovely pictures. I’ve grown nemophila ‘Five Spot’ before but not ‘Baby Blue Eyes’, and this year I’m trying ‘Snowstorm’. It’s amazing how it’s all changed and grown in a few weeks. xx
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I don’t think I’d ever seen these plants prior to finding some the other day. I like their leaves, and they seem to be coming up everywhere!
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Lovely photos! Once the weather warms up it feels almost like a race for everything to bloom and be pollinated and set seed for the next round, doesn’t it? At times I wish we had a prolonged gentle cool to warm season so the appearance of blooms could be extended, but then I wonder if we would appreciate them nearly so much as we do when so many flowers burst forth in profusion and almost as abruptly disappear in what for our area is the expected heat of late April – early May.
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So true. Spring seems to come and go so quickly. One day it’s cold, then we have several weeks of really wonderful weather, then the high temperatures suddenly set in. Every year I hope it’s going to be different, that maybe summer will get sidetracked on the way here! Doesn’t happen very often. We’re supposed to hit 90 on Wednesday, then drop to 68 on Thursday. It’s really been up and down, which is bad when you’re trying to set out plants. One day they look nice, the next day they’re wilted! Though we do have a shot at some thunderstorms tomorrow… While the blooms of summer are lovely, they just don’t seem to be the same as the first blossoms, flowers and buds of spring.
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Thank you! Almost-almost feel smell of Syringa…
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You’re welcome!
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Seeing spring in your garden…iris! lilacs!…gives me hope. 🙂 Love the Nemophila and Flowering Almond, which is really putting on an awesome show this year!
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The Almond is looking quite nice! A purple iris actually opened up yesterday.
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That flowering almond is very pretty as are the Eastern Redbud flowers (I’ve just put 3 little seedlings in). It’s good to see the old Forsythia making an appearance – they are such stalwarts of the early spring garden!
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The Forsythia really are great, aren’t they? They give such beautiful color before anything else comes out and they don’t need a lot of care.
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Oh I love when gardens jump into bloom and your senses are overwhelmed with all the flowers….it will be 4 weeks or more here as we are still quite cold and snow covered.
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I look forward to seeing photos of your sprouts and twigs and blooms when they appear! Quite a wait for you still.
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So much bounty! Gorgeous photos, all. I adore Baby Blue Eyes, they are so stunning as an understory in a woodland garden. Happy spring!
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Happy Spring to you! Thanks for the kind words. This is my first year with the Baby Blue Eyes. I hope they drop a lot of seed for next year!
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