Vagaries of Weather

First crocus blooms in my yard on Jan. 30.

 

The day before yesterday was unseasonably warm--the temperature rose to 66 degrees in the afternoon! And with some sun, the first of my crocuses cropped up. There were actually a few, the one above and another nearby--such a lovely sight!

 

But this morning, two days later, I woke up to find a light dusting of snow on the ground! It's the first perceptible snow of the winter, and it doesn't look like it will last very long, although a cold snap seems to be setting in.

 

Back yard with dusting of snow.

View from a front window.

This coming Saturday is predicted to be very, very cold, with the high in the 20's. I imagine the groundhog will see his shadow tomorrow--sure looks like we're in for more wintry weather!

Eagerly Awaited Harbingers

The first crocus.

 

The first early crocus opened a few days ago in my front yard on a lovely sunny fifty-some degree day--the first nice warm day since late December! I always note the date of this eagerly-awaited harbinger of spring (Feb. 9 this year), and was surprised that it was somewhat on schedule. The snow has been retreating since the beginning of the week, but apart from that, it has been so dry one would think it was hardly enough to encourage any subterranean growth. And yet, there is it!

 

Daffodil buds emerging.

I went about the rest of the garden looking for more signs of growth, and saw that a lot of the daffodil bulbs are emerging. These above are Mt. Hoods, but many others are coming up too, in all my beds.

 

More daffodil bulbs sprouting.

 

The following morning, another crocus popped up! This one seems to be one of the pale lilac Crocus thomasinianus. More will be coming up soon, if only it would rain.

 

Pale purple crocus.

The toadstools growing on the mulch seem to be re-growing too. They had been frozen under the snow cover earlier.

Toadstools growing on mulch.

Next week I'm off for Florida and new adventures. We'll see what the weather has in store for us when I get back in March.

The First Crocus

 

The first crocus of spring is a long-awaited sight, signaling the end of winter and the beginnings of early spring. This year it took place on February 24, when the temperature rose into the 60's on a sunny day. The snow and ice on the ground had begun to melt the day before, and the watering sent these lovely buds up. Others soon followed.

I'd planted some mixed crocuses under my cherry tree some years ago, but hadn't seen any these yellow ones for the last few years, so it was a surprise to find several of this feathered yellow variety sprouting, along with one lone white one. I believe the yellow ones are of the species Crocus chrythansus 'Fuscotinctus.'

Several varieties of crocus in front yard.

Crocus tommasinianus , nicknamed "Tommies," is the one species that has multiplied most prolifically in my front yard. I'd read that rodents and other pests tend to stay away from this species, and with so many voracious wild creatures around here, it has lived up to its reputation, proving to be quite resistant. Every year the display gets better.

Crocus tommasinianus

C. tommasinianus growing with red thyme (Thymus coccinea)

Other early spring bulbs are starting to wake up, and soon my garden will once again be filled with flowers... I can't wait to see what the display will be like this year!