My favorite spring ephemeral, possibly because I have only a single clump that hitchhiked in on some other ephemerals from a gardening buddy.
Iris histrioides ‘Katharine Hodgkin’
Category: Bulbs
Bloom day scans
Never have I cut such a high percentage of the blooms in my garden, and filled such a small percentage of the scanner bed. Hope you like them anyway. Thanks to Carol at May Dreams Garden for hosting, as usual.
Try it yourself. It’s easy. Flower scanning directions are here.
First flowers
I actually had a few crocus flowering mid-week last week as the snow bank near the septic tank retreated. Blooms are still few and far between, but the crocus, snowdrops and eranthis are all out there, if you look. (Click images for larger view.)
Hard to believe a week ago the dogs were up to their bellies in snow. (See below.) More on mud season later.
Happy Year of the Tiger
Last month, the U.S Postal Service issued this stamp to celebrate the Year of the Tiger.
Read more about Narcissus and Chinese culture at The Human Flower Project.
I also love this lawn illustration by Kam Mak, the artist who created the stamp. This magnolia and monarch, too.
Anna Pavord to speak in Ithaca
Horticulturist and best-selling author Anna Pavord will speak on “A Luxuriance of Bulbs†at 11 a.m., Saturday March 20 at the Statler Hall Auditorium on the Cornell University campus. The talk is free and open to the public.
Pavord has been the gardening correspondent for The Independent (UK) since 1986 and has written eight books, including the international bestseller The Tulip and 2009’s Bulb.
“Of all the different plants in the world, bulbs intrigue me the most,†says Pavord. “As a gardener, I appreciate the way they mark the seasons. Bulbs are not just a spring thing. In this talk I introduce some of my favorites and suggest how they might be used in a garden.â€
Pavord is also the author of New Kitchen Garden, Border Book, and Plant Partners. She was one of the founding editors of Gardens Illustrated and wrote and presented Flowering Passions for BBC Channel 4 television. She has lived in Dorset for almost forty years. After restoring the garden of an old rectory, she recently moved to a new garden, which she is filling with bulbs.
After the talk, Pavord will sign copies of her new book, Bulb, which will be available for sale.