Even though it sleeted today ("In like a lion," but I'm ready for the "out like a lamb."), spring is making its presence know in the garden. The daffodils are blooming, the Georgia blue veronica is blooming. The creeping phlox are just starting to wink their pink eyes at me and all my coneflower buddies are just starting to show their leaves. I even have a bearded iris bud that looks like it may open by the weekend. What's starting to wake up from the winter slumber in your garden?
What's popping up in your GA spring garden?
I THINK (hope & pray) that my Fernleaf Peony is actually emerging! I planted it last fall - it's my 3rd try, so I am very happy & surprised! Bulbs - hyacinths & daffs - have been up for 2 weeks, star magnolia is about done blooming! Tall phlox are beginning to show new growth, creeping phlox in bloom & oakleaf hydrangeas beginning to leaf out, too, here in South Georgia. It is actually quite late for all this - usually by late Feb all this is happening!
My tree peonies are both leafing out and have big fat buds on them. The japanese magnolia is blooming. The camellias are just about at their peak. The hellebores are covered with blooms.
I purchased 2 baby lenten roses; only had two blooms. Are they as slow growing as some folks indicate? If so, I have a long time to wait!
Yes they are slow growing, my lenten roses took about three years to become established. It's worth the wait, each of mine are now about two feet across with probably a hundred blooms each.
Here's what one of my lenten roses looks like after 5 years..
Here's some of my cute little grape hyacinths in front of the creeping phlox. The Georgia blue veronica is just beautiful and the honeybees have already found it. Couldn't get a picture to do it justice.
Wow! The purple and blue are perfect together..
Hi. I've been around a while but am new to posting. I'm gardening around a new house north of Lake Lanier in a cold spot, so I'm way behind a lot of you, but our two young plum trees and Prunus mume are blooming and lovely, also Georgia Blue veronica and white and dark pink hellebores. If only they were in the same place. The haze of new leaves on our newly planted weeping willow isn't bloom but is just as lovely when all else is gray around. Next year they will open over Narcissuso pseudonarcissus, a few of which are blooming now (also somewhere else) and will hopefully spread with the tree. :)
"creeping phlox"
Does it come in other colors? I need some more color around here in late March. All I have are crocus and Daff's blooming, but I'm still in my first year of gardening. I keep thinking I may regret some stuff I want to put in the ground...could take over the place.
The creeping phlos varieties I know come in various shades of pink and a lavendar pink. None are invasive. They spread very gradually and are easy to pull up if needed. They are also mostly evergreen. Georgia blue veronica has a similar personality, it is not an evergreen and it blooms a bit earlier than the phlox. If you are worried about invasive plants, DO NOT plant oenothera (evening primrose). It is highly invasive. I bought 3 little plants, and it now covers 1/3 of my bed. It even tries to move into the yard. I've attached a picture of the lavender pink phlox; it's not in full bloom yet. I'll attache a picture of Georgia blue veronica next.
Here's the veronica. It also has a small white eye in the center of the bloom. This patch was 3 plants that I planted 5 years ago.
Wow Lady! Three plants? Quart sized?
I like the look! I need invasive for a loooooonnnng driveway. About 1/3 mile. Well maybe I can get some planted that covers a hundred yards or so.
Ooh, great shot of your veronica in that last post! I planted one Georgia Blue last year and sort of forgot about how pretty it looks in bloom. It just sort of "sat" there all late summer, fall and winter while my anise hyssop stole the show.
Then a couple of weeks ago I went out to that spot to do some clean-up. I was caught off-guard by how pretty it is in bloom!! I just bought and transplanted another small one so it will fill in faster... I'm excited to see how much yours has spread!
(Sorry for the bad snapshot of my little veronica, way in the back there... I took this a couple of weeks ago before I cleaned up this area... but I'm already imagining how it will look in a year or two after it spreads a bit more!)
As for what else is blooming... some hyacinth I thought I had planted too late to get pretty blooms this year, the lorapetalum my builder planted as foundation plants are blooming away, and the azaleas have buds that look like they are going to pop open any minute.
