Spring flowers

More photos from  April 18.  Since then we have had a few sunny days that really bring out the flowers.    This is the berengaria next to the west coast planter.  It looks like this planter is wearing a frilly green dress with a pink corsage.  :)

Close up of the Corsican hellebore and another self seeded hellebore with the donkey's tail sedum along the stone path at the front.  They have seeded themselves here in this fine color combination, next to a heather that blooms in late summer in purple. 

This anemone now has more blooms and is looking great.  The pleione is next to it with more shoots coming up.  You can see the lilies starting to sprout up too.  This is the litttle rock wall just across from the west coast planter and the other little alpines that are well established now.

This camas is in bud and will bloom soon.  It is along Mrs. P.'s sidewalk.  I am surprised she hasn't killed it too.  The camas is a native plant.  The natives used it as food.  :).  Above the camas, which goes dormant over the summer, is a very vigorous dark purple Jackimani clematis climbing on a trellis.  This froths out all over its space and needs to be pruned back in early spring or late autumn to just at its trellis height.  Below the camas is this very invasive bisshop's weed that looks really good as a ground cover along by this sidewalk and grows in the clay, with very little water in summer.  I need to cut it back after it blooms and it grows again and looks good until it is killed by frost.  Also along this strip of clay is the cut back camillia, and 2 rhodos and one lovely azalea.  Under these shrubs are some daylillies and some lily of the valley.  I will want to move some of these plants to under the deck; especially the lily of the valley, before Mrs. Pee kills them, too.  In front of the bishop's weed I have a burning bush with red new leaves in spring.  I have to keep this pruned back off  the sidewalk, too.  It is there to screen my front door view from their garbage cans.  Just next to the burning bush and at the corner of my house is a Japanese anemone and the lovely Simplicity rose blooming in pink all summer and autumn.  Under these plants there are violets.. another very vigorous plant.  They have to be vigorous to survive Mrs. Pee's attentions.

This is a bunch of violets.  They are lovely, and I keep some around as ground covers here and there.  But they seed themselves everywhere.  The roots have to be dug out, as they have a tendency to just break off at ground level and just spread more from the roots.  I have too many in the moss garden at the back and they need to be cleaned up there, as well as in the front garden.  I would like to get them established under the deck with some of the lily of the valley plants in the heavy shade. 

These are the two clumps of pasque flowers, or prairie crocus, that live at the front by our driveway and in front of the cedar hedge.  I could use a couple more of these plants there, as they are well behaved and long lasting.  When finished blooming they make a nice clump of feathery foliage.

This is the little trillium at the front, showing 2 blooms this year.  There are two trilliums at the back.  More on them later.

Yesterday, we spent the day going out to Port Refrew and around the loop to Cowichan Bay and home past Duncan and the Malahat.  It was a wonderful day trip.  Lunch at the Port Renfrew Hotel was scrumptious.  We also visited Skutz Falls, which are really just rapids on the Cowichan river with fish ladders added.

Last evening when I went out to look at the pond from the deck I saw a splash in the water from what I think was a frog leaping off the waterfall rocks.  I have not seen it today.  I hope it is not one of those big frogs that have been introduced into the wild and are taking over the habitat of our indigenous frogs.  I haven't seen any fish yet, either.  I wonder if the frog has been eating them.  Some of the fish were quite big though.  The splash in the pond, did not look like a huge frog... maybe 2 inches across is all.  Some of those fish were at least 5 inches long. 

Orchids and Violets

These two orchids are in bloom in the light garden now.  The lady slipper is Phrag. Andean Fire and the other one is SL. Psyche 'China" l. cinnabariana x s. coccinea.  Its all Greek to me.    The Andean Fire seems a bit droopy.  Psyche is a vibrant orange with 3 blooms this time.

This is one of the African Violets in bloom.  I played with this one in my photo editors.  In Virtual Studio, I can correct the 'temperature' as I had neglected to change the white balance to florescent when shooting.  I also used the dodge and burn tools, as well as sharpening in photoshop.  Virtual Studio also has noise reduction and a few other good things.  Google the Optic Verve or Virtual Studio and do a free download, if you are interested.

Another of the violets in bloom.
All of the plants in the light garden survived my two week trip away from home.  Andy and Tara looked in on things.  Thanks.
In the garden today, I mowed the grass -- first mow of the year.  The crocus field did not get mown, of course.  The leaves need to harden off.  When the crocus leaves begin to brown, I can then mow the grass where they grow.  Andy topped up the pond a few days ago... the leak seems to be even slower, now.  I skimmed some of the plum tree dropped blooms off the pond.  I put the grass clippings around the strawberry plants and added some manure compost to them and to the rhubarb which is now about 2 feet high.  I cleaned up a few more perennials, dug out dandilions, moved one of the old clay pots that contains a lily and moved the rocks around a bit.    It was fun playing outside, as it was a beautiful sunny 12 degree day.

The Rock and Alpine Garden Club has its Spring Show and Sale  next weekend:

The annual Vancouver Island Rock and Alpine Sp[ring Show for 2010 will be on Friday, March 26th and Saturday March 27th, at Cadboro Bay United Church, 2625 Arbutus Rd.  Show hours are from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday and 9 a.m to 3:30 p.m on Saturday.  The members plant sale is from 11 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Speciality nurseries will sell plants during the entire show and seeds will be on sale throughout.  Afternoon teas will be available.  The show will feature door prizes and a silent auction.

This is an annual event for me, although I have not entered any plants in the show yet.  I like to go and see what people are growing and to purchase precious little plants.  The little Daphne, a tiny grey mounding plant, and a very nice polyanthus marginata from last year are thriving in the small rockery and in a pot.  Over the years I have managed to get a few very nice alpines growing.   Last year, we went away for a month in the hottest time of the year and some of my new purchases perished.  The ones I put into pots do not do as well as the ones that go directly into the rockery, or into very large pots.   I have 3 large pots that only need good fast draining soil and then I could have a few more alpines.   I will see what might be available, but should get the pots ready, now. 

This year, I should redo the woodland path and the woodland area itself, needs cleaning up.  The bluebells are just taking over everything.  They are nice, but so very invasive.  The garden is not too bad right now.  It helps to keep up to the weeds and any needed renovations.  The arabis, daffodils, hyaciths, polyanthus, hellebores, camillias and both magnolia shrubs are in bloom.   The moss garden is slowly growing.