A Kansas Country Garden-Second Week of March

The little forsythia bush blooms for the first time. I dug this seedling out from under a large bush at my son's home last spring. It should grow quite tall.

Every year the same thought occurs to me as a wander through my country garden: I should keep a record. It could be simple, just a list of what is blooming during a particular week. Wouldn't that be a handy thing to have? It would help me evaluate length of bloom time and which plants should be blooming at a similar time so I could arrange plantings accordingly. Yes, I tell myself, I should really do that. And so far that thought has always been followed with, Well, maybe next year.

Maybe next year is the gardeners blessing and curse. Yes, we get to start fresh each year. There will always be another opportunity to try something different or new. But, what you put off may never come to be. 

These are species tulips. Unlike the larger hybrids these tulips are short, bloom early and multiply.

 Just yesterday, those thoughts were running through my head once again when my eyes landed on my camera. Suddenly it made sense. I could keep a record using my camera and my blog! (Actually the blog part came later, in the middle of night when I couldn't sleep.) 

So here it is. These are the flowers blooming in my country garden during the second week of March, 2012. We are experiencing an early spring. Warm temperatures are practically jerking green life from the earth and demanding immediate bloom. Slow down and take your time, little flowers, because winter may not be over. Or perhaps it is. Either way, these flowers must be enjoyed and savored. They won't last long. It will be interesting to see which ones are still blooming next week when I return to the garden with my camera. 

Daffodils are so cheerful. During a cool spring their bloom lasts much longer. I am noticing that the newer plantings have many more blooms than the older plantings. This no doubt means that its time to divide them. I'll wait until the foliage dies back, but while I can still see it, to divide them. 

These grape hyacinth or muscari also need to be divided. Being crowded hasn't stopped them from blooming, however.

The Bradford Pear tree is just beginning to bloom. For most of the year, I am not a fan of Bradford Pear trees. However, they are lovely when they bloom (although they don't smell that great.)