A Kansas Country Garden: Farewell to Winter

All of a sudden it becomes clear. Winter will not last forever. No, we do not live in the land where it is "always winter and never Christmas." The  first sign of this are the crocus. They did not wait for the snow to melt before making an appearance. That was last week. Now they are in their full glory, a patchwork quilt of color.  Welcome, spring.

Our crocus tend to come in various shades of yellow and purple. There will be white ones as well.

Crocus bloom next to Donkey tail spurge.

What is it about a bit of color in the flower garden that so revives the soul? Of course no one seems to mind the warmer temperatures, either. 

Tiny, but brave are the first daffodils of 2014.

Can you look at a daffodil and not crack a smile?

The first daffodils have made a hasty appearance. Yesterday it seems there were just a few green stalks, but now there is a little splash of color.  These are miniatures, probably no more than six inches high. They are a hint of what is to come. Many more and larger daffodils will be bursting with blooms quite soon. 

Happy, happy, happy!

Perhaps no one is happier about the change of seasons than the girls in the chicken coop. Approaching the barn you can hear a chorus of contented clucking. I think they are singing for joy. They are showing their delight by amping up the egg production which was rather meager over the darker days of winter. 

The chickens seem to prefer to share. Most of the eggs are laid in one nest.. 

Of course there are no guarantees that cold weather is done. Last year we had ice in April. Nor do we necessarily want extremely warm weather yet. Cooler (not frozen) weather will give us a longer daffodil season and there are plenty of hot days ahead of us.

Let's not think about those days just yet. Today is a lovely day. Just ask the chickens. 

What do you think? Isn't it a lovely day?