I bought some new bulbs last fall, crown imperials, or fritillaria imperialis.
They both bloomed quite nicely.
Something ate these tulips, something taller than a rabbit.
The Redbud is really beautiful this year.
This is my favourite new garden guest.
This guest is not welcome, nor is the skunk, the groundhogs, or the rabbits.
The lily beetles are back.
I received a box full of dahlia bulbs and canna bulbs. So I planted some up to give them a head start.
Always lots on the go in the garden!
In one of the original beds we started here, I had planted a clump of grass, the very tall miscanthus giganteus. Through the years, the clump grew very large, with the centre dying out, leaving only a ring of new growth. I have very few pictures of it, as it is in a bed that’s just not that special.
Well, last year, I decided it was time to dig it out. This is almost impossible with a shovel.
So I hired Carl to dig it out.
I was left with a gaping hole, and a mess. And no plan.
Then my dad found this old plough, and fixed it up for me. It needed a special place.
So Doug cleared out the hole.
Ready for filling.
A bucket or two of stone dust.
And the plough has a lovely place to sit and be appreciated.
I’ll need to tidy that end of that flower bed with some new plantings. Maybe something interesting needs to sit with the plough? I’m not sure. At least, it looks much better than the big hole!
On May 4th, we had very high winds. Gusts up to 100 km.
I don’t think we’ve ever had that kind of wind here in 20 years.
I watched one of our pine trees bend further than I’d seen before.
Minutes later, I heard creaking, and I went to the window in time to see it come down.
Also, a part of the pear tree came down.
The pine tree was about 50′ tall, and of course came down right in the middle of my magnolia tree.
I could see the blooms starting, underneath the green branches of the pine tree.
Sad. The tree was full of buds, and I was so looking forward to all the blooms.
Cleanup with the chainsaw and a few helpers…
..in a couple hours, it’s all gone.
The magnolia lost it’s big centre branch, but thank goodness, most of it was spared.
Not much else was damaged. The side branches of the pine supported the heavy trunk, so it didn’t crush anything.
Here you can see the pine tree standing tall.
The flower bed around it feels very different. The whole area has lost it’s anchor point. At first, I was almost disoriented, but now I’m getting used to it. The existing shrubs might get more sunlight now, and provide a better backdrop to the bed.
The winter of 2017-2018 seemed to go on forever.
I have long believed that April is the cruelest month. I can make it through January and February, and then I know March is too early yet.
But come April I am really tired of the snow.
This was April 6th.
This was April 16th.
April 19…
April 25th…
Now, at last, it looks like this!
