Blooms and Bugs

Mr. Bumbles has a friend.
We could have wee Bumbles soon.

The French Lilacs are in full bud.

I trim the Lilacs now so I have branches for the house.

An all natural Smell of Spring

The dogwoods are in full bloom.

Out Like A Frisky Lamb

Partly cloudy, windy and warm, March is skipping out in full bloom.

The winds are sweeping the last of Autumn's leaves.
Apple blossoms and Maple Tree seeds are snowing down.

The Blueberries are in bud.

March is packed away.
I am ready for April.

March into April

The scent of the White Lilacs drifted through the opened bedroom window.
I am packing up the March decorations and preparing for April.

The scent lured me outside.

It is tulip time!

The Harris's Sparrow is new to the gardens. He is on his way to Canada to nest.
This large sparrow was named after Edward Harris (1799-1863), a companion of John James Audubon.

Q's Book Club

Housefrau set up our Book Club Blog!
Thank you, Housefrau.
I shall check in everyday.
Hope you will come by.

Head over Heels

I am in love with a bee.

I have symptoms; rapid heart beat, no appetite, trouble sleeping.

Oh Bee, how I love thee!

Lacewings

The Lacewings are beneficial bugs.
They are beautiful too.

I like them but they are not Bumble Bees!

A Lady and a Bee

Mr. Bumbles follows me about the yard.

Meet Mr. Bumbles, my friend the Bee!

Gold Finches

A family of Gold Finches came to the feeder.

The little ones are so cute.

The males change their winter color of olive green to bright yellow.

Red Buds!

All over the city the Red Bud Trees show forth their spring display!
They are native to Missouri. The hillsides are scattered with wild trees.

Soon their heart shaped leaves will emerge.

The Red Bud Tree

The Red Bud Tree was at peak bloom time this morning.

Butterfly

It is warm outside, 72 degrees.

The butterflies have emerged.

This is a female Cabbage White Butterfly.

A chick!

The Female Gold Finch introduced one of her babies.

The Ali Tulips bloomed over night.

A garden spider wove a small web.

Dew Drops

The overnight rains went North of us.
The morning dew is heavy on the grass.
As the sun rose the gardens glittered.

I Like Bees

I saw the bee on the Tete-a-tete Daffodils.

The Bumble Bee is a wee bit big for these tiny daffs.

The bees make me laugh.

I love to laugh.

Muscari

The flowerbeds have a border of Muscari.

Commonly known as Grape Hyacinth.

The border is in bloom for three weeks in the early spring.

This is the first week.

It is my favorite of all the bulbs.
These small, non-showy flowers are spectacular in mass.
In the early 1980's I dug a few hundred out of a ladies yard.
I have propagated them all these years.
As I clean the leaves in the beds I give the border a haircut.
I am spending time with my hyacinth.

The Process

It is unseasonably warm at 8am.
Rain is in the forecast for this afternoon.

The flowers are blooming earlier then last year.
Spring is moving along rather quickly.

I like the process of Mother Nature.
The way the lupines hold the dew drops fascinates me.

My gardens are full of stories.
These tulips were bulbs my friend saved from the trash bin at her work.
The landscapers were planting summer flowers treating the tulips as if they were spring annuals.
She did not get them planted in her garden and they wintered over in her garage.
She brought 150 of them to me. That was four years ago.
Out of all those little bulbs, three survived.
It will take a few more years of growing before I will divide them.
I named them, "Ali Tulips".

Building Nests

I put some nesting material out under one of the peonies.

Multi-cultural Lawn

Many years ago a biologist came into the yard.

He introduced himself and said, "You have a multi-cultural lawn. I have been looking for variegated wild violets and I cannot find any in the wild. Could I have one of yours?"
"Of course," I said. "Help yourself. I have plenty to share."

I like bio-diversity. The wild violets are charming.

Bees and butterflies like them too.

We also have all sorts of different grasses.

A Dandy for Daughter

Every year I grow a few Dandelions in the flower beds.

Our daughter always liked them, the flower of the poet.

We spent our day picking up leaves.

It is so enjoyable to be with the sweet smells of the spring flowers

and watched by a Robin.
I have an appointment with my bathtub. I am dirty, tired and sore!

Sunday with the birds

The Brown-Headed Cowbird is new to the gardens. He is a member of the Blackbird family. The Brown-Headed Cowbird is known as a parasitic bird. They leave their eggs in other birds nests.

The birds check on me while I am working.

The Mocking Birds are building their nest

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The Wrens have theirs finished.