Spring is full-on around here and things are moving at warp speed. We went from winter to having some very warm days … so there’s been rapid growth on many of the roses and most of the perennials. It’s not just the weather that has me moving so fast, it’s the grandbaby coming and an upcoming trip. As I write those words…. upcoming trip … I can’t believe it’s true. Like so many of you, the separation from our family and all the uncertainty has been one of life’s most painful curveballs. But the flight is booked and soon we will be covered up in grands! 💙💙💙
GARDEN CENTERS
We have visited a few garden centers and I cannot believe how well-stocked they are and how early! They have surely heard all the statistics and trends that gardening is on the rise. I keep hearing that in 2020 there were anywhere from 16,000 – 20,000 people saying they are first-time gardeners. So 2020 was NOT just the year of the pandemic, it was also the YEAR OF THE GARDENER. A silver lining for sure!
I read another article on garden trends from the Farmers’ Almanac:
- Balcony Gardens Will Be Big
- Houseplants, Indoor Gardens and Windowsill Gardens
- Bringing the Inside Outside (I love this one!)
- Tiny Gardens Galore
- Permaculture Practices
- The “Cottage Core” Aesthetic (Curious and want to know more… read on here.)
- Online Gardening
- Gardening by the Moon
Read more here on the Farmer’ Almanac website. They have so many great articles!
BROOD X
Have you heard about Brood X …. I recently read a headline that BILLIONS OF BROOD X CICADAS ARE SET TO EMERGE IN SPRING 2021. Guess what? Indiana is a hot spot for them. Oh Joy! 😳 When I hear this my mind immediately goes to Biblical Plagues but I guess they aren’t THAT bad. BUT, they are kinda creepy looking (especially in mass) and loud. I think we are to start seeing them in mid May… so much for quiet happy hours in the garden. Groups can be up to 100 decibels. 📢 Seriously, I can do without those. If they had come in 2020, they would have fit right in.
NEED TO KNOW MORE? There’s actually a website called Cicadamania. Everything you could ever want to know and more, including where they are expected to be and when! Link here.
NEW SHRUBS FOR THE GARDEN
ICEBERG ALLEY SAGELEAF WILLOW
When I saw a picture of this shrub, I thought it would be so so so good in my garden with the silver foliage!
Once I saw this VIDEO (link) from First Editions, I knew I had to have it. So I now have two.
SPICE BABY VIBURNUM
This Proven Winners plant tag caught my eye with the pretty blooms and the words petite and fragrant. We have many many viburnums of all types and we love them (so do the birds), however, they are NOT petite! This one is said to reach 3.5 – 5′ high and 3.5 – 6′ wide. Not tiny but will work very nicely. Looking forward to watching them grow! More info here.
UPDATE ON MILK JUG WINTER SOWING
Three of the five containers did VERY well. Ammi (I’ll have to keep my eye on her), Sweet William, and French Alouette Larkspur. So far nothing from Magic Fountain Delphinium and Munstead Lavender.
I will totally do more of this next year. For a simple, inexpensive pack of seeds, SO MANY PLANTS and it was so easy. (See the beginning of the project here.)
POTTING SHED PUTTERINGS
My baby Peggy Martins are recovering from an attack from spider mites. TIme will tell how they continue to do.😞
I potted up the baby Formosa lilies from seeds given to me from my good friend David. This was the first time to use my new transplant tools (Amazon). All I’ve had in the past were my handy dandy 20 something-year-old tiny trowels from Smith and Hawkins. They are great for most small work, but I was going for something even smaller and sharper. I found this set and compared to the heavy-duty S&H tool, they seemed very flimsy to me at first. But they were perfect for this delicate work.
Sharp little trowel was just the thing! 
Love these little topiaries – started from cutings! They need a trim! 
Grow babies grow!
Munstead Lavender is doing great! Munstead is the only lavender I have tried (and I’ve tried sooooooo many) that comes back reliably. (I’m in 5b.)
My topiaries and geraniums are coming in and out as they get used to living outdoors!
BLOOM THYME THIS WEEK
Sargent Crab is ready to go! 
Chocolate Chip Ajuga is blooming. 
Ms Cardinal built a nest in the Major Wheeler Honeysuckle vine that clings to our sun porch right next to the nest she used last year! #condoliving 
Garden is definitely coming back – path to the herb garden. 
Sand Cherry makes a big bold statement with its delicate blooms. 
Ahhhhh Bleeding Heart 
LOVE! Trillium 
Mr. G’s spring fav – creeping phlox around his pond. 
Thalia Daffodils are everything Monty Don promised and more! 
Beautiful, Fragrant, Just perfect out our sun room window.
BACK TO WORK
Time to get back to work. That mountain of mulch won’t move itself. Yes, time to get back to WARP SPEED SPRING GARDENING. Babies don’t wait. 🇬🇧 Halleluia! 💙 💙 💙 💙 ✈️
Thanks for stopping by. Enjoy your time in the garden — and if you are on the BroodX map, enjoy the peace and quiet while you can!
What a great post! I knew the cicadas were coming but I didn’t know where. My brother in New Jersey is already worried. They have had cicadas in the past. Maybe they just don’t get as many? I have a Korean Spice bush and I have just begun to think I should prune it. I think it is about 7 feet tall. That fragrance is a delight..
How fun to see your garden waking up! I wish that Viburnum grew here, but I think it’s too hot. Watch out for those Cicadas!! Sounds almost as bad as a story from a few years ago that it was going to be so cold in Florida that Iguanas were falling out of trees onto people below – yikes!! I am having our local garden club tour my front garden today. I wish that more things were blooming. Just a few roses have popped, plus lavender, Nemesia, Salvia all look great. Planted seeds of ‘Pink Peony’ Breadseed Poppies, ‘Ocean Pearls’ Corncockle, Orlaya, Bachelor Buttons and Love-in-a-mist – none blooming yet, boo-hoo! Should be really fun though. The first time our garden will have seen one another in more than a year.
Such a lovely blog. I have just turned on my computer today, Mon., 04-19-2021. I have a baby bird now in my Easter wreath on the front porch. The birds have really been busy. I have and love the Thalia daffodils (exquisite). I have a few roses in bloom, and my dwarf lilacs are in bloom. My azaleas are so beautiful; white which is breathtaking, and the pink Coral Bell variety, plus a few darker pink ones. My gardening friend has a greenhouse, and she already has tomatoes. Congrats on the new baby arrival! So thrilling and special an occasion, so I hope all goes well with your plans. My Lady Banks rose is in full bloom now with a thousand or more yellow roses on it. WOW! And Air Force 1 has just flown over my neighborhood/house several times this morning as they practice landing at our nearby airport.
Thought for Today: “The love of gardening is a seed once sown that never dies.” Gertrude Jekyll