The Thing with Gardening

Here's the funny thing about gardening:  You wait and wait and wait and wait (and after this last winter - you wait some more!), just wishing and hoping and itching to get out in the garden.

Then. . . one day . . . the temperature suddenly spikes to the mid-70s (without so much as a ramp-up) and stays that way for a couple of days.  And then, just as suddenly, gardeners are woefully behind on All the Tasks.  Like . . . right now!

It always feels a little like garden-panic in the spring.  But it will work out.  (It always does.)

Here in my corner of Michigan, we're still way behind "normal" in terms of what's budding and blooming, but thanks to a couple of warm, sunny days this week, things are beginning to pop.   (Kalamazoo's average last frost date is May 21, so it's not like I'm trying to plant anything yet.)  (Our cottage up north?  The last average frost date there is June 11!)

So, amid great fanfare and a bit of garden-clean-up-exhaustion, here are 3 things blooming in my garden today:

1 - Hellebores.  (These have been blooming for a couple of weeks now.)

2 -- Grape hyacinth.

3 -- Dandelions!  (Never fear --- my position atop the Neighborhood Dandelion Leaderboard remains secure for yet another season!)  (My neighbors hate me.) (Although most people consider dandelions a scourge, I think of them as "first food" for the bees and pollinators.)

And, coming up with a bullet?  We've got . . . 

Redbud!

Virginia bluebells!

(And lilac, too.  Just no photos.)

The thing about gardening?  Flowers are magical, and spring is a wonderful thing!  (Even if everything feels a bit out of control at first.)

==========

Be sure to head to Carole's to see more Three on Thursday posts.

 

Comments

[Juliann]

Our last frost date is May 15 but I am doing a bit of weeding and digging in the afternoons so I will be ready. My spirit is in dire need of more garden time

[Carole]

Our last average frost date is 5/8 - SO close! I'm itching to plant all the things.

[Patty]

I just looked up our frost date - June 11-20! We're pretty dedicated to not putting anything in until at least Memorial Day. We've got a lot of splitting to get to this coming weekend. Those helebores are lovely!

[Bonny]

I love your position on the Dandelion Leaderboard and I also love dandelions! They're good for wishing upon, making dandelion crowns, and I think all those yellow faces dotting the lawn are beautiful. John digs them out, but it's a losing battle (and I spread more seeds with my dandelion wishes)! Hooray for getting out in the garden!

[Debbie]

I let my dandelions grow and feed the bees too! My bluebells are blooming, along with a few late daffodils. I'm hoping to be able to start planting next week.

[kim in oregon]

We are a bit ahead of you in Oregon---our grapes have past their due dates and our redbud is pretty bright and cheerful! So glad you're having spring! Next up in my garden: irises!

[Vicki]

You nailed it... and it will work out (it always does)! I really do love how my Instagram feed has suddenly blown up with blooms!!

[Vera]

Won't be long now! I, too, love dandelions (though Fletch religiously pulls them). The yellow is so very cheerful!

[Jeannie Gray]

Dandelions seem to be the only flower I can grow with my black thumbs and clay for dirt. I've learned to embrace their beauty. Happy spring!

[AsKatKnits]

Our frost date is this weekend, but I have been burned badly in past years - so I will patiently wait. And, yes... how rude to be slammed from winter to summer! I win that dandelion award as well...I am sure my neighbors are just thrilled by that, but not as much as those dear little bees. And, it's all about the bees! XO

[Jo]

May 15 is Colorado date. One year, the forecast indicated perfect weather before the 15th and I jumped,the gun. You know it, frost visited right after the plants were in the ground! Patience is definitely a virtue!

[kmkat]

When I was in high school, we lived in Park Rapids, MN, which is about 20 miles south of Lake Itasca, headwaters of the Mississippi. My mom was an avid gardener, and it broke her heart that the first year we lived there we had a killing fros--, nay, a FREEZE! every month except July. (I remember wearing a parka one Fourth of July when Smokey set off fireworks for me, Mom, and some of her friends. And I was not too warm.)

[margene]

Our redbuds are just fading but the lilacs are just popping. It's all so magical this time of year. I love your Hellebores! My hostas are starting to unfurl. I just love watching spring slowly take over the earth!

[Geri]

My garden is looking very sparse this year, but I do have tulips. Unfortunately with temps in the upper 80’s the group in direct sun have unfurled too much. Last frost is sometime in Early May but I give it a week or two more for annuals,

[Mary]

So many blooms! Those hellebores are gorgeous - the ones around here are still blooming, but the colors seem faded compared to yours.

[Jane]

Flowers are magical. The lilacs are just opening. I can't wait.

[Honore]

Azaleas!Dogwood!Lilac; Wisteria and roses ...all were last week's headliners with our 93+ degree days...a tad too soon but thankfully, short-lived, for the time being...buttercups and dandelions always fascinate the little ones - sure signs of warmer weather! Have fun in the garden !
Cheers~