forsythia in february

forsythia in february

Spring came with a beautiful BANG this year as a result of all of the rain.  And I mean TONS of rain that we’ve had in the South these past few months.  But to all those people who grew weary of the nearly-endless gray skies, I always remind them of the amount of blooms that bless us from all of the moisture.  No pain . . . no gain!  Waiting for winter to end is painful, but the glory in the garden is our gain!

I’ve been slammed at work (teaching) this spring semester and happily, that will soon be ending for the year.  So I haven’t posted any recipes lately.  It’s driving me crazy!  I’m really itching to get into the kitchen to prepare something fresh!

But spring also keeps me out of the kitchen while we’re outside preparing our veggie gardens.  We’re also busy weeding and mulching our flower gardens, picking up branches that fall out of the birch trees, and trim off any dead limbs and branches.

Busy . . . busy . . . busy!  But in a wonderful way!

Nature has been waking up and beckoning us to be outside . . . to be good stewards!

So instead of a recipe or two, I’m simply going to take you on a walk through our gardens to see what has been showing off all around us . . . it has been so beautiful!

I hope that you enjoy the stroll!

garden bloomfest

pink and white cherry tree blossoms in march

The row of pink cherry trees above is not on the acreage, but is in town lining one of the streets. Every year when I drive by these trees, I always remind myself to take a photo of them. This year I finally remembered and did it. Pretty, aren’t they? I’d love to have these lining our driveway!

The other two photos above of cherry trees and blossoms were taken on the acreage and I loved how the shadows of the early evening created such an interesting pattern of ‘opposites’ on the ground.

spring flower garden bloomfest

wisteria blooms in late march

spring garden bloomfest

vibernum in bloom in early to mid-april

We planted several vibernum about 5 years ago and they are finally taking off after not blooming for the first few years of setting their roots.  These will grow up to 20 feet tall and we’ll be trimming off the bottom for a better ‘tree’ form.  But aren’t the blooms just delightful?  They bloom in rows with a ‘lace-cap’ mini hydrangea look, but they are not hydrangeas.  In the fall, they bear nice red berries for the birds.

spring garden bloomfest

dogwood blooms in mid april

spring flower garden bloomfest

‘renee michelle’ and ‘encore’ azaleas bloom in mid-april to early may

spring garden bloomfest

‘hen and chicks’ emerge in april and will bloom in august

garden bloomfest

‘nelly moser’ clematis blooms in mid to late april

spring garden bloomfest

iris bloom in late april

I love the iris in our gardens, such a welcome pop of blue color among all of the pink, white and yellow going on!

spring garden bloomfest

april showers bring lots and lots of green grass . . . even dandelion puffs have a simple beauty

With all of the rain, we’ve not been able to cut the grass and the horses are really loving it! But even a few dandelion puffs have their own pretty display!

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Hope your spring is filled with beauty too!
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