Thursday, April 12, 2007

is winter ending maybe??

IT'S NOT SNOWING!!!!! IT'S NOT IN THE TEENS, OR 20'S, OR EVEN 30'S!!!! Wow.
Mostly sunny - and the 7 day forecast shows a slight chance of rain Tuesday night, but otherwise partly cloudy to sunny - and rising temps - to the 60's. I'm thinking we deserve it! (And, yes, I am totally prepared to have a foot of snow drop on us just because I was brazen enough to write that forecast here!)

When the pooches and I just did our garden tour, we found many things sprouting up. But, they're all still so small that I would have to lay on the ground to really show them to you. The ground is extremely wet with snow and melting snow, so that's not gonna happen today.



Here's a photo of a species tulip by the side door. I planted 10 bulbs there, and last year 10 came up. Thinking that there are not 10 now. How pathetic is that going to look - one tulip blooming. May have to make a run for pansies.

Other growing things we saw: tulips, daffodils, scilla, hyacinths, chives, sedum, delphinium, peonies, geraniums, Jacob's ladder, phlox, bearded iris, daylilies, snake root (or bugbane or the new name they just gave it that I can never remember), rudbeckia. Probably others too, but that's all I can remember right now.


This is my little rusted metal bird house. Last year some wrens built a nest in it - but didn't use it. The holes are too big for a wren house, so kind of surprised they wasted the effort - a good decoy nest, I guess. I have 2 wren houses that they also built nests in last year, but don't have them out yet.




This is a photo of the lovely iron fence that Mark made. About 10 years ago, we found 3 sections of fencing like this that we paid an arm and a leg for at Architectural Antiques in Minneapolis. I used them in one garden as support for clematis etc. When we decided to do the big dog thing - and then 2 big dogs - we needed to add fencing on the street and across the lake. So he made sections using the old fence as a pattern - and then made similar but smaller ones for me to use around some of the gardens. I absolutely love it - and everyone who comes to the house comments on this cool fence. It's rusted iron also - I'm very into rusted iron!

9 comments:

Trailhead said...

Hi, Kris! I found you through your comment on Edge Effect's Chicken Story.

May spring come to you soon!

I was looking at your list of public gardens you like, as well as your extensive list of roses. Have you ever been to the International Rose Test Garden in Portland, Oregon?

With the view of Mt. Hood, it's one of my favorites.

kris said...

Hi, Trailhead - thanks for looking up my blog. I just looked at your blog briefly - very nice. I will be back again! Thanks for the info on the Portland rose garden. We have talked about making Portland and the Oregon coast a side trip when we're in Seattle. Now I'll have another reason to head down there! Stop in again - nice to meet you!

Trailhead said...

I love the Oregon coast! Portland has two other gardens I love: the Japanese garden, in the same complex as the Rose garden, and the Chinese garden, which is in a more urban setting.

kris said...

Cool - I want to go Portland and the coast - NOW! I don't know that I've ever seen a Chinese garden... I like Japanese gardens, but I usually get restless, which pretty much is not the point of them. Maybe I just need a lot of color etc going on?? Anyway, when we're ready to make that trip, you'll be getting an email from me!!

Diana LaMarre said...

Love the rusty birdhouse and fence.

I have a couple of wooden birdhouses planters on the deck and last year one of them housed a family of birds. I am hoping to get another nest this year. It was such fun watching all the feeding action.

kris said...

hi Zoey - my houses were down by the lake and I saw the nests being built, but never saw the babies - bummer! Pretty sure they used them tho by the mess they left me to clean up! LOL

We have some feeders set up which allows great bird watching (and the dogs love watching the squirrels ((who eat more than the birds!)) - but what a mess. I'm debating whether I want to continue that.

Kitt said...

Very nice fence. Is it rebar?

I'm glad you're seeing signs of spring at last. It will one day explode upon you!

Trailhead said...

I like Japanese gardens, but I usually get restless, which pretty much is not the point of them.

Now that's funny!

kris said...

hi Kitt - the fence is pretty cool. The expert says it is not rebar - it's 3/8" mild steel - which is like rebar without all the gnarly stuff that grabs onto cement etc. It's been beautiful here the last couple days. I think you're right - soon spring will just bust out all over. Can't wait!


Trailhead - I'm curious - what kind of plantings does a Chinese garden have? The photo of the tea house on your blog is cool.