Daffodils are a symbol of hope

 

'Arkle'

white 'Thalia' with pink and white 'Crown of Dynasty' tulips

'Arkle'

Spring has arrived!

The wind lately has been awful, but hopefully, we're done with freezing weather this year.  The forecast has a few more near-freezing nights in it, and a few nights ago we had a below-freezing spell that left frost on low-growth plants and frozen surface soil, but luckily, and surprisingly, no plants suffered any damage.  

Today I planted potatoes.  I decided to try the straw method this year.  I hope it provides good results, because I didn't plant any in the soil just in case.

I also planted dozens of little poppy seedlings which should be okay even in the cold nights yet to come.  I had grown two flats worth of annual, perennial, Spanish and Shirley poppies.  (Do you get the idea I like poppies?)  

Last year there was too much rain for poppies, and I didn't get many blooms at all.  It was very disappointing, and I'm crossing my fingers for no flooding this year.

Although I cut way back on the number of seedlings I'm growing this year, the ones I do have are looking very good.

Marigolds and tomatoes

I've got a make-shift cold frame instead of my usual portable greenhouse, since I haven't got a lot of seedlings.  Well, not as many anyway.  It's just three-sides made from hay bales over which I lay an old window.  The poppies were in first, and now that they're planted, there's room for two more flats of whatever comes next.

I'm really disappointed about the alliums this year.  The early winter was so mild that many of them decided it was okay to grow, only to be damaged by the subsequent freezing temps.  This is what's left of my 'Jade Eyes' white alliums.

And my giant 'Ambassador' alliums didn't even come up at all.  They were in one of the lowest spots last year, and it could be they rotted in the flooding.  So disappointing.

One thing that I would have never in a million years imagined would make it through the winter was a lone cantaloupe plant from a seed that was very late in sprouting last summer.  Who could have imagined?  It came up in the late summer and stayed rather small.  And, amazingly, green all winter.  Go figger.

My peas are actually up and doing great.  That is, they weren't eaten as seeds in the ground by moles, and haven't been attacked by rabbits now that they're up.  I did pre-flood the root area under the ones I'm growing on a fence before I planted them to discourage the use of that as a mole run like it was the past two years.  And I've sprayed them periodically with Liquid Fence to discourage deer and rabbit.  Hopefully I don't forget to keep them sprayed until they're larger than a bunny likes.

But the main things going now are the spring flower bulbs, including tulips and narcissus (daffodils).

This very large yellow trumpet-style daffodil is new this year.

'Arkle'

'Cassata' is the earliest to bloom.  It ends its life as a cream-colored blossom.

But it begins as a two-toned yellow and cream blossom.
It's almost indistinguishable in its early stage from 'Orangery', which I had hopes (from the pictures in the catalog) would be orange, but is actually a dark yellow-gold and cream flower.  It doesn't fade out like 'Cassata', and it blooms a little later.

This dainty little white narcissus is 'Thalia', and it smells heavenly.

I don't know the name of this orange and white flowered daffodil, as it was on the property when I moved here.  It's certainly lovely.

The tulips are always a little later than the daffodils, and they're just now opening up.

'Purple Prince' tulip with 'Arkle' daffodil 

('Pink Charm' daffodil in back)

'Purple Prince' tulips

I think the 'Purple Prince' tulips look nice with the 'Black Olive' heuchera (coral bells), and I believe the tulips that are with 'Purple Prince' but haven't opened yet (new to me this year) are 'Purple Dream'.  I say "believe" because I didn't mark them when I planted. You can see by the shape of their buds that they're a different type of tulip, which 'Purple Dream' is, so I'm pretty sure that's what they are.  I'll know soon, and I'm eager to see how they combine.  

Sadly, not all tulips are good repeaters, and I'm afraid I've lost one of my favorites from the past couple of years: 'Mistress Mystic' - a pale lavender colored one.

Also new this year is 'Crown of Dynasty', which has an interesting form for a tulip and a soft shell pink and cream color.

The roses are just beginning to leaf out, and unfortunately, it looks like I've lost a couple of them over winter.  Fortunately, not my favorites.

The rose garden coming out of winter

While I don't appreciate the late freezes, I do appreciate that we actually get spring.  Recent years until the last one seemed to go directly from winter to summer.  At the risk of flooding, I prefer getting a spring.

Enjoy the rest of April.  

It's a new gardening year - 2022

 2022 is the 8th year of gardening in this spot, and I hope it will also be the best.

The earliest plants visible, of course, are the ones that stayed green all winter, such as the periwinkle, lavender, iris, daylilies, and bunch onions.  One surprise was the hanging basket of pansies.  I just tossed it aside thinking I'd dispose of it eventually, but through all the freezing and snows, some of them stayed green.  

If it's going to be that determined to live, I'm going to let it.  I'll sort out the live material and repot it.  

Other early plants that have popped up out of the snow are rhubarb, hyacinths, crocus, daffodils, scilla, tulips, and lupine. 

Lupine

'Cassata' daffodils starting to bloom

Tulips in foreground, left

'Jean D'Arc' crocus

 'Ruby Giant' crocus

'Violet Beauty' scilla (aka Glory of the Snow) (Chionodoxa luciliae)

A new plant for me this year is a miniature iris: 'Sheila Ann' (Iris reticulata).  I almost missed it, as it's at the furthest edge of the garden and came up and bloomed much earlier than I thought it would.  Not to mention its delicate pale blue color.  The blossoms are short-lived.  Only a few days.

The rhubarb suffered heavy losses last spring when much of the garden flooded.  (As did several of the perennial flowers that prefer drier soils.)  It appears I've lost several of the individual plants, which I'm afraid will include the two I had hopes of being red-stalked varieties.

I cut way back on the numbers of seeds I germinated this year, but still have no room left for more.

They're looking very good at this point.

Left to right: African marigolds, money plant, black-eyed susan vine (Thunbergia), French marigolds, 

globe amaranth (Gomphrena), and 'German Johnson' tomatoes

Basils left to right: 'Blue spice', 'Purple Ruffles', and 'Persian'

As for the vegetables, I've sown seeds of onion, peas, wasabi radishes and salad greens.  The kales and radishes have germinated, and I'm waiting on the onions and peas.

Although it won't be time for cucumbers yet for seveal weeks, I made this year's cucumber trellis out of redbuds that sprouted in the wildflower garden, where they can hide for a whole season, and some trimmings from the forsythia bushes.  It's attached at the bottom to a circle of fencing wire that will hopefully anchor it well.

May the weather cooperate better this year, but don't hold your breath.

Have a happy springtime whatever we get.

Sixty degrees at Christmas?!?

This is the first time I've watered my Missouri garden at Christmas time.  I don't want what's still growing - which is a lot of things - to die by wilting (it was very dry all fall, and still is), because I'm afraid even the perennials won't come back if that happens.

I'm still harvesting cabbage, kale, kohlrabi, arugula, tatsoi, celery and broccoli.

The weather forecast for January looks more like normal, so I hope things can go ahead and shut down.

The maché (corn salad - Valeriana) I planted mid-July is still teeny.  Large enough to see now!  Surely it's not getting something it needs.  They wouldn't be offering seed as a food crop if it doesn't get any bigger than this.  Would they?

Happy holidays!

The last of the last

Several days of frosty nights below 30 have knocked out all the tender plants.  But some things are still producing, including cabbages, broccoli, and herbs.

broccoli and muscat grapes

And tatsoi.

Recently I planted wasabi radishes, which have sprouted, and garlic.  In plots that are now cleared of produce, I planted crimson clover for a cover crop.  If it works, I'll mow it off in early spring and let it lie on the ground to serve as a mulch that I'll just plant through and which will then break down and add nutrients to the soil.  I haven't tried that before, so I have no idea how well it will work - or if it will work at all.

Four more saffron crocus bloomed.  The flowers are about 3-4" long.

From which I harvested 12 more saffron stamens.

Even in commercial growing, they have to be harvested by hand.  You can see why saffron is expensive!

I got some nice poblano peppers and stuffed them.  Very yummy.

The maché is still unbelievably small.

The last of the roses are blooming, and the chrysanthemums are lovely.

'Our Lady of Guadalupe'

'Razzle Dazzle'

'Homecoming'

'Homecoming'

'Homecoming' and 'Cheerleader' mums,

'Night and Day' snapdragons, 'Scarlet Queen' penstemmon

Gomphrena