Polyanthus,Hyacinth, Grape Hyacinth,Wild Garlic, For-get-me-not,Primrose, Mary & Joseph,Isn't it funny who you remember just by saying a phrase! Just by the title of my blog today, I have suddenly remembered my Grampy. He used to have a saying " the spring has sprung, the grass is riz, I wonder where the birdies is".
On that note the seagulls this morning were kicking up a heck of a row, their cries almost sounded like a tiny child crying. The house two doors up from us always has seagulls building nests on its chimney, and when they have young hatched they are quite nasty when you have to go out into the front garden. I dread the spring each year because of them. They have even attacked the children when they have been playing outside when they were younger.
Yesterday was not a very bright day until after lunch, but what brightened my day was when I went into the garden,and saw a lonely purple wood anemone.It looked so beautiful. Only about three weeks ago we had snow, but already the flowers are really starting to spring into early bloom.
What I cannot understand is that the primroses have come out before the violets this year, normally it is the other way around. I have had some beautiful Mary & Joseph (Pulmonaria officinalis) this year their colours have been more vibrant than other years.
I am rather upset that the snails and slugs have already started to attack the plants, in particular the hyacinths and the miniature daffodils. I really hate having to use pesticides in my garden, but I am going to have to do something about the pests this year.
With the job that my husband does, he gets a lot of offcuts of copper wire, so I am going to lay rings of the wire around each plant that is susceptible to snails and slugs. I have been told that they hate crawling across copper. I looked in the garden centre last weekend for the metal strips that readily available, but they are no good for laying in the garden as they are self adhesive copper leaf on paper. £4.95 for 4 metres and only any good for pots. Rip off.
Mary& Joseph (Pulmonaria officinalis)
I have put together a collage of all the spring flowers I have out in the garden at the moment.
Top Left: Hellebore (Red) or Lenten Rose,Little Purple Anemone,Miniature Daffodils.
Top Right: Forsythia
Centre: Green Hellebore/Lenten Rose, Camellia
Bottom Left: Bergenia,
Bottom Right: the first Buds of a scarlet Japonica
Dawn, I saved that saying by your Grampy as its too precious. Your garden is exploding in colour and its so pretty. I will have to be patient for another month before anything will show colour in our garden. England is always ahead of France with flowering bulbs. With the slugs and snails, put out a bowl of beer at night after the dogs are inside because they also love to drink it. The slugs and snails adore the smell and taste but when they get drunk they fall in and drown. Serves them right!! I also don't like poison as we have a lot of birds and my dogs might eat the slug bait. After the rains I go out early in the morning and collect as many slugs and snails in a bottle, close the lid and chuck them. We have these huge orange slugs all over the garden. You can make an amazing ulcer treatment from them which I am not about to try. The very thought!
ReplyDeleteAlice
Dawn-
ReplyDeleteYour grampy's saying is one I'm always saying this time of year too...Don't know where I ever picked it up but I love driving my children crazy saying it...of course my son (my youngest) starts looking for any kind of bird to say "there it is mom!!"
I loved looking at your flower photos and realized what you call "Mary & Joseph" my mother in law and I have always called "Lungwort"...interesting how people have different "names" for the same flora and fauna...
Your flowers are wonderful! Seeing the daffys reminded me that the day before leaving our cabin-in-the-woods in Washington State (right up near the Canadian border) I planted about two dozen daffodil bulbs. Now I'm itching to get back there to see if any are popping out of the snow. Alas...we'll not be going back up there until May. I count the days.
ReplyDeleteIrene in Las Vegas
Talk about birds attacking we have a black and white bird here in Australia called a Magpie and in the nesting season around October they will attack,Magpies are very territorial and very protective of their area especially when they are nesting,your garden is looking beautiful, being the start of Autumn here our plants are starting to slow down.
ReplyDeleteFlowers are beautiful! We used have mockingbirds waiting to swoop down after our cat when he crossed the yard. Now we have them singing at the top of their lungs (especially one) at 6:30 AM. We always nickname the one "Lover Boy", as he's calling for his mate, I guess! Funny, we haven't heard him this year yet...very unusual!
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