Spring 2019 has Arrived! Explosions of Color!

Nearly five foot high azaleas

Upon arriving home to Shore Side Farm House two large Red Orange Azaleas greeted me at my front entrance. Their splash of color immediately lifted my soul. They are a payoff. Time, planning and nurturing created them...that and a

huge investment energy. Serious personal investment, conjured with faith it would all work, created a sustenance for myself and others.

 My gardening adventures are just that, an investment, a risk taken, an endeavor of projected payoff. Spring is payoff time. BIG payoff time. The 2019 Spring parade is marching ahead. Be sure to look around and enjoy it. It is fleeting.
I wasn't here for the commencement, but boy I am enjoying catch up. The rest of the parade promises pure joy....color, color then more color...peppered by hummingbird visits, mothering house wrens, and responsible Cardinal parents. What a wonderful ride...below are natural treasures I encountered today. I'm so grateful for the ride!

French Weigela

This pink beauty to the left is a show stopper! Look at the patterning inside the flower trumpet.  Pollinators are even more impressed with this French Weigela  bush than I am. It is usually covered with dueling bees and hummingbirds. The duels are actually quite entertaining.

Columbine brings great color but also a fascinating shape to ponder. This self seeds yearly and grows new plants. This one is a about a 40th grandchild of the original I grew from seed back in the 70s.

Purple/blue Siberian Iris make a great combination with the columbine. They are blooming simultaneously and are planted right next to each other as seen in the next photo.

Columbine and Siberian Iris blooming simultaneously...how nice!