Truly Spring

New Bedford Cobbles

This morning it was so pleasant (and not windy) that I was able to sit out on the deck and drink my coffee with the newspaper. What a joy, after our terrible horrible very bad winter.

I've been in the garden this week, doing the few clean up chores that were not done in the fall and looking around to see what did not make it and will need to be replaced.  So far it looks good. I have lost about half of my lavender - the smaller plants that were under a 5' pile of snow do not seem to have survived but the ones less precariously sited are OK. It looks like something dug up the mountain bluet and ate it (I have a hunch who that was), and the fleabane seems to be down to a single shoot. Otherwise things look reasonable. the heuchera look like hell, but they were not doing all that well last year anyway so I will be putting something else there. I thought my pulmonaria would be big enough to divide, but it looks like it barely made it through the winter so no joy there.  On the other hand, the solomon's seal is apparently about to take over the earth.

Winter Damaged Dock Bournes Pond

Two of the (expensive) thuja near the road have some pretty significant winter damage and one less but noticeable damage. I think the spray from the road clearing is the culprit, and that can't be helped. The shrubs that spent the winter completely covered with snow seem to have done very well. My yucca is splayed out from the weight and does not look like it will recover. Oh well.

Today I could sit outside weeding without any kind of outerwear. Earlier this week I worked in some compost and planted my cool season crops. So exciting! I am walking the beds every morning again and it seems some things are doubling in size every day. I saw a bumblebee this morning and I am crossing my fingers against a hard frost returning to annoy me. In a few weeks I will try to resurrect the geraniums that have been wintering in the basement in a paper bag. They looked OK last week so I have high hopes.

Pictures are random today - I do still need to take my early spring snaps of the garden, but you'll never miss them as right now it's mostly bare dirt with teeny tiny green things poking up.

Bournes Pond