Spring is here!

 "Spring makes its own statement, so loud and clear that the gardener seems to be only one of the instruments, not the composer" 

                                    Geoffrey B. Charlesworth

I left for a week to California and it felt very much like winter, I returned to find spring all over the garden and greenhouses. We will take a little break from chasing the wild things to catch up on the garden journal. So much blooming now it's hard to keep up, here are a few highlights from the garden. 

I had one Crown Imperial overwinter in the rock garden and I was so stoked to see it coming up.

Fritillaria pelinea This charming little Grecian Beauty just seems to get better every year. This was  from a V. Pilous seed collection in 2017. The Juno Iris are coming on hot and heavy now:

Iris aucheri

Iris bucharica

Iris graeberiana 'White Falls'

The butterfly Morea just stuns as you walk by it. It's hard not to stare into the mesmerizing center of this South African beauty.

Erythronium grandiflorum I long ago lost this one trying to grow it in a pot in the cold greenhouse, but It's been thriving  near the heat pump fan where it gets cold air blasted at it while it's in growth.

Moraea lurida

It was a fantastic trip to California to see family, visit some nurseries, botanical gardens and some natural beauty. I'll get back to covering that trip, but I thought I would at least give a little update on the spring growth here for my records. The weather has been a fantastic mid 60's in the day with high 40's at night. I moved the orchids out to the patio to see if some chilling will get them blooming. It rained a bit last night but it's been mostly dry for the better part of  a week now. Fingers crossed for April Showers. 

Mark