Ides of March Bloom Day

Reticulated iris.

It's the Ides of March, and the spring equinox is not far behind now. On this March Bloom Day, hosted by Carol Michel's May Dreams Garden blog, it's a bit overcast here in my Zone 6B Virginia garden. We may get a shower or two this afternoon, with more forecast for tomorrow with thunderstorms and wind as a front moves in. We've had nice warm weather this past week, but desperately need a lot more rain to bring out the spring flowers--here's hoping.

I was thrilled to see the dwarf iris (Iris reticulata) I planted last fall coming up in Herb's bed! I have never grown these before, how did I ever overlook them? Such perky flowers deserve a place in everyone's garden. My order included assorted varieties in blue shades--some have light yellow eyes, others deep yellow, almost orange, and some none--those reddish purple ones are gorgeous! I hope they'll multiply in the years to come.

Iris reticulata in the Herb bed.

 

 

Reddish purple iris.

The 'February Gold' daffodils are out in force, with clumps in the front yard, the bed by the driveway and several spots in the back yard beds. I can't help but smile when I see their bright yellows, always a cheerful sight! Even better, deer and other critters never bother daffodils as the plants are poisonous.

 

'February Gold' daffodils in the front yard.

Clump of 'February Gold' by the driveway.

'February Gold' daffodils in the back bed.

 

My winter aconite (Eranthis cilicica) are popping up in the back bed, but they have yet to carpet the ground as I envisioned. I wonder how long it it will take before they begin to look like an actual ground cover?

 

Winter aconite (Eranthis cilcica)

 

Within the yellow flower spectrum, some of my crocuses are still blooming--these must be the 'Orange Monarch' variety I planted last fall, but they are not very orange, more like a deep cadmium yellow with feathering. The other crocuses are pretty much done with their flowering.

 

Crocus 'Orange Monarch'?

 

The hyacinths are coming up too--I love the startling turquoise bases of the 'Delft Blue', and the white ones are also lovely.

 

Blue hyacinth.

 

A few Siberian Squills are coming up in the woodland garden on the east side of the house. The two Hellebores under the Japanese maple 'Bloodgood' are in bud, but not open yet.

 

Siberian squill (Scilla siberica)

Buds of Hellebore 'Flower Girl'

 

Buds of Hellebore 'True Love'

The sweet violet 'Queen Charlotte' is sporting its first flower today--the deer seem to find this variety particularly tasty, so it hasn't spread as much as I'd hoped, but it's making some progress.

The Forsythia in back has buds patiently waiting for a warmer day to open--probably in one week to ten days more.

 

Sweet violet 'Queen Charlotte'

 

Indoors, my white Phalaenopsis orchid has two flowers open, and two miniature Phals are budding--I hope these will be in bloom in time for April Bloom Day. My yellow hibiscus is still blooming too.

 

White Phalaenopsis orchid.

Two miniature Phalaenopsis orchids in bud.

Yellow hibiscus braided standard.

That's about it for my garden this month, thanks for visiting, and Happy March Bloom Day!

Daylight Savings Time Sunday

Deep purple 'Tommies"

 

The days are gradually getting longer and warmer despite the usual fluctuations, and more spring bulbs are sprouting every day in my garden. The dark purple 'Tommies" (Crocus thomasinnianus) are now blooming in the front yard. Last night we set our clocks forward an hour for the seasonal time change--the beginning of Daylight Savings Time is another welcome sign of the onset of spring. That extra hour of light in the evenings extends my studio time significantly.

 

Two colors of "Tommies", pale and dark

 

Looking over the bed by the driveway I was surprised to find a number of the pale mauve crocuses sprouting among my irises there--I know I didn't plant any there, so the squirrels must have planted them. Typical squirrel behavior--they dig up the bulbs from my flower beds and re-plant them where it pleases them!

 

Crocuses re-planted by squirrels in iris bed

 

I must say it does look rather interesting, though the crocuses there will likely not have much of a chance to grow well. But it's going to be hard to dig them out without damaging the iris. If I try that, it won't happen until after the iris have bloomed.

The early 'February Gold' daffodils in the front yard have budded and are starting to open, always a cheerful sight!

 

'February Gold' daffodils

 

Other crocus varieties are blooming in other parts of the garden, like these yellow ones with purple feathering. 

 

Yellow crocus

 

The Hellebore 'Flower Girl' is sporting more buds today. I haven't cut back the old foliage yet, as I love the contrast of the old dried leaves with the green of the new growth--such lovely colors would make a wonderful painting!

 

Hellebore 'Flower Girl'

 

The first of the Siberian squills popped up in the woodland bed on the east side of the house--a beautiful touch of color. My eyes are so starved for color at this time of the year!

Siberian squill (Scilla siberica)

Out back in the Herb bed, another surprise--the dwarf iris planted last fall is sporting two blooms! I planted about a dozen of these in an assortment of blue shades last fall, can't wait to see what the other varieties look like.

 

Reticulated iris (Iris reticulata)

 

A couple of the Winter Aconites in the back bed have also popped up, but one flower was eaten by a critter--wonder who the culprit could be? Probably deer. 

 

My Winter Aconite (Eranthis cilicica)

 

I really love seeing the huge patches of Eranthis hyemalis under the large trees at Blandy, which are a different species from mine. I wonder how many years it's taken for them to form these enormous expanses? I bought a dozen or so bulbs of Eranthis cilicica because the other species was not available at the nursery where I usually buy my bulbs. The two species look very similar but the cilicica blooms later. I hope mine will eventually form large patches like those at Blandy, but we'll see.

 

Winter Aconite (Eranthis hyemalis) at Blandy Experimental Farm.

Winter Aconite at Blandy

 

 Here are some recent additions to my botanical artworks done over the winter. This piece titled "Between the Cracks" depicts three rare ferns found at Calmes Neck, which I sketched from life last spring, along with  two associated plants that grow on the same ledges. The plants, from upper left to lower right are: Violet wood sorrel (Oxalis violacea), Purple Cliff-Brake (Pellea atropurpurea), Maidenhair Spleenwort (Asplenium trichomanes), Wall-rue Fern (Asplenium ruta-muraria) and Yellow Corydalis (Pseudofumaria lutea). The latter is not a native of our area, and was somehow introduced, but has naturalized there. The others are all natives.

 

"Between the Cracks" watercolor, 17"h x 14'w.

 

I rushed to complete these two others, and I'm not sure they are as successful as the ferns, but I needed more work for my upcoming show at Long Branch Historic House and Farm in Millwood, which will be on display from April 1 through May 30, 2025, as well as Art at the Mill show, also in Millwood.

 

Downy Rattlesnake Plantain Orchid (Goodyera pubescens), watercolor, 17.5"h x 13.5"w.

Rose Bay Rhododendron (Rhododendron maximum), watercolor,

 

21"h x 13"w

.

 

 These last two were done from photos taken at Ice Mountain last spring, let's hope I can sell them. I have lots coming up art-wise, a very exciting start of the season for me!

Spring Walk at Blandy Farm

Carolina Silverbell tree (Halesia carolina var. 'monticola').

 

It was a gorgeous spring afternoon and I was still aching from the previous day's exertions in my garden so I decided to take the afternoon off to visit the Virginia State Arboretum, and check out what was blooming. The Arboretum, AKA Blandy Farm in these parts, has so many different and lovely plantings, it was hard to choose where to start. I had in mind a few trees I wanted to check, like the Buckeye trees in the back forty whose seed I had collected and sprouted in my home garden.

The dogwood allee.

But first I walked toward the main house and turned left into the dogwood allee--this view would make a lovely plein air watercolor, if I could get to it before the flowers fade. This afternoon I just wanted to look and photograph. As I walked down the path, a gorgeous red-flowered tree caught my eye.

Red Buckeye (Aesculus pavia var. 'splendens')

Close-up of flowers from A. pavia 'splendens'

I was fairly certain that it was a Red Buckeye tree, yet the flowers were so profuse I had to check out the identifying tag--yes, it was labeled Aesculus pavia splendens, a variety of Red Buckeye with very dense panicles of bright scarlet flowers. I looked around to see if there were others of the same variety, but there was only one other tree, a much older specimen with less showy flowers. This one had no visible tag, but I presume the older tree was the more common A. pavia.

Turning off towards the hillside gardens I came across a lovely iris garden filled with colorful dwarf iris varieties. These below are two of them.

Dwarf iris

Dwarf iris

A little farther down the hillside I found the native woodland trail which I had never explored before, and turned in. This trail was shaded and under the tree canopy were some Virginia Bluebell (Mertensia virginica) plants setting seed, lots of native violets both blue and white, woodland phlox (Phlox divaricata) and toadshade (Trillium sessile). One of the many Blandy Farm volunteers was working up a sweat pulling undesirable plants by the side of the trail.

Seed pods of Virginia Bluebells with native phlox and toad shade

Further on there was an old stone chimney, presumably the remains of what was once an old house on the property, with Herb Robert (Geranium robertianum) growing in its cracks. I've always been partial to romantic ruins, and found this very appealing.

 

Herb Robert growing in the cracks of an old stone chimney.

It wasn't until almost at the end of the trail that I spied a huge tree covered with lovely white bells and recognized it as a Carolina Silverbell tree (Halesia tetraptera var. monticola)--very similar to the tree I have in my garden, except that mine is not the var. "monticola.' In fact, there were not one but two enormous trees! I had no idea the Carolina Silverbell trees could get that big, and wondered how long ago they had been planted. Unfortunately Blandy's website doesn't say when, but it does mention that both are state champion trees, which means they are the largest specimens of this species in the entire state.

Carolina Silverbell tree (Halesia tetraptera var. monticola)

Close-up of the Carolina Silverbell flowers

Under the shade of these beautiful trees was another interesting shrub: Carolina allspice (Calycanthus floridus), whose flowers have the fragrance of the allspice in its common name.

Carolina allspice (Calycanthus floridus)

I finished my round walking through the courtyard of the mansion to see what was blooming there. Several varieties of Viburnums such as V. carlesii and V. burkwoodii with their wonderful perfume adorned the corners, but my most interesting find was a large clump of Poet's Laurel (Danae racemosa) growing underneath one of the Viburnums and full of desiccated berries. I've been wanting to grow this plant in my garden and it's hard to find as well as quite expensive, so I collected some of the berries to try to sprout at home. 

Once my exploration of the main garden was complete it was time to drive out to the Buckeye grove on the back of the property. The Buckeyes were all in bloom. I was particularly interested in seeing what the Aesculus x mutabilis flowers looked like, since that was the tree whose seeds I'd collected and sprouted. I expect my seedlings will be only one of the hybrid's parents, either the red A. pavia or A. sylvatica, the Painted Buckeye. Time will tell which when my seedlings eventually bloom.

Flowers of Aeasculus x mutabilis

The flowers of A. x mutabilis turned out to be a pale, greenish yellow with touches of orange-red. I took photos and planned a return the very next day to paint them from life. There were several trees of this hybrid variety in the grove, a small specimen of A. pavia ' splendens' and another variety A. glabra, the Ohio Buckeye, whose flowers are very similar, although these hadn't opened yet.

Finishing my round I stopped to check out the Stewartias and Franklinias before heading back to my car. The first leaves of the Franklinias were just starting to unfold. The Stewartias had leafed out but no buds were showing--I'll have to keep an eye out since I want to admire them in full bloom.

April Showers

The back yard in April.

 

As the garden resurrects with much-awaited April showers, the seasonal sequence of flowers continues to unfold: the Forsythia, daffodils, narcissus and other early spring bulbs, then as those are beginning to fade, the flowering trees start to display their loveliness. This week the Redbud (Cercis canadense) in my back yard has unfurled its rosy boughs and the plump buds of the double flowering quince are opening.

 

Double flowering quince

I still have the deer barriers up, so the quince can't be admired as it should be, but I don't want to take any chances until there's enough other vegetation for the deer to browse--otherwise they will pounce on my gourmet "salad bar" in favor of the more ordinary grub found in the woods.

The Kwanzan cherry tree in front has yet to fully open, only a few blossoms have opened so far, while the white dogwood, which hardly bloomed last year, is loaded with blossoms opening much earlier than usual. Last year the cherry bloomed in the first week in April, but then came two hard frosts that blighted many a tender shoot.

 

Front yard

Earlier this spring the thermometer dropped alarmingly low for two nights, just as my beautiful yellow Magnolia 'Butterflies,' whose buds had already shed their fuzzy winter coats, were starting to open. The flowers were completely ruined! Mother nature can be so treacherous at this time of the year...

 

Ajuga 'Black Scallop'

Still, life goes on in the garden... the Ajuga 'Black Scallop' planted last year is spreading nicely and starting to bloom. The tiny bells of the Carolina Silverbell (Halesia tetraptera) tree are unfolding, and the Allegheny Serviceberry (Amelanchier laevis) is in full bloom. It will be some years before the Serviceberry attains enough growth to make much a of show, but it's making progress.

Carolina Silverbell tree (Halesia tetraptera)

Allegheny Serviceberry (Amelanchier laevis)

One of my Bergenias (AKA "Pigsqueak" in these parts) managed to survive the frost and produced flowers, while the buds on another plant just a few feet away didn't make it. Why would that be? This one was closer to the house wall, perhaps the wall retained enough heat to help the buds survive?

 

Bergenia 'Winter Glow'

The dwarf iris 'Bluebeard' has come into bloom so early that it's coinciding with the flowering of the grape hyacinths. I have several varieties of  grape hyacinths: the ones with the light blue caps are M. aucheri, the ordinary purple are M. armeniacum, and some white ones, M. armeniacum 'White Magic.'

Dwarf iris 'Bluebeard'

Grape hyacinths (Muscari aucheri and M. armeniacum)

The Fothergilla shrub is starting to open its honey-scented blossoms, and so many other shrubs planted last year are breaking dormancy now. I'm planting a number of annuals from seed this spring, as well as the usual bedding and potted plants. I'm curious to see how these new ones will enhance and fill my flower beds this year.

 

Fothergilla gardenii

 

 There's so much more to come, I can hardly wait!