The First Snowdrop

 

Giant Snowdrop (Galanthus elwesii 'Mount Everest')

 

Giant Snowdrop 'Mount Everest'

 An extraordinary break in the weather sent the thermometer up to a delightful 72 degrees today! I took the opportunity to look around my yard to see what, if anything, might be sprouting, and found the first blooms of the Snowdrops I'd planted last fall.

Nearby was one small species crocus flower--yellow with purple feathering on the outer petals.

 

Yellow Crocus

Along the bed on the east side of the house I saw that my Hellebore 'Flower Girl' was displaying its first bud! I planted this one the fall before last, but it didn't bloom at all last spring, so this will be its first flower! Let's hope my plant will bloom profusely later on.

 

Bud of Hellebore 'Flower Girl'

My other Hellebore, 'True Love' is well-established now, and bloomed well last year; I hope it will do as well this spring, but I've yet to see any buds on that one. The buds of the witch hazels are still tightly closed, but the early daffodils are starting to nose up through the mulch. I hope the coming weather won't be so inclement as to blast all these buds. After all, we still have two more months of winter to get through... somehow it seems harder to accept that after getting a taste of spring with a beautiful day like today!

Gardener's Bloom Day, January 2024

Dried Hydrangea blossoms with snow

 

It's Gardener's Bloom Day once again, sponsored by Carol Michel's Blog "May Dreams Garden." What a lovely surprise to wake up to see about an inch of snow on the ground this morning! It's been two years since we had any significant snow here in my USDA Zone 6b garden. I believe we're supposed to get another 1-3 inches tomorrow, let's hope. I love having a bit of snow cover at this time of the year, it seems fitting and proper.

 

Princess holly, lavender and barberry shrubs.

It was about 23 degrees outside when I took these shots with my phone--why won't these phones work when you are using gloves? My hand was an icicle by the time I got back inside!

 

My cut-leaf Japanese maple 'Viridium'

Muhly grass with dried perennials.

The Little Indians bed.

The west bed with sedge and grasses.

I love the way some plants look when they're dusted with a bit of snow, but there are definitely no blooms here to be seen, unless you consider these "snow blossoms." Indoors, however, I always have a few flowers to console myself with. My collection of indoor plants is a weird mix of exotics and very eclectic, so here we are.

My Gardenia Tree (Tabernaemontana divaricata 'Flore Pleno') likes to bloom at this time of the year--I suspect this may be its blooming season in its native habitat in southeast Asia. The flowers have the most marvelous perfume for the first 6-8 hours after opening--after that the perfume fades.

 

Gardenia tree (Tabernaemontana divaricata)

 

My home-grown orchids continue to bloom: the oddly colored hybrid I bought at a roadside stand in Florida is probably a hybrid of Oncidium and another species. I brought it into the master bath after the flowers opened to enjoy its blossoms. The other orchids have been blooming for a couple of months now. The plant stand in the family room below is where most of my orchids live--as you can see I have collected quite a few over the years, mostly as presents, and a few from my botanical art classes. My students love to paint orchids, even though they're really difficult flowers to render.

 

Mystery orchid in the master bath.

Miltassia orchid flower spike.

Phalaenopsis on plant stand in family room.

Here are a few other blossoms: an Anthurium one of my sisters gave me, and a Brazilian begonia. I bought the latter because it was touted to have perfume, and I'm a sucker for perfumed flowers, but it has disappointed. This specimen, at least, has no scent that I can detect, but likes to bloom during the winter, which few begonias do.

Pink Anthurium

Brazilian begonia.

 

Someone gave me a waxed Amaryllis for Christmas but the downstairs of my house is so chilly it's taking its time to open. I thought it would be interesting to document the process of the buds opening in a painting, so that's what this last photo is about.

 

Waxed Amaryllis and painting.

I'm saving the center of the painting for the fully open flower, which will probably happen later this week. I'd love to save the bulb to grow, but have no idea if these bulbs will survive if potted once the blooms have faded. I have about four pots full of red Amaryllis bulbs that re-bloom every spring, but I don't know if these waxed ones will grow if freed from their wax covering. Have any other gardeners reading this tried it? If so, I'd appreciate any advice!

Not A Snowy Day

 

Bits of ice and snow on ground.

I had really been looking forward to seeing a nice picture-postcard snow yesterday, on January 6--it would be the first snowfall of the year. We've hardly had any snow in the past couple of years. But mother nature did not grace us with the lovely snow I'd hoped for. It started to come down as sleet--tiny BB-sized pellets, which adhered only our deck and the mulch on the flower beds. After a few hours of that, some actual snow descended, but the big, wet flakes lasted only for about fifteen minutes and then turned to rain--a slow drizzle.

With the temperature hovering around 32 degrees, the rain froze slowly, leaving droplets on the branches, and tapered off in the evening. When I got up this morning, the ice crystals shimmered on the trees, making the foggy morning seem even colder than it was. I didn't get out to take photos until the ice had melted quite a bit. What there was, was interesting, but hardly spectacular.

 

The cherry tree in the front yard.

The yard on the west.

The back yard this morning.

 

Hard to make photos of some remnants of ice and snow look interesting. But, taking a closer look at some of the frosty vegetation, one could find some pleasing sights, like the icing on the pavement and ground cover.

 

Ice crystals on the front walk.

 

Some of the small evergreens looked particularly lovely with their icy decoration. The red leaves of the dwarf Nandina are gorgeous at this time of the year! I guess we'll have to hope for a better snowfall the next time around.

 

Dwarf cypress

Frozen blue rug juniper

Dwarf Nandina.

Last Day of 2023

Mystery Orchid blooms again.

New orchid display in the master bath.

 

 

It has been several years since this "roadside" orchid bloomed--in fact, it has been in decline for a long time. But a few weeks back I noticed a blooming spike emerging from a new shoot, and the flowers started to open just a few days after Christmas--what a treat for the end of a difficult year! 

As soon as the flowers opened, I moved it to the master bath for a change in the display. I hope this will be the beginning of a good period of growth and bloom for this strange little orchid I bought at a roadside stand during a trip to Florida many years ago.

 

New mosaic, Carolina wren with nest

I finished a new mosaic just before Christmas--a Carolina wren with her nest. I need to complete one more mosaic before grouting both, and am trying to decide which bird to tackle next--a pair of bluebirds maybe? I'm running out of certain colors, but there's still plenty of blue tiles left, so that's a possibility.

Tree Peony (Paeonia suffruticosa)

 But I also must paint some new botanical pieces for upcoming spring shows. Here's a photo of the watercolor I'm currently working on--a lovely tree peony I came across at Blandy Farm, photographed last spring. It's still a ways from being finished. I need to finish this one and do one more painting, of what, I've yet to decide.

 

Red impatiens with Meyer lemon.

Houseplants in foyer.

Here's a few more houseplants brightening the foyer--a red New Guinea Impatiens, assorted begonias, a pepper vine and a night-blooming Cereus that has yet to bloom. Maybe it'll bloom later this spring, after it's been outdoors for a while? One can always dream, and this is a good season to dream of next year's garden. Happy New Year!

Christmas 2023

Christmas lights for 2023.

 

Every year I take photos of our outdoor Christmas decorations. I thought it would be appropriate to post this on the shortest day of the year--the Winter Solstice. I can't wait for the days to begin to get longer again!

This year hasn't been one to go all out on spending, so I used the strings of lights accumulated over the years--it's not even a fraction of all that we have, but it was all I had the energy to do this year. It's not what I would call outstanding, but festive enough.

 

 

A nice picture postcard snow would help, wouldn't it? But there's nothing in the forecast to indicate we'll get any snow before next year. Our neighbors across the street have gone all out in the lighting department--Herb says that it's the Chinese Restaurant theme! It is pretty, though.

 

Our neighbors across the street.

I keep telling myself that there will be better years ahead... Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

December Bloom Day

 

Streptocarpus '7007'

It's the fifteenth of the month again, when we post what is blooming in our gardens and link to Carol Michel's blog May Dreams Garden. December isn't offering any blooms in my outdoor garden, but there are a few in my indoor gardens (which are spread out through my house). The Streptocarpus '7007' above is the best-looking specimen of several I've reproduced by cuttings from one I bought years ago. My other variety of Streptocarpus below is 'Wow' offering just one bloom so far.

 

Streptocarpus 'Wow'

The orchids in the master bath continue to bloom, as well as the African violet (Saintpaulia hybrid). Another orchid that had gone into decline is sporting a new blooming spike--I don't know if this is an indication of its dying swan song or if it's going to come back stronger.  As a devoted gardener, I shall hope!

Orchids blooming in the master bath.

Orchid with flowering spike developing.

 

My indoor collection has expanded over the years with more tender succulents. Among them the Moses-in-the-cradle or Purple Heart (Tradescantia pallida) is the only one blooming.

 

 

Succulents in my foyer.

Moses-in-the-cradle (Tradescantia pallida)

My Thanksgiving cactus has finished blooming, but has a few more buds developing, so it will probably have another flush of bloom in a week or two. Since I learned from Carol that mine is a Thanksgiving cactus and not a Christmas cactus, I too am on the lookout for a real Christmas cactus specimen.

These African violets are from a set of 'Optimara' hybrids I've had for over forty years. I used to have six different colors but with time, only two varieties have survived. It's hard to keep these healthy, as they are very susceptible to spider mites as well as mealy bug (the plague of my outdoor garden!).

I routinely spray these and other houseplants with insecticidal soap, but it seems that no matter how much I spray, some insects survive and start to multiply right after.

 

Vintage African violet 'Optimara' hybrids.

Not exactly blooms, but this is a view of the balcony overlooking my two-story foyer. The south-facing light here is so favorable, I overwinter some plants along with some exotic tropicals that stay here year-round. The two large-leaved small trees are young mamey seedlings (Pouteria sapote) grown from seeds that a friend sent me. There's a saying in Cuba that a Cuban will walk a mile for a mamey, and I miss this delicious fruit more than anything else I left behind sixty-some years ago. It tickles my fancy to try to grow these small trees even if I know they are not likely to ever bloom or produce fruit.

Plants on the balcony overlooking the two-story foyer.

My Bearss lime, on the other hand, is setting a lot of fruit right now--it has been faithfully producing about a dozen limes or more every year for the past ten years or so. I recently acquired a Meyer lemon tree, but I expect it will take a few years to start producing fruit.

Bearss lime setting fruit.

There is no sign outdoors of any of the snowdrops or other bulbs I planted this fall--wait a minute, it is still technically fall until the solstice on Dec. 22!  But that's about it for December. I wonder what the New Year will bring?

New Artworks

Fragrant Pinesap (Montropsis odorata), watercolor on vellum, 10" x 8"

 

I finally finished this piece and submitted it to ASBA's juried exhibition "Curious Allies." It's my hope that it will be selected by the jurors, but who knows? The competition is very tough. It's the first pieces I've done on this very expensive medium of botanical vellum, and it was particularly difficult because the vellum is not white, but a warm cream color. In order to bring out some highlights, I used Titanium white watercolor.

This painting is a re-statement of a watercolor I did in 2017 after visiting Kentucky's Daniel Boone National Forest where I encountered this very rare plant of the Monotropa family. These plants are mycotrophic, that is, they have no cholorophyll, and like fungi, they must rely on other plants to supply the nutrients they need. I've been fascinated by these botanical oddities ever since I came across some ghost pipe flowers on a Fourth of July in Maryland many years ago. I wish I could find more of these species but the majority are found only in the western part of our country.

 

Goldfinch mosaic, 8" x 8" before grouting.

Just for fun, I did another small mosaic of two goldfinches--I purchased a mosaic starter kit after I took Anne Atkin's workshop at the Red House, thinking this is a wonderful distraction from more serious art! After I finished it, I traveled to Richmond to meet with Anne so that she could teach me how to grout this mosaic and the one I'd done at the workshop, where there was no time for this last finishing step.

My two mosaics after grouting.

Grouting is a messy task and probably best done outdoors, but Anne had prepped me beautifully; I brought two drop cloths (one for the table and one for the floor) and several plastic containers for the water and grout so we could work indoors. Once we were done, we just picked up the plastic drop cloths and grout bucket and tossed it in the trash. The mosaics sure do look different once they've been grouted!

 

Blandy's Wetlands in November, watercolor, 11" x 14"

The weather was still warm in early November, and some of the Blandy Sketch Group decided to have one last plein aire session. I wasn't able to join them on the particular day, but I went by the afternoon before and painted this watercolor of the wetlands seen from the back forty. It was a bit breezier than I expected, and once the sun started going down it got chilly, but I had enough down that I could finish this one at home the next day.

November Bloom Day

'Queen Charlotte' violet

 

By mid-November there aren't a whole lot of flowers outdoors in my Zone 6b Virginia garden to celebrate Bloom Day on the 15th of the month (hosted by Carol Michel's May Dreams Garden blog). My 'Queen Charlotte' violets are among the few flowers that persist this late in the season. There would be none if I didn't cover them with a wire cloche because the deer like to eat them ( I remove the cover to photograph them). 

 

Aromatic aster (Symphyotrichum oblongifolium)

Aromatic asters among the leaves.

 

Some blooms persist on the aromatic asters even after the first few frosts, but it's the leaves that are most colorful at this time of the year. I love the colors of the trees in the woods behind my house! This shot was taken a few days ago, most of these are native oaks. The hickories have lost most of their leaves.

 

The woods in early morning.

 A few shrubs in my garden are still colorful too, like this dwarf Nandina that doesn't fruit (I've forgotten the name of this variety), and the Viburnum 'Brandywine'.

 

Nandina

Viburnum 'Brandywine'

 

The witchhazels in the back woods are also blooming at this time, although two other varieties in my garden don't bloom until late winter or early spring.

Native witchhazel trees in the woods.

My back yard in November.

To make up for the lack of flowers outside, there are plenty of blooms in my indoor garden. The  yellow hibiscus my sister gave me is still offering a flower or two after being brought indoors. I brought in the white heliotrope plant hoping to keep it alive during the winter for a larger plant next summer. The begonias next to them are among the plants I keep alive indoors from year to year to decorate the back deck in summer.

Yellow hibiscus

White heliotrope with begonias in back

One of the small Phalaenopsis orchids I bought for one of my botanical art classes a few years ago decided to re-bloom for the first time, along with a miniature Dendrobium. The two orchids in the master bath are usually very prolific with their blossoms--I can't believe they're blooming for the second time this year!

Phalaenopsis orchid in bloom.

Dendrobium orchid

Orchids in the bathroom.

My Bearss lime tree is covered in blooms too, and setting fruit.

 

Bearss lime blossoms

 That's about it for November's Bloom Day.