Is it Spring Yet?

Ribbitt...Ribbitt...this sedge grass in the pond is a great place to sit and watch for spring..

I can see daffodils blooming..

The violas are lush and smelling good..

Pansies have been pretty all winter (did we really have winter?)..

Hum....that hanging basket is new..

And there are petunias by the fence...
And..is that bluebonnets? Yep! They are blooming along with that purple homestead verbena!

And do I see red? I believe I do...that is the start of Indian Paintbrush. Great place to hide when it gets tall. Don't think the calendar says Spring yet, but I think Spring is here in Texas. Maybe after one more nap I will explore a bit. Ribbitt..Ribbitt...

Snapdragons and Dianthus

Sooooo Pretty!

Have a good gardening weekend y'all!

Only One...

Last fall when I was scattering wildflower seeds, I tossed one (or two-can't remember) packages of Indian Paintbrush. Sadly, only one plant came up. But that one plant has been beautiful and given me lots of happy red flowers! I am not sure why I didn't have more paintbrush--I had several last year. Maybe it was the unusual winter, maybe I didn't water the seeds enough, maybe they just didn't want to grow this year--who knows! I think this one plant knew it was the only one and responsible for providing lots of spring blooms. It stands tall and proud, and doing a perfect job of providing contrasting red color in with the bluebonnets. And the bluebonnets? Just awesome! My how I love spring!

Sweetest Little Tulips!

Aren't these the cutest little flowers? They are "Full House" tulips from Brent and Becky's bulbs. They were planted in December after chilling in the frig a few weeks.
I don't plant a lot of tulips--you know, they just don't return, but I always try a few for that early spring show. These little cuties are really early. I saw them poking through the ground right before our ice and snow. I mulched them really good, and when the sun came back out, they started to grow.
What a cheery sight to look out and see these red and white flowers blooming among all the brown of winter! I think they are the sweetest little tulips I have ever seen!

The First Daffodil

As I was cleaning up outside yesterday and dead-
heading the sad looking pansies, I saw a bright glimmer of hope for things to come: the first daffodil of the season. I have really been worried about spring blooms after our record breaking lows from the past few weeks. I lost some of the pansies in containers, a few snapdragons, and all of the kale. These plants usually do fine in our winter weather, but these Arctic fronts have taken their toll on Texas plants this year.
I was starting to see bulbs poking up before the fronts paid us a visit, but not realizing how really cold it would get, I wasn't worried. It was after it started to thaw up a bit I noticed all the freezer burn on the foliage. I wrote Southern Bulbs and asked what they thought about the daffs and tulips here in the Dallas area. The answer was:
"Your daffodils and tulips should be fine and bloom for you this spring (although the foliage was covered in ice and snow for 4 days). The most important thing is that the daffodils and tulips were not budding or in bloom when the freezing weather came and sat down on Dallas/Fort Worth. Damaged foliage can recover from freezing those temperatures, but a bud/blossom cannot. So, expect healthy daffodil and tulip blooms this spring!"
Such good news!! But pessimistic me was still rather skeptical..until I saw this pretty little flower nodding in the breeze. I am now seeing more buds on the daffodils, and I do see a few tulips starting to come up. It was lots of work planting the bulbs, and the disappointment of not having their spring show made me really sad--but looks like my harbingers of spring are ok after all.

Weekend Gardening Notes

Every year, for Mother's Day weekend, I take my Mother plant shopping. Since I was in DC last weekend, this Saturday was our day to shop and plant. And we loaded up my SUV! Do ya think we have room for anything else? I worked Saturday morning in Mother's garden, and we were both pleased with the results.
I only bought a few things, as I wanted to have room for all the things Mother wanted, but I am happy to say I am now the proud owner of a Knock-out rose! Thank you Tina for encouraging me to get one. I think the blooms are beautiful. The tag says they are double blooms, which I think makes them look more like the old roses I remember when I was a little girl. I have no idea where I will put it, and I am wondering....is there anyway I can put it in a large container and grow it as a container plant? It sure looks good right at the start of this path, but I'm not sure if it would be safe in the ground here.
When I got home, I decided to take a stroll through my garden to check my blooms. Come walk along with me and let's see what we can find. The Hollyhocks are just now starting to bloom. I love this pretty pink color.
I have 2 of these growing around stones. I bought them last year. They are really a pretty yellow and perfect for a rock garden. But..uh, I cannot remember the name of this plant! Help!
The Gerber Daisies have been so happy this spring. I think they have enjoyed all the rain.
This is a new plant,
"Blanket Flower Torch." I bought this red one, and a yellow one. Both have produced many flowers.
My Nasturtiums are finally blooming. I have enjoyed the pretty, fragrant little flowers. I know they will not last much longer.
This is my favorite of all--Blackfoot Daisy. Isn't it gorgeous! It is in one of my old galvanized buckets. And, it came back from last year! Yes, I did baby it during that cold weather we had, but it was well worth it. That honey smell and those cute flowers just make my day! Love, love them!
The Marigolds are really doing well--so far no spider mites!
And here are the Red Geraniums I have had for so many years. I moved them from the front porch to a bed in back. They don't mind-they will bloom anywhere I put them I think.
I hope you enjoyed the walk with me looking at a few of my blooms. It has been such a pretty spring here at Meadow-
view Thymes, and I find such joy watching all these flowers grow.

I hope you found the time this weekend to enjoy the blooms in your garden.

Note: The french drain is about 2/3 of the way finished! Yea!

Srping Gardening Notes

It has been beautiful here these past few days, and I have been outside playing in the dirt as much as possible. I thought I would share a few of my spring gardening notes with you:
I planted several different kinds of daffodils last fall, and I have been very pleased with my selections. This is Replete-a light peach color with ruffled edges.
This is Quail. It has double blooms that last a long time, and the sweet fragrance is amazing! Yum!!
These next 2 are from a group called Spectrum Sweet Aroma. I planted several in a bed that I am hoping to naturalize. The picture really doesn't do it justice--the color is very striking.
And I guess you see a pattern with the daffs I selected--they all have a wonderful fragrance!
And speaking of sweet scents, my first rose is blooming! This is Odee Pink, and it has what I call that "old time rose scent." It is precious! However, I am a little concerned that both new rose bushes seem to have some black spot. I have been picking the infected leaves off and throwing them away, but I am somewhat disappointed. The yellow rose seems to be much worse than this pink one. Hopefully they will both be fine later in the spring.
Purchases: Yesterday while buying several things for the large planter in back, I also bought a few other plants. I bought 3 Gerber Daisies (one to use as a centerpiece on my Easter table!)
I bought 2 Iceland Poppies..
..and a hanging basket full of feathery looking wildflowers that fit this "new" old chair perfectly!
And, look what is blooming!
Bluebonnets
They are not in full bloom yet, but blooming enough to get me excited! I'm sure there will be more pictures of these in the weeks to come.
I hung my hummingbird feeders yesterday, because..I already have hummers! They were back bright and early again this morning. The temps are warming, the days are getting longer, flowers are blooming, and hummers are back. We made it through the cold, wet winter..Spring is here!

Have a blessed Easter everyone.

"If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant.."
Josh Billings

Saturday at the Arboretum

The wind here Saturday was un-
believable. The gust would blow you away, but it was worth being blown around a bit to see the beauty of the Dallas Arboretum. There were tulips in every color!
Some of the flowers were still in bud, others were starting to open..
..some were in full bloom!
Love this bed of yellow tulips with yellow daffs.
And speaking of daffodils--I loved this ruffled variety. Note to self: buy some of these bulbs this fall!
But what really "blew me away", were the cherry trees! I have been going to the arboretum for years and years, every season, but I have never seen the cherry trees in full bloom. This was the year! They were absolutely gorgeous!
The Arboretum has 17 trees, and according the the newspaper, better see them this Saturday as in 3 days, the blooms will all be gone.
This picture doesn't show the color--you really had to get the sun behind you to capture the luscious light pink of the cherry blossoms.
I felt like I was in a fairy land..all pink and fluffy. What a treat to see these beauties. I see now why so many flock to Washington DC to witness the blooms. Maybe one day I will...hey, I have a daughter in DC! I think I may pay her a visit during Cherry Blossom time next year. Oh Jen, can we get that on the calender??

Yard work, tulips and sweet smells

What a beautiful weekend! It was sunny for a change, the temp-
erature was great, and we took advantage of the nice weather and worked in the yard. While hubby was mowing (goodbye dead grass!), I was out back trying to dig up roots in this flower bed behind the pond. This bed was full of wood fern and ground ivy. I don't want to completely get rid of the ivy (which is impossible anyway), but I did want to try and reduce the amount of ferns in this area. Now that the sun shines on this bed (because of losing the big tree), I would like to plant some type of flowers, and I am thinking cosmos. I can just imagine how pretty they would look gently nodding in the breeze. Sounds simple, huh? Not so! I spend all afternoon digging, pulling, and digging some more to clear out the roots. This was quite a job. But it's done. It's too early for seeds, but as soon as I know our freeze chances are over, those cosmos seeds will be scattered.

Tulips are up, and blooming! I ordered quite a few bulbs from Breck's in the fall, and have several coming up, but seems like I should have more plants. I am making a note to order and plant more next year. Some of the tulip bulbs are hybrids, so I am hoping they will come back .
This is my favorite tulip. I ordered a few bulbs called
Day-
dreams They start out as yellow, change to very light apricot..
..then gradually change to a deep orange.
During the day they open to the most beautiful flower. According to the specs on this variety,

"day-
dream blooms are long-lasting and reach up to 5 inches across.."
I am enjoying this tulip so much! It was such a joy to go out this weekend and see the large flower. And that orange color..wow! I will order more of these!

The sun shinning directly on this flower gives it a golden look. Just beautiful!

As I worked clearing, cleaning and pruning this weekend, I kept smelling the sweetest fragrance. I thought it was my violas, which it was to some degree, but then I remembered the 2 new little plants I bought at Home Depot last week. That's what the sweet smell was! This is a Nemesia-compact innocence. Nemesia is a pretty annual with little snapdragon-shape flowers.
I only bought 2 because Nemesia is a cool-season annual. These little plants will not last very long, but I think they add a bright touch to this early spring garden, and I sure will enjoy that sweet smell as I work and relax out in the yard.

It has been such a good weekend, and..it's Spring Break for me, and...we are off to the Hill Country later this week! Spring is almost here!