The only thing blooming in my garden right now is this solitary crocus which I did not plant. Must be a relic from gardeners past...
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| Poor lonely little crocus! I did not plant you. |
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He looks a bit forlorn there all by himself, but he's certainly welcome to stay (and multiply), if the squirrels don't find him first.
Winter aconites and snowdrops are blooming in my area now, as well as these witch hazels (
Hamamelis vernalis) I saw in the Arboretum on March 13th:
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| Hamamelis vernalis 'Sandra' |
Very difficult things to photograph, those witch hazels. They look much lovelier in person, and have a pleasant (if muted) fragrance. This yellow cultivar really shows up well in the landscape, glowing like a soft lantern from across the garden.
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| Hamamelis vernalis 'Sandra' |
The photo below shows an orange cultivar named 'Red Imp' with a pink-flowered one called 'Kohankie Red' in the background.
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| Hamamelis vernalis 'Red Imp' (foreground) and 'Kohankie Red' |
These are varieties I have never seen for sale in the trade. Although
they perhaps look more interesting close-up, these non-yellow cultivars
did not look as good in the landscape. From a distance, the
orange-flowered one just looks as if it is covered in old dusty leaves.
The pink-flowered one had very few flowers that disappear entirely. I did not even realize they were blooming until I was
standing right next to them. Both also had a much more awkward habit
than 'Sandra'.
For those of you not familiar with Wisconsin climate, this is astonishingly early for these plants to be blooming! See what else is blooming early this year at
May Dreams Gardens' Garden Bloggers Bloom Day.
Often the plants in the Arboretum are on trial before they are introduced to the trade — which can be a matter of years! This is actually the normal time for vernal witch hazels. Mine started in January with the warm spell we had then. But it still has lots of leaves clinging to it which makes the flowers more difficult to see.
ReplyDeleteThanks, I did not know they bloomed so early! I had not noticed them in March ever before. I just love the Arboretum!
DeleteThat is a sweet crocus. I've seen witch hazel trees on blogs, but don't think I've seen any in person. I hope spring continues to progress there, and winter doesn't try to come back.
ReplyDeleteI'm almost certain this warm spell is a fluke - we're probably in for some major blizzards soon. But I'll enjoy it while it lasts!
DeleteOh! I would perform a special dance around that brave little crocus, to keep it in my garden!
ReplyDeleteI would do whatever dance he likes, but I'm afraid he's destined to be squirrel food... Crocus never stick around long for me.
DeleteMaybe spring will come early if the witch hazel is blooming - and your one crocus! :) Poor little thing. I hope he multiplies for you, too. Such a sweet sign of spring's impending arrival.
ReplyDeleteIt actually feels like SUMMER is coming early - we've had 80 degree temps! Bizarre weather - my emerging daffodils appear frozen, I think they're confused by the heat.
DeleteOh, I feel a bit sorry for that solitary crocus! What about giving him some siblings and give the squirrels something else to eat? I have done that to my window boxes in my front garden as the squirrels kept digging up my plants. Now the squirrels and I are no longer at war; I give them a handful of peanuts now and then and they leave my plants in peace!
ReplyDeleteI will have to try that Helene - maybe the squirrels will be appeased by a nutty offering and leave my garden alone :-)
DeleteI too was intrigued by your crocus. Must have been a busy squirrel.
ReplyDeleteThe squirrels are constantly rearranging things around here... :-) In this case they had a good idea.
DeleteThe Little Crocus that Could... I can see how the orange-flowered witch hazel would just look like a re-hash of late autumn from a distance. Yellow against brown/dun colors is an amazingly effective combination.
ReplyDeleteYes, it was interesting how different the colors showed up from a distance as opposed to close up. The yellow really carried, but the orange and pink disappeared. I'm glad to have a resource like the Arboretum so I can research plants in person beforehand and find out things like that before planting.
DeleteVery pretty, that Hamamelis. I think your pictures capture is so well. Happy bloom day!
ReplyDeleteThanks Town Mouse - happy bloom day to you too! It's been so fun to see what's blooming all across the world.
DeleteIts fun starting a new garden. You will have to plant more crocuses next fall. Looking forward to watching your garden grow.
ReplyDeleteThanks Ann, I realize that there is a big hole in my garden now as nothing is blooming - need to plant more crocus, snowdrops, and aconites for next year!
DeleteI want to plant more witch hazels. Yours are beautiful!
ReplyDeleteI love them, especially since there's nothing much else going on at eye level at this time of year!
DeleteOur little blue bulbs would be Babiana, earning their Latin name because the baboons like to dig them up for lunch.
ReplyDeleteI have a lot of critters but at least we have no baboons! I bet they can do a LOT of damage. Terribly smart too.
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