GARDEN SURPRISE

 First you look to the left and then you look to the right

Now you look out the middle.  All you can see are the trees.

These are the views from my back porch now that the trees are leafed out.  You can barely see a neighbor's house through the branches.  Yes, it is like being in a tree house.

We took our Sunday walk to see what was new in the garden.

Pink Columbine

Hydrangea buds

Ferns have joined the Flamingos.

Arum in bloom

  And the sedums have filled the pot with lush new growth.  They will start blooming in another few weeks.

The biggest discovery and a surprise that we found in the garden was when we walked down to check on the fish in the lower pond.  As we turned on the deck and started to come back up the steps there lay our friend.  He has been around for a few years, but we don't always see him.  In April he is pretty sluggish and allowed the Mister to get several pictures of him today.

He is a simple, non-poisonous garden snake about 3 feet long who does a good job of keeping the rodent population down.  We live near a lake and our neighbors have lots of bird feeders so there are lots of small rats and chipmunks.  He takes care of the control of them.
We may not see him again all summer.  The only way we know that he is probably around is in the control of the varmints we don't like.
In case you are going to ask me.  No, I do not know exactly what kind of snake he is.  Just non-poisonous and common.

                                       -sandi

GARDEN WALK

I love spring because it brings "firsts".  I can hardly wait to tour the gardens each day to see what has its first bloom of the season.  The following showed their first blossoms this week.

One of the most beautiful sights in our landscape is the Cherry Tree.  It fills with blossoms and then drops them to the ground like a snow fall.

Isn't this a wonderful sight?

Purple Iris




Columbine

Solomon's Seal

Dianthus

Virginia Bluebells

Lamium

This is a Fothergilla shrub.  It is an old shrub that has made a little bit of a comeback in gardens.  The feathery blossoms look like spidery mums.

                                                         There is a chill in the air today and for the next few days.  We call this "Dogwood Winter"  the time when temps fall so the dogwood blossoms will set bloom.  Well, I think this year the dogwoods did not get the memo because our trees have been in bloom for  several days.  Today they turned the beautiful clear white instead of the soft creamery white when they are just coming out of bud.

   

There will be quilts coming soon.

                                                                         -sandi

ON THE GARDEN PATH

I spent some time in my gardens today.  I did some clean up and some refurbishing.  Then I just admired what was blooming. 

About 15 years ago I decided to make a birdbath using 2 clay flower pots and 2 pot saucers wth some adhesive to hold them together.

Then I painted it blue and yellow. 

 It has been weathered over the years and the saucer  is in pretty bad shape.

              Time to refurbish.                     I love my flamingos so I decided my birdbath should be pink, too.

So I found the spray paint and started spraying.

Now I have a PINK birdbath. . .

The Flamingos are still talking about it    

   

Saw lots of new blooms today as I moved all around the garden.

Loropetalum on the staircase.

Forsythia along the walking path.

Trillium under the trees.

Native Azalea  First Spring Bloom

There were other things that caught my attention.  The goldfish are starting to come out in the ponds.  The moss on the ledges of the ponds has turned a bright green.  Then there are all my other little doo-dads around and about.

  I love the waterfalls.  The sound is so soothing.  Since it is spring time we have lots of frogs making all those frog sounds.

These little signs make me smile when I walk along the paths.

YOU ARE CERTAINLY WELCOME TO COME VISIT IN MY GARDEN WITH ME ANYTIME!!

-sandi