Reviewing 2015 Projects and Plants, Challenges and Results

Glad to hear the girls are doing so well, Patti.....Ground is still frozen here, but the next week should be 40s & 50s so a lot of thawing......waiting another month before I prune roses, but my JMs will be getting a haircut this week......

Yesterday my dear Mom, after a one day trip to the hospital for feeling poorly, died. As was her nature, she was coherent and in charge to her last half an hour. We had time to say goodbye on the phone. Just before she died, I had these two old friends visiting our property in their regular tree. It was beyond kind of Mother Nature to send my Mom soaring off on a beautiful day. Patti

Patti I am so sorry about your Mom. It is very hard but so glad that you could talk to her.

I'm so terribly sorry, Patti....I know she was 100, & had lived a marvelous life....you were so lucky to have had her as your Mom......God also speaks to me in birds, sending me a flock of snow buntings on the day my father died, & another flock on the same date the year after.....I've never seen them since & that was 20 years ago.....When my brother passed in May of 2014, I was walking in the woods, very despondent....and there was a scarlet tanager, so close, I could touch him....

Patti - sorry to hear about your mother. 100 is a really nice run and to be

Hugs, dear Patti. Know that I am praying for you as you mourn your loss.

Thanks all, I am slogging along putting together the funeral, but finding some solace in hiring a bag piper to send her out as she wanted along with some Mozart and a a nice after party. Our pair of hawks have not been here since the day Mom died. so they must be still out soaring with her. We had our first Narcissus bloom the next morning too. None since.

It looks like spring has arrived on Nantucket....not so much here.....I like the idea of a bagpiper.....sad, but fitting......

I love the idea of a bagpiper! Continued hugs and prayers of comfort for you, Patti.

I traveled to Newtown, CT on Wednesday for the memorial service for my cousin's ex-husband and her son who killed him then took his own life. An unimaginable tragedy. My cousin died several years ago. I am kind of glad she didn't have to experience this.

that is terrible.

I read about it in the papers....very tragic......

I have been dwelling upon endings lately, so somehow reading these last posts did not come as a surprise to me. I wish we could virtually enfold the mourners in wings like those of Patti's two "old friends." As very very sad as it is to lose ones mother at any age, there is nothing that compares to the tragedy of murder/suicide. I am chasened and reminded to be alert and and go to the fullest extent to get depressed individuals into treatment.

Good reminder, Rosemary, to be aware of those around me and willing to reach out as needed. Thank you.

The signs are often really hidden, so its not always predictable. Important to give ourselves a break from worry about things we cannot control, also. Hugs and prayers for comfort.

DH checked on our last years planting of I. reticulata bulbs. 11 out of 12 seem to have good leaves showing. No stems as yet which is a good thing as they usually don't bloom until April. We have pine needles covering them as the leaves had come up early.

I haven't checked mine yet....will do that tomorrow....

I am seeing the leaves of my species tulip turkestanica. I was given half a dozen many years ago, and it is one of those multiflowering little guys that actually increases and does not have to be dug up. I am going to explore more species tulips. Many of them are very inexpensive, can be left i the ground and bring lots of cheer early in the year.

My hyacinths are up & budded.....I should plant more bulbs on the south side of the garage, they seem to last there.....

Jan23, so tragic and beyond confusing to those who knew them. My thoughts are with you. Today the sun was out and so began the bulb parade on Nantucket. Mostly crocus so far, but there was one almost opened reticulated Iris that appears to have been stepped on by one of dogs. Welcome to spring.

Oh, thank you for the pictures!

Show more Hamamelis...

Here's some that stayed home at the Valley.

***Hamamelis x intermedia 'Jelena'

***Hamamelis x intermedia 'Jelena' at sunset

***Hamamelis x intermedia 'Primavera'

***Hamamelis x intermedia 'Diane'

Ahhhhh!

Thanks Patti & VV for sharing those photos.....just lovely spring blooms!

really nice - i have moved some opf my hamamelis (that traveld from the valley) to hopefully more friendly spots closer to the pond in back last year. need to wander through the mud to see if they are showing any color.

6 of last fall planted I. reticulata are showing a stem. I worry that it is too soon.

Oh no, they are tough little guys!

They should be fine Lucy....they are tough which is why they can bloom so early in the year.....Bill, hope your witch hazels are blooming.....

My asthma Dr. reported last week that his witch hazel was in bloom. Did not realize that they bloomed so early. I know the little bulbus irises are early bloomers, but we don't even have snow drop appearing as yet.

The native which hazel here in CT blooms in November.....the hybrids are very pretty....I'm ordering my iris today....have to narrow down my list considerably!

OHHHH, the witch hazels are loverly as well as the first bulbous pics from Nantucket!!!!!!

All of my peonies are poking out. I have learned to plant them very high up and protect them with wire grids. When I planted them the recommended two inches down they would sink down further and fail to bloom. Now I bury them one inch down, and can often see them in very early spring. I wish someone had told me this years ago!

And the campanula takesimana 'Bellringers' is breaking dormancy big time. Hum! Too many! I have already transplanted some of them to inhospitable areas. A shovel and Roundup may be next for a few.

Ohh! I have one reticulated iris bloom and a few crocus, lots of TBI leaves starting to sprout, no peonies yet. Mystery to me is why the galanthus buds are absent. Only one of my three hammemelis intermedia plants has much to show. Fortunately, Rubin is near a window so the red fringe is pretty. This is yet another reason to bring in more sun. Hope to get you some pics.

My hellebores had begun blooming, but the cold was too much for them & the blooms are now brown & crisp....hoping the plants will send out more....Need to put ashes on my peonies, but too windy today....

snow has disappeared around the I. reticulata.

I'm surprised at how many daffs are up....no sign of crocus yet....

Or only crocus are right next t the house. those farther out in a garden bed are not showing themselves.

Roses are breaking dormancy. Whoo hoo!

Still too cold here......no crocus anywhere in yard yet....just daffs, hyacinths, & hellebores.....I keep saying I'd like snowdrops, then forget to plant them in the fall....

The Witch-hazels are starting to drop their petals after quite the good long run. The extended length of quality bloom time can be attributed to a combination of beneficial temperatures and established age. I hope the upcoming years continue this increase in show.

The next round has begun - Cornus officinalis and Cornus mas clones are popped, and making their golden show.

**Cornus officinalis

**Cornus officinalis closeup

**Cornus officinalis 'Spring Queen'

**Cornus mas 'Clydesdale'

**Cornus mas 'Flava'

Wow VV. Keep 'em coming. I love seeing your plants.