Easter 2014

After a long winter, with the temperature regularly dropping below freezing, it is such a joy to see intense, bright colors against what is still a fairly gray background.  This is the 'Don Egolf' form of Cercis chinensis, or Chinese Redbud providing a magenta crown over the bed of daffodils.  This dwarf form of the Redbud has been blooming for more than a week, with the cool weather acting to keep the flowers from fading too quickly.

While I am unable to find the variety of daffodils, they have a light fragrance that occasionally reaches my nose when the breeze is right.  As long as the wind is not too strong, as it is while I am writing this.

Speaking of daffodils, is it interesting how some varieties, like these, settle in and multiply rapidly, while the four other varieties that were planted at the same time only have a few remaining bulbs blooming.

Along with the flowers, much of the emerging foliage has its own character to add to the delight.  These are the stems and leaves of the Paeonia 'Kopper Kettle' which is one of the "Itoh" or interspecies varieties.  It includes the genes from both the herbaceous and the tree peonies.  In this picture you can see two woody stems that began the winter with buds, just like a tree peony.  In previous years, those buds have grown up along with new stems growing up from below the surface of the ground.  However, it appears the long periods of below freezing weather were too much, and the old woody stems from last year have died.  Not to worry, there are lots of new stems that were safely underground.

I love the colors in these, which contract so well with the soft, light green colors of the rest of the new foliage.  While these are too dark to say they glow with color, the next photo shows something different.

The Spiraea x bumalda 'Goldflame' that grows on the edge of the slope behind the house seems to be lit up by fire.  The colors will fade down in a few weeks, but then the pink flowers will open up.  Now, I will admit that pink flowers above yellow orange foliage has led me to question holding onto this spirea.  But then each spring, before the grass turns green and most leaves are opening, this fluorescent display wakes me up from my winter doldrums, and I cannot imagine pulling it out.

To top it all off, these bushes are one of the few things that have survived a tough spot.  The hillside is a very sandy/gravely soil, with the full sun all morning drying it out.  I used to call this area my heather garden, but most of the heathers were killed by the extended cold, and those that still have live sections will need major pruning to get rid of the dead parts.  I have also had some success with lavender plants, but those were also severely hit by the cold.

The Viburnum 'Allegheny' is blooming again!  This time in the right season.  I like the contrast of the new flowers against the old, winter scarred leaves below.  In the background you can see the new leaves emerging, with their soft velvety surface.  This bush always surprises me.

Finally, the North Garden, between the house and the board fence on the property line, has a batch of trout lily, Erythronium ‘Pagoda’, at the base of a tree peony.  I so enjoy the bright color and upturned petals of these bulbs.  They proclaim that better weather is coming, and all will be well.