Tuesday, February 15, 2011

February flowers

It's a bit chilly and rather damp, but the garden is slowly, imperceptibly, filling up with flowers again.

The bulbs are getting my gardening fingers itching: clump after clump of snowdrops has appeared in the long grass and I didn't even realise they were there. They've hung on in the face of decades of neglect (I'm told by my neighbours it's over 20 years since a gardener lived here): and though I'm also told they aren't nearly as plentiful as they once were, I'm planning to do something about that. I have visions of sheets of snowdrops underplanted with aconites and cyclamen dancing in my head...

But for now I'm just enjoying what I have. It's even better in the greenhouse, where the overwintering geraniums are putting on a fabulous show and cheering me up no end (do they ever rest, do you think?) and even my little scented-leaf pretties are shyly unfurling a few petals.

So, in the wind and the rain, I've been out today taking a few photos for Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, hosted by Carol at May Dreams Gardens. Enjoy!

12 comments:

Helen said...

Ooooo. Love that double snowdrop. How nice to see things blooming. We've nothing but snow, though I can see some action prepping in the tree branches. Happy Blooms Day!

Plant Mad Nige said...

What a delightful slide show. Odd that the pelargoniums are going mad - mine are too, but I've got horrible whitefly.

Your 'alder' looks more like hazel, to me, but pics can be misleading.

Envious of your daffodil. Something vile and fell seems to have eaten most of mine.

Su said...

Your double snowdrop is the same as mine - fantastic waht we inherit with gardens isn't it!

Anonymous said...

Mmmm mmm! Fabulous slideshow - I especially like the sulking crocuses and the double snowdrop. I can just envision your description of your snowdrops! someday I would love to inherit a garden, but right now I am the one who is beginning it. :)

Janet/Plantaliscious said...

A daff! In flower! I have a couple of yellowish swellings forming on some of mine (which put like that sounds painful, sorry), but that's it so far. I lost my pelargoniums due to cold and botrytis, so it was good to live vicariously and enjoy yours instead. The snowdrops are amazing, how wonderful to inherit a goodly colony.

The Constant Gardener said...

Hello all and thank you for your lovely comments!

Helen - yes I've been watching the shoots on the roses - stretching by the day :D

Nigel - glad to see you're not slacking on the job :D It could well be hazel (we have both alder and hazel in abundance here) but I plumped for alder since they were twice as long as the hazel catkins and the tree didn't look like a hazel (no straight stems). However I am rubbish at identifying trees without their leaves unless they're silver birches or oak trees, so I could easily be wrong. How do you tell an alder catkin from a hazel one then?

Su - I never realised double snowdrops naturalised until I came here: I thought they needed a lot of cosseting but they seem to do very well without a gardener, thank you :D

Hanni - thank you, and beginning a garden from scratch is every bit as nice, in a different way, as inheriting one ;D

Plantaliscious - yes I was pretty amazed myself. They're up on the hill at the back of the garden and I looked out one day and thought, what's that yellow up there? Went out for a closer look and - well. The earliest daffs I've ever had, that's for sure.

As a postscript: was out in the garden today doing the February clear-up and we've got primroses as well, buried under the rampant undergrowth which is why I didn't see them yesterday. All my favourite plants at the same time! Can't believe my luck!

Elaine said...

Your photos are gorgeous. I love the double snow drops and your pelargoniums!

Sunray Gardens said...

Love your photos. You captured some great shots.

Cher
Goldenray Yorkies

The Constant Gardener said...

thank you Elaine and Sunray :D

It's funny about pelargoniums - in summer I always think they're a bit too old-ladyish for me, but this time of year they just lift my spirits no end. Just lovely to see a bit of colour at last.

dorothy said...

I loved all your photos! And I didn't know that there was even such a thing as double snowdrops...another one to put on my "gotta have" list!

Wally said...

Lovely slideshow.

iSEO Ranker said...

Wow! what a beautiful flower!!! I really like it an i like your post also. Thanks:)

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