Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day - December 2010

Believe it or not something is blooming outside in our upstate New York garden in the middle of December!

The Helleborus Niger is still going strong!

No wonder it's called 'Christmas Rose'

There are still many buds waiting to open.

This is what it looked like on December 1st. The first buds appeared near the end of October (pictured here) and it has been blooming profusely ever since (November Bloom Day pics here). The flower on the far left is the original bloom. They just keep going, opening pure white petals which eventually turn pink.

Not surprisingly, all other current blooms are indoors.

Streptocarpus/Cape Primrose is related to African Violets. It's the large plant in the picture above this one.

Anemone de Caen/Dutch Windflower

Planted in a pot in the spring of 2009, the bulbs didn't bloom last summer but are beginning to bloom now.

This pretty begonia has tiny 'rose' flowers

Aren't they sweet?

It's another passalong from my friend, Marie.

The Hoya is still blooming, currenting showing off 3 flower clusters, with more to come. I fed it all summer.

here are the little 'stars' before they open....

...to reveal these ruby red jewels.

There's a flower cluster preparing to open on the Parlor Palm.

Upstairs quite a few Ivy Geraniums are still producing blooms.

And the Orchid Cactus bloomed just recently.

This is the third time it's produced blooms this year.
Quite an amazing plant.

The Kenilworth Ivy/Mother of Thousands is flowering too.

I found it easy to root cuttings of this plant. It's hardy here in our northeast zone 5 garden, although this one is in the pot with the Orchid Cactus. I have a piece of it in a pot on the unheated, covered side porch and plan to plant it in the garden next spring. I saw it growing on top of a stone wall last spring and it was the perfect place for those pretty leaves and dainty flowers to meander along. 

These are wax begonia cuttings that didn't get planted last summer. I'll put them in a pot and plant them next spring.

Jasmine and Hannah are missing their outdoor time. They go out for short periods but are very anxious to get back into the warmth of the house. They entertain themselves by watching the birds at the feeders on the front porch and just beyond. 

The weather outside is frightful, but the dream of spring warms our thoughts.
Christmas lights reflect on the snowy porch railing as snow lightly falls tonight.

It's been a week of frigid temperatures and snow showers, but so far not as much snow as last week brought. Here's what the front yard looked like last Wednesday under a foot or more of snow.

The Sedum and Mallow are now cloaked in white.

 

But let's finish with color!

Here's another peek at the pretty little 'Rose' Begonia.

Be sure to visit Carol of May Dreams Gardens to see what's blooming in gardens all over the world.

Happy December Bloom Day everyone!
And may visions of sugarplums dance in your head.