Tag Archives: Flower

What’s That Buzz?

The clichés are true. Bees are busy and they do buzz when they move from flower to flower. My gardening confidence bumps up several notches when they come to town, knowing my pumpkin plants are in good ‘hands.’

I’m terrible at sitting or standing still for long, but find the garden helps slow me down. While standing still, I notice so much more. This morning I saw three different birds in the orange tree, a snail meandering on an orange peel and a group of industrious, shiny black bees.

The standing still part didn’t last long as I followed the bee from flower to flower, snapping as many pictures as I could before the pollinator moved on. Within a few minutes another bee arrived and as I darted from flower to flower, so too did the bees. They make a frantic bzzz sound before landing, then silence as they dip head first into the flower, rolling their shiny bodies in golden pollen. No time to lollygag, they quickly emerge, darting to their next destination.

A nice dip in the pool

Pumpkin plants produce several male flowers at the start of their growth. Within a few weeks the female flowers appear. Without those bees, all the flowers would eventually shrivel and die, leaving a healthy but fruitless vine.

A pair of male pumpkin flowers

What’s that buzz? It’s music to my gardening ears!

Spreading glassy wings

Ready for lift-off

A bee and its shadow

You can learn more about the critical role of pollinators at Pollinator Partnership. The site has a fun, downloadable poster as well.

Tulips: Waving Farewell

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Our tulips put on a lovely show for weeks. Thanks to all of you for encouraging me to give them a second chance. Years ago I planted a big batch of tulips from Costco and not a single one came up. My friend, Bob, thinks the squirrels made off with them instead.

One of the cool things about keeping a gardening blog is the log. With over a year of blogging, I can refer back to planting schedules, what worked, what didn’t and all the wonderful comments you post. It takes a village to plant an awesome garden. I love that. ♥

Here’s what I’ll be referring to this fall when I buy and chill garden bulbs:

Tulip Angelique

Angéliqué

Planted: 15
Survived: 4
Thrived: 2

I might try again, but in a different location. They’re stunning, but just didn’t take off.

Tulip ‘Attila’

Attila

Planted 15
Survived: 12
Thrived: 12

These will definitely be back next year.

Tulip ‘Passionale’

Passionale

Planted 5
Survived: 5
Thrived: 5

Also a winner, the Passionale tulips were the first up and the longest-lasting.

The not so dirty dozen

I thought I would feel wistful as the tulips faded, but signs of spring are in abundance everywhere. Farewell, garden beauties. Till next year.

Are you seeing signs of spring, too?

Beauty Down Under

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Have you ever noticed the beauty of a flower, down under?

I’ve grown to love the view through my camera lens. The narrowed focus and clarity allow me to see things I might miss. Who knew that vibrant purple tulips rise from their stem with a subtle brush stroke of cream. Nature imitating art?

Looking Up

Freesias curl from a chain of looped, waxy stems. Soft yellows fade to white, then splash out an intense magenta. They’re intoxicating too, drawing my nose toward the planter whenever I walk by. I love these colors. I’m dreaming of a summer dress with a yellow bodice and a fuchsia skirt. Surely one of the fashion houses has thought of that.

Freesias

Look closely. I think this Cyclamen brushed on magenta eye shadow at the start of the day. Too shy to flirt with the world, she keeps this side of her hidden down below.

Cyclamen ‘Eye Shadow’

The Tulip Magnolia sport ‘fingers,’ pulled together as if to wave at passersby (or…let’s face it), the coming and going snails. I love it, warts and all.

Magnolia Tulip Fingers

As I child I liked to view the world from different perspectives. I imagined the house as if everything were upside down. Watching clouds while sprawled on my back connected me to the world in a different way. I probably spent too much time day-dreaming, the hallmark of an introvert though I also craved real-world connections. As an adult, I enjoy both. Human connection and solitude. I’m a social being who craves unfettered time alone. What better place to find it then in the garden, down under.

Watercolors

Garden Bulbs: Putting on a Show

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Today, I was ready! I’ve been enjoying these beautiful tulips putting on a show and wanted to share them with you. I kept missing the chance to grab a picture of their buttery centers. The tulips start to ‘disrobe’ around mid-day, usually when I’m gone. They’re wrapped up snugly first thing in the morning and again by dusk. Aren’t they something?

Tulip opens up

Trio of Beauties

Petite and purple crocus broke ground this week, blooming with sporty stripes and tailored leaves to match They’re small put powerful, and once established, appear year after year. I planted crocus in several pots and as a border under the Acer and around the steps. Next year I’ll be far more adventurous, planting in greater volume. They’re magnificent!

Purple Crocus with Lemony Centers

This lovely should burst on the scene tomorrow, just in time for Blooming Thursday. (No pressure, little flower.)

Tomorrow’s promise

I’ll close with this luscious number. I don’t remember planting it and don’t know what it is. Suggestions welcome.

Watercolor Tulips

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The first of the tulips are up, unfurling petals like the strokes of a water-colored canvas. I love the way they look just before they open. Wouldn’t it be fun to peak inside the tightly coiled flower? Do you think they have a secret to tell?

In a few more days they’ll open revealing a colorful, reproductive center. Then quietly, one by one, the petals drop and the tulip is done for the season. If you went on an ill-timed vacation you could miss the whole thing.

I have a dear friend who attends the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival most years. She has several pictures showing rows and rows of growing tulips and a few with her posing among the rows. I have to giggle at my excitement over a pair of tulips, when I think of that sea of flowers. Perhaps I’ll get to go one day, too. For now, I’m enjoying the pair of tulips in the planter on my back steps, marveling at nature’s perpetual beauty.

Potted tulips

Ready to spring forth

For Kecker

Foreshadowing the Scented Garden

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Flowering Daphne

The lovely Daphne is in full bloom, her scent powerful enough to knock you sideways. No wonder the neighborhood squirrels like to hide their nuts nearby. Her waxy green leaves, edged in buttercup yellow, frame the bouquet of blooms. It would be easy to envy that effortless beauty, but I know she’s been working hard since the fall, storing energy for this fabulous display. Deep pink shadows give way to a blush of pinks and creams. Effervescence, defined.

Daphne Banner

(Almost) Blooming Thursday: Tulips!

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Tulips Break Ground

Did you hear me squeal with delight?

Tulips are popping up all over the garden. They won’t flower for a little while, but the fact that they’ve survived this long (shh…don’t tip off the squirrels) is amazing.

Last fall I planted three varieties, purchased at a local garden center. They are all sourced from Van Zyverden.

I planted:

15 Tulip ‘Angélique‘
15 Tulip ‘Attila‘; and
5 Tulip ‘Passionale‘

In other words, the potential for 35 stunning acts of nature. Guess what? I counted over twenty, ground-breaking bulbs! The last time I planted tulips, nothing came up. Zip. Zero. Nada. I’m really liking these odds.

Tulips all Around!

While I had my nose to the earth, I noticed several more bulbs breaking through: Crocus, Narcissus and a few others, to-be-determined when they bloom.

Oh happy day! What’s ‘cooking’ in your garden this Thursday?

Assorted Spring Bulbs Break Ground

Tulip Bulbs

Planting the Strip: The Results are In!

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Earlier this month I wrote about the pros and cons of planting the sidewalk strip. I included a poll and asked readers to vote as well as comment on the idea.

As of today, the vote is split down the middle:

42.31% said yes
42.31 said no
15.38 were on the fence.

The comments were incredibly helpful. Thank you for taking the time to read, comment or vote. There were many things I hadn’t thought of. Here are a few:

Boomdeeada wrote: I voted to plant the easement but everyone here has great comments. I’d be tempted to put in a perennial of some kind more than vegetables…a bed that begins with tulips, then lilies then iris’s….I also liked the beds of Rudbeckia, alyssum and purple petunia at the Alberta Governor Generals house this summer…that would smell really nice.

I like the idea of planting flowers instead of veg. Another reader also suggested growing a hedge first, then planting within its boundaries.

Sensiblegardening wrote: I had to vote “no” but not because I think it’s a bad idea. I think it’s a great idea. However, after living for 20 years on a rural road, at the dead-end turn around, I’ve seen too much of how disrespectful a lot of the public is of our natural spaces, let alone our own private property that butts up against it. Sorry, but that’s just the ugly truth of it at this point in time. Hopefully more people will become a little more enlightened as time goes on.

Several others also cited this. My husband voted no, too. :-(

Suzanne Elliot suggested a nearby alternative: Thoughts on planting the strip – Dogs and passers-by – Dogs will leave deposits – and not the bank kind – passers by will pick your flowers. In looking at your photo of your lovely front garden I notice that you have a lot of LAWN – how about converting your lawn to something else? You could plant veggies mixed with flowers closer in to your house in your current lawn area (full sun) – and thereby thwart all but the most brazen flower pickers and fruit/veggie thieves…

Planting the Strip

The Plan at Hand:

Front garden:

Leave the sidewalk strip/easement alone for now. (Subject to change without notice, void where prohibited).

Combine Suzanne and Boomdee’s idea and plant a perennial garden next to the stone walkway on the property in a curving triangle to balance the curving wall on the other side. If that goes well, I’ll plant more perennials on the other side of the driveway. Honestly, you can never have too many flowers, don’t you think? The bees are counting on them.

Back garden:

Transplant the blueberry bush (still very small) and the raspberry vines to another location in the yard. This will free up 25% of the planting boxes.

Finish clearing overgrown and tired looking shrubs around fruit tree. Plant additional flowers from seed.
Meanwhile, please join me in another rain dance.

The San Jose area has received only 0.9 inches of rain so far this month, a third of the normal 2.72 inches.

In a normal year, San Jose would have received about 7.73 inches of rain by now. Instead, only 2.45 inches have fallen since July, not even a third of normal. (San Jose Mercury News)

Daffodils, Pomegranates and Wordsworth

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I was feeling a little blue yesterday, so what better way to bring cheer than flowers. Yellow flowers really brighten a room, especially in the middle of January. Further, nothing says “spring is coming!” like daffodils.

The small potted bulbs were an impulse purchase, but I bought them without remorse. (Okay I’m a bit remorseful that I left a Weight Watchers meeting and bought dark chocolate-covered pomegranate seeds, but it was the daffodils I went in for.) I lost weight so why wouldn’t I celebrate with a bit of heart-healthy dark chocolate?

I digress.

Daffodils (narcissus) originated in Spain and Portugal, though it was Holland that perfected the bulb trade. According to American Meadows “over nine billion flower bulbs are produced each year in Holland, and about 7 billion of them are exported, for an export value of three-quarters of a billion dollars. According to the Netherlands Flower Bulb Information Center, the USA is the biggest importer of Dutch bulbs.”

I guess I’m not the only flower-lover making impulse purchases! William Wordsworth says it best:

And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.

Daffodils, by William Wordsworth

I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o’er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed–and gazed–but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.

Sweet Alyssum: Growing a Namesake

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Alys Milner (Lancaster)

Sweet alyssum is easy to grow. True to its name, it has a light honey-scent, with tiny white flowers that grow close to the ground.It’s intoxicating.

Alyssum is an annual, starting small, then spreading a foot in diameter by late summer. When I want it to grow in a certain spot, I’ll buy a six-cell pack. It easily self-seeds, so I often scatter the spent flowers around the garden in the fall, then enjoy what comes up and where the following year.

As I was plucking weeds in the side yard this week, I noticed at least two dozen alyssum seedlings. I’m sure I pulled out one or two in my zeal to rid the dirt of pesky weeds before I realized what they were. I made a hasty retreat.

My garden is not complete without Sweet alyssum and here’s why: