Its Still Raining

An early spring, but it has been very cold the last few nights and it is raining again today. It looks like it will rain all week. So there is little chance that the garden will dry out and be workable this week.

I am enjoying last summers blooms . This is Chrysanthemum koreana Sheffield. There is some confusion about its classification, I think it is now actually classified as Dendranthema rubellum .

This is an old fasioned chrysanthemum very hardy and easy to grow. It has a tall open growth pattern much more graceful and elegant than the little stiff mounds they sell at the grocery in the fall. These should be planted now if you want these graceful daisies next fall. Clara Curtis is another old fashioned bloomer, taller and later with a cooler toned flower. They take no care and seem to live on forever.

I have just listed the photographs on etsy as a set for a special sale price.

Dreaming of Lilacs

Although spring is early and mild it is also windy and wet. All of my crocus are beaten down by rain and wind. A sad sight. But the daffodils have big swollen buds. Everything is early this year, my mums will be opening in June at this rate.
But I am having trouble waiting for the garden. Last night was cold and the garden is very wet so working there will have to wait at least a few days.
Meanwhile I am dreaming of lilacs, looking through last years photographs. These three capture the mood of spring, soft and dreamy.
They are also offered on Etsy at a special price as a set.

Star Magnolia

Magnolias will probably not be blooming in New Hampshire for at least another month. But I have been sorting through photographs from last season. These four are all Star Magnolia ( Magnolia stellata) an early blooming variety with flowers that are smaller than its lush sisters. It is very hardy and easy to grow and the blooms are exquisite in their simple way. These were photographed on Daffodil Hill in Chesterfield NH. The magnolias bloom with the daffodils creating a magical scene. Unfortunately they bloom at the height of black fly season so nets and bug spray are necessary gear.
These four photographs are offered on Etsy as a set for a special sale price of 4/$40.

Spring

Spring has come early this year. And for those of us in northern New England it was an easy winter with few storms or cold weather.
But spring is always welcome here however fleeting.
My snow crocuses and hellebores are in full bloom and the coltsfoot blooms along the road.
Coltsfoot can be a nasty weed spreading fiercely. The flowers and seed heads look like dandelions but it blooms much earlier when any color is welcome. Not a plant I would want in the garden but pleasant along our country road.
I have been making mosaics from last summers blooms, delicate ethereal images. They are available on Etsy as mosaics or individual photographs.
Too wet to work in the garden so I continue to knit and have some new cotton scarves for spring and summer.

Crocus Impatiently Waiting

Wednesday the first crocus opened in my front lawn. Always a banner day in my garden. But it has been dank and dark with sleet this morning so no more crocus. The little snow crocus are so small they would have little impact in the garden later in the season but they are such a joy in dreary March where there is nothing else to see but mud and old snow.
They are miracles of hardiness and bloom through late snowfalls, ice, wind.
They are easy to grow and cheap to buy. I like to plant a few hundred each fall. I just make holes with a gardening knife and toss in the little corms. They are food for squirrels and other critters but they have a harder time finding them in the lawn than in soft garden soil.
While I wait for more flowers I am knitting and crocheting. I love the my new triple ruffle cowl, available on Etsy.