Forsythia

In New Hampshire the forsythia are just beginning to bloom, and it is early this year since we had such a long run of warm weather.
Forsythia are ubiquitous in New England but the masses of bright yellow bloom are a wonderful splash of color after the long winter. And they are lovely with the early daffodils and little blue scilla and chionodoxa.
I don't know that there is any trick to growing these flowers, they seem to flourish left to their own devices in an open field.
I only have two complaints with this flower. The first is when they are pruned to square hedges or round balls. The nature of these shrubs is to grow to large graceful masses and the pruning makes them unnatural and ugly.
Forsythia bloom on old wood so although the plants are perfectly hardy here in Northern New England the blossoms are often killed off in a hard winter. It is not uncommon to see a forsythia bare with a little skirt of flowers along the bottom where the branches were protected below the snow line.
I am curious to see how the forsythia fair this spring. We had a mild winter with little snow but there was one week of extreme cold.
New hybrids of forsythia are being developed with hardier flowers, one is called New Hampshire. So perhaps we will see more of these sunny blooms here in the north.

Summer Alliums

I am very fond of alliums and am a great fan of the huge spring varieties especially Globemaster.
But the allium season isn't limited to spring, there are also varieties for summer and fall.
One of my favorites is allium tanguticum. The flowers are small but the blooms are abundant.
Unlike the spring blooms that grow from bulbs these alliums grow from tuberose roots and their foliage stays green and healthy all season so the plants are never an eyesore in the garden.
Here I have photographed them in soft focus to accent the airy, ethereal quality of the bloom.

Dahlias

Dahlias are the last great blooms of the summer, as beautiful as peonies and iris. I appreciate having these spectacular flowers as summer wanes.
Here is New Hampshire dahlias are not hardy. I start them in early may in trays of loose potting soil, just early enough to have a little sprout of foliage. I have had trouble starting them directly in our cold, wet spring soil.
To hold them over they have to be dug up in the autumn and stored over the winter. I use vermiculite which needs to be a little damp. I must admit I often lose my dahlias over the winter, they sometimes shrivel, sometimes rot. But they are beautiful so I keep buying new roots each spring.

Walker Farm

Just a few years ago gardeners had few choices when shopping for annuals - petunias and marigolds and bright red salvias filled the garden centers.
If you wanted interesting annuals you had to grow your own from seed.
But now nurseries have sprung up offering extraordinary diversity in both perennial and annual plants.
My favorite is Walker Farm in Dummerston, Vermont. (By the way Johnny Depp has a home in Dummerston so the possibility of a sighting is also a draw).
They have a wide selection of perennials, arranged by flower color, shrubs, herbs and heirloom vegetables. Table after table of annuals. But my favoirite is their greenhouse filled with exotic annuals, hanging baskets and potted delights.
I visited yesterday - having little money I bought only some cosmos to fill in bare spots in the garden - but had a wonderful time with my camera. It was like visiting a museum or gallery, a feast for the eyes.

Allium, Garden Onions

Alliums are a huge family - it includes table onions, chives and the gorgeous garden "onions".
The latter come in many varieties from the tiny yellow allium molly to the huge football sized allium christophii. I love them all. They are very easy to grow, the majority are bulbs that are planted in the fall just like daffodils and tulips.
Like tulips they are sometimes eaten by little animals - I would have thought the onion taste would deter them but apparently not. The most long lasting I have found is the huge and regal Allium Globemaster. They are expensive but just a few bulbs make a big show.
Coincidentally my John Scheepers bulb catalogue came in the mail today - I am going to try some new alliums for next summer.

Yin and Yang

I have been impatiently waiting for my tulips since I planted them last autumn; their promise sustained me during this long difficult winter.
And I am not disappointed, they delight all my senses, bright, gorgeous color, heady fragrance, I even love the silky thick feel of their petals.
So I am in photography heaven.

We have difficulty growing tulips here, they are candy to all the little critters who live in the garden. This year I bought little plastic pots that are used for growing vegetables hydroponically, they were very cheap on Ebay. I planted each tulip in a tiny pot. Very successful, I don't think I lost more than a couple, so I will be using this planting method again.

Meanwhile, I have been thinking of my first photography love, black and white photography. I always loved the magic of watching pictures emerge in the darkroom. So I have started work on a new series of images printed in a vintage style in soft sepia. I call these two Rose Shadows.






















But knitting brings me back to the brights, my newest listing in Beaded wire, a bright cherry red scarf.

Yin and yang, sunshine and shadow.

Scanned Flowers

The snow has melted a little and the big icicles have fallen from our windows. The icicles were so huge they shook the house as they fell sending my dog and cats into tizzies.

But the snow is still so deep I can't get leave the drive way and road.

I have been working on my botanical prints, flowers and foliage that I scan directly into the computer, photographs made without using a camera.

I have developed a technique that creats a sheer, almost x-ray effect, luminous. I especially like the transparency of the foliage in these images.

They are available on Etsy now in various sizes or as cards.
























COPYRIGHT
As some of you know I was an attorney in my prior life, art of course is a little less lucrative (hah!) but a lot more fun.
I often have a hard time reading the Etsy forums because of the all the incorrect legal advice and misinformation given there. So I think I will begin a little series on copyright and trademark - some of the basics and especially some of the issues that come up again and again like copyrighting patterns and the creations made from patterns, using licensed fabrics, etc.
First of all keep in mind that law is complicated, there are often no clear answers. Law has two main sources - written laws - the constitution and statutes and case law - the law as it is interpreted by the courts. Lawmakers cannot foresee all the complicated human situations that will arise so the courts must interpret the law on a case by case basis, creating legal precidents that are themselves reinterpreted by other courts. Anyway just keep in mind that there are rarely black and white answers.

What can be copyrighted? Any original work of authorship fixed in a tangible medium of expression. For the visuals artist this includes:
paintings, photographs, prints, reproductions, maps, drawings, charts, diagrams, sculpture, models, wall reliefs, jewelry.

What cannot be copyrighted?
1. Ideas or other intangibles. An idea cannot be copyrighted only its expression.
For example, you are a photographer and you come up with the original idea of photographing a sunset (let us assume this has never been done before). You can copyright the actual photo you took but not the idea of photographing sunsets. All the other photographers in the world are free to steal your idea and photograph a million sunsets, and then copyright their photos.
2. Useful objects, anything that is primarily utilitarian.
You CANNOT copyright, hats, glove, clothing, toys, toasters, pencils, purses etc.
There are sometimes other legal issues with knock offs of clothing, purses etc. but they are not copyright issus.
There is a major exception - if the useful object has art work on it, that art work is protected by copyright. So if you put your painting on a t-shirt, the t-shirt design cannot be copyrighted but your painting is protected.

Anemone nemorosa

Despite the very early spring and unseasonable warmth the daffodils and forysthia are still blooming stongly.
On the other end of the scale from these vibrant, flashy spring stars are a great favorite of mine, Anemone nemorosa. The tiny flowers are only about an inch across and a few inches tall. But their beauty and elegance belies their size. Plus they grow into nice sized patches. Though they take a while to establish and need some protection from aggressive neighbors when small they are easy to grow in light shade.

Rain Days

I have been so spoiled by this incredible spring, perhaps the most beautiful spring I can remember. Warm, clear sunny days. All of the flowers coming early.
Aren't the forsythia gorgeous against the turquoise sky?
It began to rain last night and the forecast is for days of rain ahead.
But my friend Elaine is right, this spring is coming too quickly, some cold rainly days will help to slow it down to a more normal pace.
And then the tulips will begin to open.

Blue Flowers in Spring

Daffodil Hill was gorgeous last weekend. The carpet of yellow was overhung by soft white and pink magnolia.

Here at home I don't have early azalea or other early flowering shrubs so there is not a lot of color to offset the daffodils, forsythia, and primroses. But I do love the little blue flowers that add their soft hues to the brilliant yellows . The pushkinia and chiondoxa are first, then the scilla and muscari.

The muscari, or grape hyacinth, were one of my mother's favorites: there are dozens of varieties available from pale to deep, almost black versions.

The scilla in the second picture are scilla hispanica or Hyacintoides hispanica. Botanists or horticulturalists always seem to be reclassifying and renaming my favorite plants. But these little blue bells are lovely despite the cumbersome names. The blue version is the most common but I also like the soft purply pinks.

All of these little bulbs are easy to grow. You just plant them in the fall when you are planting daffodils and tulips. They are cheap, so plant a lot to make a statement.

Lady Bugs and Wasps

Wasps overwintered somewhere in the house walls and many are having a hard time finding their way out. So we are killing a dozen or so a day. The house is also full of lady bugs who also overwinter with us and I have become fascinated watching them devour the dead wasps. Who knew? They burrow inside the carcasses and leave only bits of their shells. They work industriously without conflict or quarrels.
The forsythia are blooming early. When winters are cold the buds are not hardy here and we only get bloom below the snow line. But this year after our mild winter they are gorgeous. The star magnolias have also begun to bloom. The photograph was taken "through the viewfinder" of my old Kodak Duoflex Camera.
I am going to Daffodil Hill in Chesterfield tomorrow rain or shine. The daffodils are planted over with magnolias; the bloom is fleeting and I don't want to miss it.

The Earliest Spring

Whether it is global warming or just typical unpredictable New England weather, this is earliest, warmest spring I can remember. Record warmth and more coming. It has stopped raining so I've been in the garden every day. The vinca is blooming. It can be an invasive pest but it is a nice ground cover in the right spot and the flowers are lovely in early spring. Unfortunately at my last home it had invaded a beautiful hillside that was covered in blood root flowers in early spring. I hope the vinca has not destroyed them.




The daffodils are opening very early and very quickly. I have very early and very late bloomers so the daffodil season usually spans most of April and May. I'm worried that this year the bloom will be compressed into a few weeks because of the warm weather.
Truly a wonderful carefree flower, queen of its season. The daffodil here is from my series Watergardens, flowers photographed underwater.



Our cooperative gallery, the Walpole Artisans Cooperative is hosting a cupcake social for moms on the Saturday before Mother's Day. My friend Loribeth made these incredible cupcakes for the event. She uses old sweaters which she felts and adorns beautifully. You can visit Loribeth on her blog maminkagirl.

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.

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.

Lilacs

Lilacs are the state flower of New Hampshire. I grew up in Southern Connecticut where lilacs bloom in April but here they don't bloom til the second week of May. They are welcome at any time; it is impossible to imagine a New England spring without the scent of these beauties.
I like the newer hybrids with their huge blossoms and rich colors but for aroma I don't think the old fashioned lilac species can be beat. Old lilac trees can be huge and unless they are pruned you can end up with blooms across the top that can only be enjoyed from a second story bedroom. But an old gnarled lilac bush is a lovely site even without bloom.
Be careful if you do prune because the blooms are formed on old wood, if you prune too much there will be no flowers in the spring.

Find of the Day:

Landing in Flowers is a ttv (through the viewfinder) photograph by Barbara Carter from her bird series. It has a beautiful subdued painterly quality, tranquil, elegant. Ttv photography is difficult with stationary objects, amazing with this living creature.

Visit Barbara Carter's Etsy shop to see all of her bird images.

The Little Iris

The little iris have begun to bloom in the lawn with the crocus and chionodoxa. There are many varieties, the one pictured here is Iris histrioides 'George' which is a deep red purple verging on magenta.
But these iris come in many colors all shades of purple and blue, yellow and white. You can see a wide assortment in the Bent and Becky's Bulbs catalogue.
Unfortunately they are not very perennial for me and I have to replant them every few years. I think this fall I will try them in garden soil rather than the lawn; maybe they will be happier there.

Find of the Day:

Another new form of art, at least for me. This is traditional Japanese Temari, which means 'hand ball' in Japanese. It is an ancient art originally created to make balls for children.

This temari was created by Barbara Suesse, author of Japanese Temari:A Colorful Spin on an Ancient Art (available on Amazon). The ball is filled with rice hulls, covered with soft yarn and then embroidered.

So beautiful it takes your breath away. More of her work can be seen and purchased at her Etsy shop,
Japanesetemari.

Snow Crocus

The little snow crocus are still going strong in my front lawn. They have been joined by the larger purple crocus and other little bulbs but are still the stars in my eyes. I love the exquisite markings though they are so tiny you must get down on your belly to appreciate them.
I will plant more this fall for my pleasure and sadly the pleasure of the many little animals who love them just as much as I.

Find of the Day:

I have never seen anything like this; I am amazed by the ingenuity and creativity of artists like Jennifer Maestre who made this pendant.

It is made of pencils, this is not a drawing or painting or photograph, it is actually pencils carved and arranged then laminated and covered with epoxy. Beautiful, and original. Her work can be seen and purchased at her Etsy shop jenmaestre.

Glory of the Snow

My snow crocus finally have some company in the garden: Glory of the Snow (chionodoxa), puschkinia, and the little iris reticulata.
I am very fond of the chionodoxa which flower so early and so reliably. Although I like the little blue ones I especially love the slightly taller pink version, c. forbesii 'Pink Giant'.
For years I have pronouced chiondoxa with a soft ch, but at a party my friend Abby was talking about her blooms and pronounced it with a hard ch like a K. At first I did not even realize what flower she meant. We of course had a "discussion" of the proper pronunciation. Turns out, of course, that I was wrong (I almost always am in such matters). The correct pronounciation is Chionodoxa=KI-o-no-DOX-a. The KI is a long i. From Gr. chios (snow) and doxa (glory). Thank you Abby.
In any case they are a lovely easy flower and don't seem to get eaten by the little animals who live under the garden, I guess they are not as tasty as crocus.

Find of the Day:

I am always astonished by the work of glass artists: isn't this bowl amazing? Gorgeous, organic shape, and it is beautifully photographed. I would love to have this on a glass shelf in a window.

This bowl in by Heather Palmer of San Francisco and is available from her Etsy shop.