Spring has more or less sprung around here; even the weatherforecasters are saying this is May weather. 3 weeks ago, they were saying it was April-like. The seasons seem to be on fast-forward. The daffies, whose 9-weeklong seqence normally starts around March 10th (5th on warm years) are nearly finished~they began in February; only the old-fashioned pheasent's eye daffs (usually bloom mid- to late-May) have yet to open. The forsythia, magnolias, and hyacinths are almost over. Strangely enough some plants are not into this sort of crazed earliness: the azaleas have buds barely showing and the tulips haven't poked up buds; my bane the maple has barely shown color much less spread its sneeze-pollen (usually a February misery); oaks, birch, butternuts barely show color. The fruit trees are either in full bloom or starting to drop the petals. I didn't note when the pear opened blossom but it seems to have condensed bloom-time into a matter of several days instead of the usual three weeks; is this due to the lack of cold-hours or as a response to the lack of frosty nights? Our last coldish night was in mid-February. 32* preceded by a week of 40"s and followed since with nightly lows in the 50's. The spring rains are doing their summer evasion, going north or south or east or west, but leaving my locale dry, dry, dry. DH tilled the gardens, but refuses to plant ~ he swears there will be frost sometime in the next month. I doubt it. My unreliable crystal ball is mumbling that June will be like August, but drier; and July/August will be heat-drenched drought with a good chance of tropical storms.

Hey!! Good for you. A very good day to get them too! :-) I was out a while ago and was squinting into my containers and not a sign of anything yet. We are both in SW ON so maybe my sprouts are not far behind. (I planted those last year on Feb 18 and they sprouted on Apr. 6) gg

OA ... I'll check w/hubby on the saw blade info...he's sleeping now ...I'm the night owl. Yes, you can steal my hair-do, lady ... you save money on shampoo & when you get up in the morning, you don't need to style your hair! (altho I have cried many a tears ...but it's ok as long as the chemo does it's dirty work) ... in this pic tho, I now have no eyebrows, no eyelashes... no one told me how that would feel (& look) ...but it's part of the journey. 'Nuf said, uh. Now that trunk you're talking about I got on clearance @Hobby Lobby some yrs ago ... has to be at least 10 ... probably closer to 15 ... anyway, it's the 'girls' chest ...there's some dolls, fancy scarves, jewels galore & fancy belts in it ... I still have a young gr-gd who gets into it. ;-) Yes, I'll take another pic of it...it's stuck in that corner right now w/the tree & ice skating pond up. Now the boys they have the wood trunk under the nativity set...it's full of cars, trucks & the girls like it, too ~~ of course, they all used to get into both trunks! Now the Hoosier is the 'game cabinet' it's been one since our son was in Jr. Hi ... now that's a few yrs ago! Full of board games, fun battery games & all kinds of stuff! Santa always brings a kid game & an adult game on Christmas Eve to stay at the Sammons' household. ;-) Yes, the wood bear is probably `12 - 15" tall ... movable legs & forearms with jute ties. Thanks, OA. Jeanne S.

Fall gardens are pretty, too! Bees love the Asters and Sedums this time of year. I wish I would have taken more pictures of birds and insects. Sedum Autumn Joy or is it (Hylotelephium Autumn Joy now?) A floribunda rose reblooming for fall Aster 'Raydon's Birthday Pink' ...gets more pink as it ages The intense color of Aster 'Alma Potschke' I didn't get around to trimming this back earlier in the season. It went a little crazy! Aster 'Woods Blue' with Heliopsis 'Summer Breeze' A new one for me, Echinacea 'Supreme Cantaloupe' Anemone tomentosa 'Robustissima' Last of all an annual, Polygonum orientale (Kiss Me Over the Garden Gate)