Wednesday, March 16, 2011

3/13-it's spring in the garden

 spring has sprung in the demo garden and we are seeing signs of plant life all over!  mostly what is out are weeds-or are they weeds?  many are actually considered winter wild flowers and we beekeepers are grateful for them.  they provide much needed nectar and pollen for honeybees.  in this photo, the top is a veronica (speedwell) plant that was purchased at a garden center.  on the bottom, the native speedwell which is one of those "weeds" in bloom right now.
two prolific weeds, i mean nectar plants, on the top is henbit and the bottom is red dead nettle.  both look very similar until you really take the time to look at the leaves.  henbit has round leaves, dead nettle has pointed leaves.  dead nettle also has red foliage at the top which becomes green as the plant grows.   
violets are one of my favorite flowers of spring.  i use them in my garden beds at home as a naturalizer.  they fill in the open spaces and provide lots of green.  

 every gardener loves hellebore's!  they are one of the first plants to flower in spring.  we have two varieties in the demo garden.  this one is located in our shade garden.

 this lovely hellebore is in the bed near the greenhouse and it starts out a pale lime green and by the time it is fully developed, the flower is a creamy white color.

 daffodils in the arbor with a cake eating ninja flower-sam!

 in 2009, fellow dcmg shirley lee and i planted daffodils around the gazebo.  here they are making a return appearance!

 blackberries

 blueberries

 remnants of fall-oakleaf hydrangeas

 grasses

and it just wouldn't be a sunday morning in the garden without cake!  we had an upside down pecan-persimmon cake.  when my tree at home has fruit, we wait for the first frost and then gather them.  after washing them off, i run them through a food mill and freeze the pulp for later use.  join us some time, i'll bring cake!

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