Snowdrops and Bittercress Flowers Bloom First

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The warm winds that have blown our way for the last few days have been awakening. Geese flocked by overhead, bird activity in general is picking up, and chipmunks have been seen. I’m not sure if the juncos have flown away yet, but the red-winged blackbirds are back. Record high temperatures were tied in several local areas yesterday. It was in the mid-70s, well above normal. Now, it’s one day away from the calendar start of Spring and flowers have started blooming.

Although wildeherb concentrates on the wild herbs or plants that you might find blooming on a hike in the woods or other natural area, sometimes garden variety plants are included. It’s only natural to relate what we find out in nature to what’s going on in the flower beds or vegetable garden.

Our first-blooming plant was a bulb, the snowdrop. The first snowdrop was spotted blooming on March 12th and it has bloomed for a week now. These are hearty little flowers that you can sometimes see blooming in the snow. Once their blossoms are seen, the thawing of Spring can be felt.

Snowdrop blooming among the heritage flower rosettes.
Snowdrop blooming among the heritage flower rosettes. Photo taken 19Mar2011.

The snowdrop bulbs were planted in a bed where the heritage flower grows. You can see the crumpled-looking, velvety leaves of the first year rosettes that have overwintered. They will sprout long stalks with beautiful magneta flowers in May-June.

Snowdrop flower dangles.
Snowdrop flowers dangle. Photo taken 19Mar2011.

The snowdrop flower opens up its three petals on sunny days. On cloudy days the petals remain dangling. The linear leaves are broad compared to the shorter, variegated ones of the crocus bulbs that are just starting to develop blossoms underneath the snow drop flower above.

Pennsylvania bittercress was first spotted blooming yesterday, 18Mar2011. Its miniscule flowers are quite low to the ground.

PA Bittercress blooming between the flagstones along a walkway.
PA Bittercress blooming between the flagstones along a walkway. Photo taken 19Mar2011.

In our little micro-climate the first blooming garden plant is the snowdrop and the first natural plant to bloom is the Pennsylvania bittercress. With respect to first-blooming times, the plant pictured here most likely had an advantage living among the warm flagstones and sand. No bittercress plants were found blooming in the yard away from the heat of the rocks next to the house.

Photo taken 19Mar2011.

 

Looking Forward to White Raspberry Fruits

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As I look out onto the frozen land I see plenty of fruits dancing in my head. The plants look bare, but they’re not barren. The plain-looking sticks that we see will come to life shortly. The thermometer said it was ten degrees on the back porch this morning and it sure felt like it so the dog was fast doing his duty. A little coffee and we’re warm inside again.

The white raspberry canes that we planted a couple of years ago did nicely last summer. The canes were planted in three areas and the two areas that received the most sun provided the most fruit and cane growth. No surprise there.

These everlasting white raspberry canes are kind of stingy with the fruit though. They ripen slowly and only one or two fruits will ripen from a cluster at once. So, you won’t get a lot of fruit at one time – unless you had a great bunch of canes planted. It’s more like a nibble to be enjoyed while walking about outside.

The taste is really sweet, almost perfume-like. The aroma is quite strong unlike other raspberries or blackberries, which don’t seem to have much of a scent.

White raspberry canes.
Holding up a cane that has arched over to the ground you can see others upright in the background. Photo taken 15Jun2010.
Fruits of black raspberry, blueberry and white raspberry.
Going clockwise from the top right, we have wild black raspberries, three types of blueberries and white raspberry fruits. Note the fleshy color of the white raspberries. Photo taken 15Jun2010.

I can’t emphasize strongly enough how good these fruits taste when you pick them right off the vine, so to speak. I never really like blueberries before, but now I can’t wait to get out there in June to sample them again!

Ripening white raspberry cluster.
Cluster of everlasting white raspberries with one ready to pick, two maturing berries, and two that are still small and green. Photo taken 26Jun2010.

The everlasting white raspberries will ripen one or two berries in a cluster at a time, which spreads out the harvest. A second round of berries will ripen in the fall, but they’re not as plentiful as the summer harvest.

Swans and Geese Fly As Tulips Peek Out

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The weeping willows are showing a bit brighter yellow in their stems and the birds are moving. Snow is melting and spring is surely on its way!

The other day I heard a mixed flock of geese flying low. It was early in the morning and too cloudy to see them, but I heard the calls of Tundra Swan and of geese, perhaps the Snow Goose. I had stepped out to take a picture of the tulips that have been silently pushing out of the ground.

Tulips emerging from the ground.
Tulip tips poking out of the ground. Photo taken 27Feb2011.

Granted, the tulips are right next to the house so they’re getting a fast start, but it still brought out a couple smiles to see something green for a change.

Oh yeah, if you want to brush up on your bird calls, visit the Patuxent Bird ID Infocenter.

Red Amaryllis Blooms Beautifully in Winter

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January flowers are few around these parts unless they’re flown in here from warm places like Africa or South America. It sounds crazy expensive to bring those posies from the other side of the Earth, where it’s warm when we’re freezing up in here.

The only other chance we have of watching plants blooming during January in Pennsylvania is to keep indoor plants. We’ve enjoyed a few blooming the past couple months and that’s brought a sunny feel to the cold of Winter.

Picked up an Amaryllis bulb for $5 at an after-Christmas sale and planted it in the beginning of January. Planting consisted of placing the included desiccated coir block in the bottom of the provided plastic pot and adding two cups of water. Once the growing medium was soaked, half of it was scooped to the side with one hand while the bulb was nestled into the pot with the sprout side up and the remaining soil tamped around it.

These bulbs unfortunately have the common name Amaryllis, as they are members of the family Amaryllidaceae, but are more correctly called Hippeastrum.

These Amaryllis bulbs are fun to watch. They grow so quickly it is truly amazing! We watched it grow up a couple of feet – literally! – over the next three and a half weeks. The linear leaves get over 20 inches tall and are thick and succulent.

Three weeks growth of amaryllis bulb.
Three and a half weeks growth from a single Amaryllis bulb. Photo taken 28Jan2011. Bulb planted 5Jan2011.

Flower stalks are more cylindrical than the leaves and one or more will appear after the greenery has grown up almost a foot tall.

Two flower stalks of amaryllis plant.
The flowering stalk on the left still has its blossoms wrapped up tight, while the other stalk has opened its capsule to reveal three flowers, one of which has opened up. Photo taken 30Jan2011.

The huge, blade-like leaves are erect and continue to grow at this stage. The blossoms are gigantic, too.

Big red bloom of amaryllis.
Big, beautiful red blossoms bigger than your hand. Photo taken 31Jan2011.
Glittery sheen of amaryllis petals.
The petals have a glittery gleam in the sunshine. Reminds me of the man-eaters in Lil' Shop of Horrors. Photo taken 31Jan2011.

This particular bulb bloomed beautifully and it was the fullest that I’ve ever seen. There were two flowering stalks with three gorgeous red blossoms on one stalk and four on the second stalk.

Four blooms in one amaryllis flower head.
Four blooms packed into the head of one flower stalk. Photo taken 3Feb2011.
Seven flowers of amaryllis.
The Amaryllis flowering stalks are now as tall as the oven window. The leaves continue to grow. Photo taken 3Feb2011.
Seven flowers opening.
Seven Amaryllis flowers. Photo taken 3Feb2011.
Amaryllis in bloom.
First flower stalk dying back while the second group of flowers are blooming in full. Photo taken 9Feb2011.
Six stamens of the amaryllis bloom.
Pretty Amaryllis blossom with six powdery stamens. Photo taken 9Feb2011.

It would be nice to keep this bulb for next year, but I’m not sure how. I’ve never successfully kept an Amaryllis bulb for the following year. Either I didn’t have a place to keep the bulb or I tried to keep it but had the wrong conditions. They either dried up or just didn’t bloom when they did re-grow.

This year I plan to continue to lightly water the greenery and keep it indoors in bright room that receives filtered sun. The flower stalks had withered fairly quickly after blooming, so they were cut off at the base once they were dried out.

Keeping the bulb watered in a sunny spot should recharge it with new food for next year. But for how long? Do I water it for the whole growing season? Should it be fertilized? When should it be stored for next winter so that we can take it out and watch it bloom again? Store it in a cool basement for how long? Should it have any cold storage, like refrigerator temperature for a time?

Dracaena Surprise Blooming In a Cool Room

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Houseplants seem to get more attention during the doldrums of winter than any other time. Not much else is growing green now, or dare I say, flowering?

We had a surprise blooming from a houseplant that had spent its summer and part of autumn on a balcony outdoors. Once inside it was protected from the harsh weather, but it didn’t get regular watering or perhaps not enough water at some point. Some leaves have brown tips, but others are dark green and glossy. It’s in a room that’s cooler than the rest of the house. Maybe it sensed it wasn’t in the best of conditions and tried to reproduce.

I think it’s a type of Dracaena with short, wide leaves that are lance-shaped and pointed at the end. The base of the leaves overlap as they sheath the main stem. When the leaves eventually fall away, they leave behind a diamond-like pattern on the stem that is characteristic of Dracaena.

Flowering dracaena.
Dracaena flower stalk and foliage. Photo taken 11Jan2011.
Flowerstalk of dracaena.
Dracaena with many new white flowers in bunches along its flower stalk. Photo taken 26Dec2011.

A couple weeks later the flowers were still taking their turns blooming. Individual flowers are clustered into round groups.

Dracaena flowering.
Flowerstalk of dracaena. Photo taken 11Jan2011.

In the close-up below you can see the individual flowers that have already bloomed are turning brown. Flowers still blooming are creamy white.

Closeup look at individual flowers of Dracaena.
Closeup look at individual flowers. Photo taken 11Jan2011.

 

Sunflower Photos from Pennsylvania

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This summer the farmer across the road planted several fields of sunflowers. We had fun watching the flowers grow tall through the month of August anticipating the big yellow blossoms. Their sunny faces were opening up and in full bloom by September.

Sunflowers on a sunny day
Sunflowers on a sunny day

Below are links to a video and archive of some of our favorite sunflower photos. The audio is an instrumental titled Warda’s Whorehouse by Phillip Glass and Foday Musa Suso from Music From the Screens.

Sunflower Photos Video

Sunflower-Photos.zip

If you ever get a chance to stand among sunflowers growing in a field en masse, take a few moments to soak in the sunshine with them. It is a very uplifting experience. We guarantee a smile!

Christmas Cactus Blooms Like It Cool

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Flowering plants that we see this time of year are only house plants that have been protected from the harsh and freezing cold weather of winter.

A few Christmas cacti bloomed when kept out in the mudroom, but dropped their blooms when brought into the house. The mudroom is like a closed-in porch that gets no direct heat. It doesn’t freeze out there because the room is attached to the house, yet there are no heating ducts to keep it warm. This area is on the south side of the house, so when it’s sunny the room gets much warmer than on cloudy days due to the full-length window or slider door that faces south. Nights are definitely cool, though! The cacti seem to love it.

Pink Christmas cactus flower.
Christmas cactus blooming. Photo taken 26Dec2010.
Christmas cactus in bloom.
Christmas cactus in bloom. Photo taken 26Dec2010.

I’m not sure if it was the warmth of the house in itself that caused the other Christmas cacti to drop their blooms, or if it was the change from a cool location to a warmer one. Probably the latter, but at any rate I’m glad the ones left in the mudroom liked it there.

Catnip Delights Feline on a Sunny Day

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On a warm and sunny day I caught this little kitty enjoying a roll on the flagstone. She had been nibbling the catnip that you can see in the foreground.

Catnip entertains kitty.
Catnip keeps this feline entertained on a sunny day. Photo taken 12Nov2010.

The perennial roots will keep catnip here for a long time. New sprouts will pop up in the adjacent areas as old sticks die back. Next Spring new growth will arise near the old growth. Some of the stems can be quite woody, especially near the base.

We like having catnip planted near the house. I don’t know if it acts to deter insects, but it does keep the felines close by. We really appreciate knowing that we won’t be bothered by mice or other rodents with our cat hunters nearby.