From master landscape planner / photographer Dan B:
Seattle had some winter this year. Despite snow (only 1 1/2″) and frozen soil, the early Hellebores bloomed on, except for a few days in the sun when they went flat.
We did have some other weather. 60 mph wind gusts, monsoon-like rain, and a nearby lightning strike that panicked the cats. You can see the big pipe that gets all the water off the roof. It’s being blown sideways, as is the water off the shed / clubhouse roof.
The Crocus bloomed at the end of January. Then we had three or four days that were 60° and sunny. Now they’re fading.
In the back yard, Alstromeria psittacina with red, green, and white striped and splotches flowers are pushing up bright green leaves between the Helleborus foetidus, Stinking Gladwin, and Snowdrops. The Eucalyptus niphofila is overgrowing this bed but everything seems okay.
I’m enjoying the reddish Sedum and Sempervivum, Hen and Chicks, I planted a few years ago. They’re spilling over the face of the rip rap walls.
In a bed on the south side of the back yard Silver leaved Cyclamen is pushing up between a ground cover related to Forget Me Not that will have tiny blue flowers in late summer when the Cyclamen has faded away.
Next to the Cyclamen is a variegated Daphne odora. The flowers are intensely fragrant, one of the best fragrances in the plant kingdom. I’ve got several other Daphne odora that are less variegated and not variegated. Variegated plants are typically less healthy and less vigorous than non variegated due to less chlorophyll but this plant is the toughest of them all. It’s planted in shade. The variegation lights up the dark shade.
In front is Garrya elliptica, Coast silktassel, native to coastal California. It produces these tassels all winter. It’s a moderately dense evergreen shrub about 25 feet tall and 20 feet wide. Little birds fly into it for shelter from the weather and the Hawk and Eagles in the neighborhood. Then they bathe in the gog saucer on the railing. The cats are endlessly entertained.
Here are a couple more Hellebores, Flower Girl and Picotee Pearl. They’re on the far side of the driveway. Their bright pastel blooms show up well from a distance.
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What’s going on in your garden(s), this week?
WereBear
For the record, nearby lightning strikes startle ME, too. Lovely photos!
MartyIL
Nice to see signs of spring. Thanks for sharing
prostratedragon
Some little Ravel songs
Jeffg166
I envy your growing conditions.
I am a sucker for variegated plants.
White & Gold Purgatorian
What a lovely garden. Our crocus are almost gone now and this week is probably peak daffodil. The weather is supposed to be very warm next week so some early trees may bloom soon. It has been a long hard winter and I am ready for spring.
Last week we had a sad episode. A deer ran into our garden fence. She hit the wire hard enough to pull it off the wood posts, pushed it in and fell over the bottom rail into the garden, injuring herself so badly she had to be put down. Any ideas for how to keep deer from running into a wire fence? I see online a suggestion of white flags tied to the wire. Our neighbor maintains that deer have terrible eyesight and often run into things. The fence has been there for 10 or 15 years without a problem, but we don’t want this to happen again if we can help it. I’d appreciate any suggestions.
MazeDancer
Such pretty photos!
Long way until Spring here, so sweet reminder it will come.
JeanneT
Lovely blossoms. We’re still a week or so away from the earliest crocuses, I think – but it’s going to be warm enough to do some work in the yard and lay out some new beds this week, if I don’t wimp out.
EmbraceYourInnerCrone
Thank you for the beautiful flowers, love the crocuses! They were the first touch was of Spring I used to see walking my dog. I’m attempting growing cherry tomatoes and some herbs in my apartment this year. If I get really brave I might try a house plant ( a kitty non-toxic one) later this year!
Trivia Man
Starting to plan my indoor start schedule. Last year I as my first try and i had some started as early as April 15. Might try a few even earlier, i doubled my food garden bed last fall so i can try more. (From 8×2 to 8×5…still modest sized)
satby
@White & Gold Purgatorian: instead of white flags, maybe some aluminum pie pans tied so they flap a bit? The flashing and tapping might scare critters away.
satby
Always delightful, DanB!
The spring flowers aren’t even peeking above the soil yet here, but this coming week will be warmer and I hope to see some signs of spring by the end of it. Still weeks away from any blooms though.
One of the sugar maples in front of this house is mostly dead and scheduled to be cut down before a storm drops it on my new roof. The shady side of the yard will be getting much more light. Now I have to plan for that in new plantings. I’m having them leave a stump that I’ll turn into a planter. Eventually, the stump will rot away, but I should get a good 10 years out of it first.
kalakal
lovely photos, thank you
WaterGirl
Gorgeous! I especially love the top photo of all the blooms.
TerryC
Lovely images!
There will be an article about my tree planting in the forthcoming issue of Discgolfer Magazine. It ties together 25+ years of sustainability work from climate change advocacy such as creating in 2003 the fall international event on thousands of campuses each year, Campus Sustainability Day/Week/Month, to developing plans to grow disc golf courses from scratch on formerly farmed and depleted land and not by cutting down trees.
We’ve had snow cover (about to go away) since before Christmas, and frozen ground, so not much planting can be done. Planning is a different story: This year we are purchasing new trees from three different entities with only about 300 coming in total. (Far less than previous years. Running out of space!
In 2025, other than staying alive with GERD, CHF, AFIB, hypertension, asthma, COPD, and various external things like viruses :) there are five projects: (1) plant ~300 more purchased baby trees; (2) find and relocate useful volunteer baby trees; (3) graft dozens of domestic pears, mulberry, and stone fruit onto native trees that have either volunteered or I planted years ago; (4) continue making my easy 18-hole course even more accessible; (5) publishing a manual on checkerboard design of disc golf courses using a modified Miyawaki tree-planting method of afforestation, and Legos as a design tool! (Including a demonstration plot planting to be followed for the next 10 years.)
Reboot
@TerryC: Please link when it’s published!
JAM
Beautiful garden, Dan B, thanks for the pictures.
stinger
I love anything picotee! Thanks for all the photos and text — my local climate and soil are very different from yours, but you still give me ideas!
White & Gold Purgatorian
@satby: Thanks. We might try both white flags and pie pans. It won’t look great, but preventing another accident is job 1. I was also thinking of reflective streamers tied to the fence. Seems like they might add more movement. Given that most deer activity is at night, the reflective property may not add much over a plain flag, though.
Dan B
Glad everybody liked the pictures. It’s still a treat if you wear blinders since there are many spots that need grooming.
The little birds fly into the seemingly solid Garrya at full speed. Daredevils.
The Crocus are thomasinianus. Squirrels don’t bother them. At my firmer house all the Crocus were chewed. Then I heard at a hardening lecture that thomasinianus were left alone. Praise be!
Gloria DryGarden
Quite jealous. Wow. So beautiful
Dan B
gog saucer is supposed to be big saucer.
Not my only typo…
Gloria DryGarden
@Dan B: the squirrels just replanted some of mine. But I love the tomassinianus, esp the purple one. Do they all spread quickly?
Dan B
@Gloria DryGarden: The Crocus in the picture are from ten bulbs planted two years ago. The yellow ones are from three bulbs. I haven’t fertilized in the last eight years.
JAM
@White & Gold Purgatorian: I saw a comment once where someone split a pvc pipe and slid it over the top of their barbed wire fence so that deer could jump over more easily. Something like that or sticks of bamboo might also make it more visible, whether horizontal or vertical, depending on your wire type. Or, just any light colored sticks.