Spring is here

It looks like Spring, it smells like Spring, and it feels like Spring. It was a wet weekend but the last couple of soul warming sunny days have banished the winter blahs. It feels so good. The blooms of the Star and Yellow Magnolias seem a little flat compared to my blog entry last year. I think the harsher winter is the cause.

These tulips are blooming on very short stems. Same mix as in past years so not sure why. Tulips do better in colder climates than in this zone so I don't think the cold winter is the culprit.

I like periwinkle as a ground cover and it is covered in bloom now.

The Lenten Rose is really spectacular this year.

Several years ago I bought a couple of tree peonies from a mail order nursery since they had a good sale. I had admired them in other gardens and my brother kept sending me pics of his when they were in bloom. So I was motivated to join this club. Well they arrived about the size of my little finger but it was a bargain. In the Spring only one came up so I got a gift certificate when I notified the mail order nursery. The one that lived struggled the first year, I accidentally stepped on it the second year, last year I don't recall seeing any growth but look at it this year. Hope springs eternal for the gardener. By the way the gift certificate was worthless since the mail order nursery went bankrupt and the new owner would not honor it.