Meanwhile back at this farm...

I was invited to attend a performance by the Brandywine Baroque Ensemble at The Barn at Flintwoods. This forty acre farm sits among the rolling hills outside of Wilmington Delaware. The performance featured French and English music spanning 1640's until 1760's themed on the Birds, Bees and other Beasties. A marvelous concert featuring period instruments and impeccable singing. For me it was the first time there and a thrill to hear wonderful music, but my heart was outside in the countryside where this wonderful landscape was still asleep waiting for its soon awakening.

Meanwhile, back at my farm not even an hour north of Wilmington, that which had not occurred there was Spring in bloom. I suspect that even suburban environments are affected by the heat island effects that causes cities to remain warmer and thereby bloom earlier than their neighboring rural unimproved countryside. My garden has been flushed will all kinds of wonderful blooms.

The crocus have had their fleeting moment in the sun. They have managed to survive in the carpet of liriope that blankets them all year and surprise me every spring. I keep thinking that they will perish from lack of exposure and they endure and multiply. This year there were more crocus than ever.

A plant that I got to know in the east coast are the hellebores or Lenten Rose. These unusual evergreens have laid claim to a corner of my front yard where they have conquered and multiply. I have purchased additional varieties over the years and added them in various corner of my wooded garden. All you do is put them in the ground wait and over time the rewards are better and better. Mine (don't know any species names) bloom for a month or two and add a great dash of color and texture to the awakening landscape.

I have not done much in the back yet (nor for that matter anywhere). I have spoken to people who have pruned their roses prematurely only to have them bud and perish in the frosts that we are still getting. I look at the damage from the long winter and have picked some debris. Somewhere along the torrential downpours my garden lights are out and I can't figure out what has happened. No electricity for the pond either but thankfully the water will not ice up anymore. I was poking around trying to figure out what could have shorted the entire circuit and opened up one of my garden lights to find it filled up with soil. Apparently ants have found my garden lights to be skyscraper housing condominiums and may have caused the problem bringing up soil and or eggs into the lights when the garden has flooded. Only time will tell the answer to this little situation.

The forsythia and the other yellows have laid claim to the garden. Assortments of full size and miniature daffodils are sprinkled throughout the garden by the hundreds. It is wonderful to walk among their fragrance. They seem immune to the cold and the rain. In spite of major downpours the still manage to bounce back

Miniature daffodil amongst the Cranesbill geranium

The spectacle of the garden, at least for me, is the Star Magnolia whose fleeting blooms like most of the other spring flowers are so short lived. For the week they are in bloom it is like a ballet of white with the dancing petals swaying in the breeze. This shrub, that is now 15 feet tall reminds me of the wonder of it all. Ten years ago I planted a, barely, one foot tall plant that now screens the garden from my neighbors and provides a ballet to boot. Hope your farm or garden is in bloom and you rediscover the wonder of spring.