imperfection

clarity

simplicity

necessitation

CG is not a fan of growing tulips.

The main reason being, they are the exact opposite of daffodils.

Tulips are fragile, finicky, and unforgiving. 

CG Jr, however, loves tulips.

A few weeks ago, 

CG bought some greenhouse-grown, ready-to-stick-in-the-ground-and-bloom 

red tulips.

the natural structure of stature

warm sunshine

the sun-orange center of this bloom has a nice, warming quality

-even on a cloudy day

the signal

that frigid-cold mornings will soon be a thing of the past

With the early-blooming yellow daffodils, it's possible (and likely) to have additional snowfall.

Now, with the beginning of the progression, all of the different types of daffodils signal warmer times to come.

It almost seems like the warmer the weather, the more color & complexity is coaxed from the ground.

How Small are They?

Dwarf Iris

These dwarf iris were mail-ordered and planted in October. 

CG never expected these to start blooming this Spring. 

He would have been content with mini-iris greenery in the first year. 

So, it was a very nice surprise to see such splendid color & structure this early. 

First Daffodil 2011

For CG, it's a special moment that happens once a year.

It's a compressed moment that represents all of the planning and work from the previous year.

The daffodil blooms may progressively continue for the next six weeks.

When compared to last year, there will be more of them, too.

There will be nice surprises from new varieties.

Large blooms nearing 6" across, intricate doubles, majestic solid whites, and bold orange colors.

However spectacular, these cannot compare to the smallish, pale yellow that managed to become -first.

First Winter Snow

a very light snow, but amazingly, it managed to shut everything down

(nandina bushes are doing well, but the azaleas still have a long way to go)

Landscape Notes

• has been an extremely dry month
• forsythia bed only lacks ~24 daffodil bulbs
• ~40 cannas will need to be transplanted 
• burning bush bed has a nice branch-architecture appearance
• will consider installing the foundation for the north side planting area this Spring