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Spring has settled gently across our garden. The warmth has returned quietly to re-awaken the many creatures who slumbered in the Earth through our long winter.
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A sea of daffodils fills the awakening perennial beds and rings our newly planted shrubs. Woody stems burst into bloom. Ferns have begun to uncurl their new fronds, and the front lawn is awash in wildflowers.
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Gigantic bees bumble and buzz from flower to flower in giddy joy at the feast. We hear lizards skittering beneath the dry leaves, and hear frog song in the evening. The breezes carry sweetness from the flowers, along with clouds of pollen from the trees.
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Ah, spring….
Today’s vase showcases some of our smaller, white daffodils which might otherwise be overlooked among their larger and brighter cousins. N. “Thalia” remains one of my favorites, along with the larger N. “Mt. Hood,” which I didn’t cut for this vase today.
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I did cut small branches from a deliciously sweet shrub in our side garden which covers itself in white blossoms each spring. It looks to me like a plum, but fruit never follows its flowers. The flowers last only a few days, and then we must wait another year for this little woody thing to shine again. It rarely shows growth, probably because the area where it grows remains hot and dry, and the scene of much tunneling from the voles. Everything here struggles despite my best efforts to keep the area more accommodating.
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Clippings of overwintered Dusty Miller and Lavender stems give a bit of structure, and hold two tiny white Muscari alba stems. A few tiny stems of our white flowering Vinca minor peek out around the edges.
This antique silver sugar bowl holding this week’s flowers was passed on from my mother’s mother many years ago. We believe it was already an antique when she acquired it as a young woman.
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Here are a few photos of other daffodils spared the clippers today. They remain growing in the garden….
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Appreciation, as always, to Cathy at Rambling in the Garden for hosting this floral challenge each Monday. Maybe you will even feel moved to join Cathy’s Monday Vase meme with photos of a vase filled with what may be growing in your own garden this week. When you visit her, you will find links to beautiful floral arrangements from all over the planet in her comments.
Here are a few other Monday Vases you might enjoy this first Monday in April:
John, at A Walk in the Garden
Cathy at Words and Herbs
And here is the full calendar of garden memes, for other gardeners who might want to follow this and other garden blogging events. Thanks to Tina and her partner, at My Gardener Says... for organizing the calendar for all of us to use and enjoy!
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Woodland Gnome 2015
I noticed that daffodils were a common element in many of the vases this week, my own included. They are so emblematic of Easter and Spring. I like your use of the silver vase and the dusty miller too, both of which I link to winter – the vase speaks to me of the transition between the seasons.
Thank you, Kris. I love that glorious butter yellow rose in your vase. It works so beautifully against your double daffodils 😉 I’ve always envied West Coast gardeners for the near perfect growing conditions and huge plant selection you can grow. And I’m so sorry for those dealing with drought, unable to grow those wonderful crops and flowers which are a part of their lives. You mentioned the wind in your post. I hope you are also getting rain 😉 Thank you for your kind comments, and for your visit to Forest Garden. Best wishes, WG
Love the white and soft, buttery yellow theme of this week’s vase. It looks great against the natural backdrop, as if it just grew like that! 😉 I love seeing all your daffodils. I want to get some more Thalia, one can never have enough of those!
i agree with you about the Thalias, and would extend that to daffodils in general 😉 Here are the growers we plan to visit late this week: https://brentandbeckysbulbs.com/ABOUT-US Their farm is less than an hour north, on the next peninsula, and the huge daffodil festival is this coming weekend. We love seeing the daffodils come out, one by one, as the season progresses. Like unwrapping Christmas ornaments, they delight and surprise us each year. Hope you are out in your garden today, too 😉 Hugs, WG
How wonderful to be so close to their fields – Happy field trip! 😉 Pls. take lots of wide shots so we can feel like we are right there, too.
Too wet today to be outside (other than walking the dog). Tomorrow is Greenville and 84 degrees – woohoo! 🙂
Well i hope your travel is smooth, Eliza, and that you will have a wonderful time! You will be right in the midst of beautiful spring as soon as you land. I will definitely take wide shots when we get to the fields- thank you for the reminder there. Depending on weather, it will be one day of the next three 😉 I hope you enjoy your time with your sister. Giant hugs, WG
Safely arrived, thank you. It was 33 when I got up this morning and after a few hours of flying, it was 84 – summer! Oh, my, how I’ve missed these temps. I am thrilled! Beautiful tulips, azaleas, flowering shrubs I’m unfamiliar with, some so fragrant! 🙂 🙂 what a happy camper, I am. 🙂
Eliza, I’ve been thinking of you traveling today and am so happy you are safely arrived 😉 You’re in paradise for the next week, and may decide to delay your return to Massachusetts until the weather there turns reasonable next month 😉 Have an absolutely wonderful time! Knowing you, you’ll have the Latin and common names of every plant in sight by the weekend. Giant hugs, WG
When I flew over (what I guessed was) VA, I thought of you, too! 🙂 I waved, did you see me? 😉 Thanks for your kind wishes and I will be asking anyone I can find what all those plants are. We’ll be heading to the Biltmore Estate in Asheville on Fri. and I hope their gardens will have labels!
As you can see, I brought my laptop as I couldn’t face a week without talking to my blog buddies. Big hugs right back! ❤
Good for you to bring your lap top to stay in touch 😉 I’ll watch in case you post this week. Your trip to Asheville sounds like fun. Another place I’d love to see… What a perfect time of year to visit! Springtime in the Appalachian mountains is always a thing of joy. Thanks for waving 😉 It’s been so overcast here today that I missed seeing your plane 😉 ❤
Beautiful arrangement! I think this one might be my favorite so far. The white blossoms and dusty gray foliage look striking together. I love the white daffodils! I don’t see them much where I live, but they are gorgeous. I’ll have to look for some to add to my bulb garden. That frilled one is a delight! It’s lovely to hear how spring has settled back upon you and I hope you are relishing the days. Blessings to you, Sarah
Thank you, Sarah 😉 I’m glad you like this one. I like it SO much better than the bare branches I’ve been relying upon! You will find Thalia and Mt. Hood with most of the good bulb companies, like Breck’s. You might also order from our local bulb grower, https://brentandbeckysbulbs.com/ABOUT-US across the river in Gloucester. These are very nice people, who I’ve met. You will find an amazing selection of daffodil and other bulbs from them, Sarah. And their prices are very fair.
I’ve been on hands and knees yesterday and today preparing new areas. The back rebels, but it all goes into the eventual enjoyment. Blessings to you, WG
Lovely. Very springy, very Easterly. Thanks.
The dusty miller is so perfect against the silver and then all the white blooms shine!
Thank you, Donna 😉
The patina on the sugar bowl adds to its charm. The dusty Miller leaves are the perfect segue from the silver to the whites of the bouquet. Well done!
Thank you, Ricki 😉 That means a lot coming from you 😉
Spring is certainly springing in your garden – I have a bit of catching up to do here! I love all your daffodils and particularly Thalia which is a favourite of mine. Your vase is certainly a precious family heirloom.
Thank you, Julie. Spring has definitely settled in now. So we share a love for Thalia. I’ve bought several ‘mixed’ bags of daffodils lately, so it is always fun to see what we have when they open. We enjoy the miniatures mixed with the larger flowered ones. There are never enough Thalia, though 😉 Best wishes, WG
looks lkike Spring to me !
It’s about time!
oh yes !!! today we are going to have our real first Spring like day !!! guess what I am going to do today !!!:D
I’m so happy for you! Please enjoy every minute of it 😉 I’m still getting back “in shape” with the physicality of it- please be gentle with yourself as you finally tackle all of those garden tasks on your list 😉 Giant hugs, WG ❤
White daffodils are my favourites, specially the lovely Thalia. What a lovely arrangement, it looks beautiful in your silver sugar bowl.
Thank you, Chloris. White daffodils just have a sparkle about them, don’t they? Thank you for visiting Forest Garden today 😉 Best wishes, WG
And thank you so much for the follow. I’ll be over to check out your page shortly 😉
I love that silver bowl… how nice to have such a pretty heirloom in the family! Thalia is possibly my favourite daffodil, after discovering it only last year. Using the Dusty Miller foliage was a good idea – very effective. Lovely photos of all your different daffs too! (And thanks for the mention.) 🙂
Thank you, Cathy 😉 So you love Thalia as well. They are such a clean, luminous white. They are like moonlight in the garden 😉 Thank you for all of the kind words. It is so nice to have selection available again 😉
The sugar bowl is a lovely receptacle for this fresh spring vase and it is lovely to see it photographed in a garden setting. You must be thrilled to see your garden waking up – I know I am thrilled with mine! Thanks for sharing your vase and your spring observations too
Thank you, Cathy. The garden calls us outside at every opportunity. Always something new to enjoy 😉 I rather like the arrangement at the foot of the beech tree cradled in its roots as well. After so long a wait, finally we can get outdoors again 😉