Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day - May 2010

Not only has our spring weather been topsy turvy, with hot summer temperatures one weekend and rain, wind and snow the next, but life in general has been a roller coaster ride for us lately.

On May 6th my dear hubby was rushed to the hospital in an ambulance and diagnosed with pneumonia.

That day was the scariest of my life. He is on oxygen 24/7, so breathing is never easy for him.

He spent the next 5 days in the hospital before we were able to bring him home. Our oldest daughter came up from the city to stay with me, and what a blessing it was to have her cheerful presence to lift our spirits.

Our son and daughter #2 were in touch daily, as well as family and friends. We're so very grateful for all the tremendous support and prayers.

The nurses were wonderful - cheerful and caring. They took such good care of him. His day nurse was our own special angel, with the sweetest smile you could ever hope to see.

We're praising The Lord for his loving care.

Hubby is recovering his strength and feeling a little better each day.
Needless to say, blogging has taken a back seat these past few weeks.

Meanwhile, the garden is bursting with blooms!
Click on any of these photos to enlarge for a better view.

Those 2 large lilacs are showing off their lovely flower clusters and permeating the air with their glorious scent.

There are still some tantalizing tulips providing bright spots of color.  

Purples and pinks are looking lovely in the Lily Garden.

Hannah and Jasmine were tiptoeing through the tulips, providing me with plenty of Kodak moments. Actually, they were chasing each other through the tulips and I had to shoo them out before they broke something.

These Angelique tulips are in the lower Rock Garden. The Johnny-jump-ups and yellow perennial Alyssum make pretty companions and are especially beautiful backlit by the afternoon sunlight. 

I'm very excited to see 2 Poet's Daffodils/Narcissus poeticus blooming in the Rock Garden. I planted them in the fall of '08 and, to my disappointment, they didn't bloom last spring. Perhaps next year, with a little luck, there'll be quite a few more.

Another very exciting new plant is Spanish Blue Bells/Hyacinthoides hispanica, blooming beside that lovely yellow-flowered Lamium. Both were given to me last year by our niece. 

These deep purple iris blooms never cease to amaze me.

The Spring Garden is overflowering with Bleeding Hearts, both pink and white, plus Arabis/Rockcress, Forget-me-nots and a few tulips. The Bleeding Hearts were knocked down by a hard frost on May 11th. They're looking a little sad but they'll recover and perk up after a while, although they won't be quite as perfect as they were before the frost. 

In the Pink Garden those soft pink tulips are wowing me once again, accompanied by

Creeping Phlox, and purple-flowered Lamium.

There's also petite and pretty Aubrietta/purple Rockcress beyond the Lamium. I love this dainty plant. Those lovely green leaves to the left are a dwarf Campanula, not yet blooming.

I hope to post pictures of more blooms soon. There are quite a few more blooming plants but I didn't have time to photograph many of them today. My hubby is so happy to be home enjoying the gardens and our many feathered friends visiting the feeders each day, and I'm extremely thankful to have him here.
We saw our first hummingbird today! What a treat to have them back!

Be sure to visit Carol of May Dreams Gardens to see what's blooming in other mid-May gardens worldwide.

Happy Bloom Day everyone!

April's Beauty - A host of Golden Daffodils!

April has flown by with such a mixture of weather! But that's spring in upstate NY.

She teased us with gloriously warm days for the first week or so, and then pushed us back to winter, with cold winds and even a little snow now and then to remind us that we are at the mercy of her whims.

There were a some mild, sunny days thrown in here and there, but this last week she's brought us winds straight from the Arctic and even a little snow.

Finally today she finished the month with a flourish - abundant sunshine and highs in the low 70's (approx. 22ºC) - wonderful!

I don't think I've ever enjoyed the spring garden more!

The daffodils have been pure delight.

Picture taken April 5th
The afternoon light is glorious!

April 19th

Hyacinths have joined the show.

And grape hyacinths/muscari are now adding their beautiful blue.

April 19th

The grass and hills are green and the trees are leafing out.

April 29th

The lawn has just had its second mowing.

Gorgeous blues and yellows!

Pink, white, and purple hyacinths,

and even a yellow one tucked back behind the poppies.

 Back on April 13th the Driveway Garden was bursting with daffodils.

And the Lilac Garden added those pretty whites to the mix.

Hannah is always exploring, chasing little critters and bugs.

  

A few days ago she cornered a vole, which was smartly dispatched - one less to eat my bulbs. They don't like daffodils and hyacinths, but they will eat tulips and crocuses, among other things.

I've never seen her sister, Molly, catch anything. She's very mild mannered and wouldn't hurt a fly. Well, maybe....I'll have to watch and see :)

The lovely blue Scilla/Siberian Squill are finished now.

I'm always sad to see their bright blue flowers fade away. They lasted about 3 weeks.

The cooler weather and some rain have prolonged the life of the daffodil blooms.

April 21st

We've enjoyed their sunny yellow faces for the entire month.

The first tulips opened about the 18th,

....Just as the first daffodils were finishing.

Three days later the Blue Heron Tulips opened their pretty fringed petals.

Now there are tulips galore adding their glorious colors, but I'll save those photos for the next post.

Murphy enjoying a bath in the late afternoon sunshine.


The daffodils always bring the following poem to mind, and consequently, my father, as this was one of his favorites. It's become a tradition for me to add it to a post full of golden daffodils.
I'm also reminded of my mother because she loved these flowers so much. My brother and I would bring her bouquets of them during springtime in Australia.

 

I  Wandered Lonely As A Cloud


I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,

When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.


Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.


The waves beside them danced, but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee;
A poet could not but be gay
In such a jocund company!
I gazed - and gazed - but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought


For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.


William Wordsworth