Summer, Fall...Winter?

June

Well, this has certainly been the craziest few months. Canceled plans and lots of staying at home did give me more time to work on the garden, especially at the beginning of summer.

Aren't June gardens beautiful?

July

This summer was quite hot and dry for New England. I spent a lot of time watering and watering... and taking photos!

This spring I started posting pictures of the garden on Instagram.  While I'm not on social media a lot anymore, I have been enjoying Instagram.  Posting pictures is quicker than blogging, and I love seeing other photos of gardens and plants!

August

Somehow life still seems busier than ever with everyone home all the time - lots of cooking and cleaning and trying to keep everyone organized.

With a serious health risk in the family, my husband is fortunate to work remotely, and the kids are in virtual school.  Thankfully, school has been going relatively well, and the kids have some really great teachers that have been working hard to make things go smoothly.

September

Unfortunately, with a family member with a possibly worsening health issue, the one thing that is daunting is dealing with such things in the middle of a pandemic.

Days of doctor's appointments and lab tests involve going in to Boston to the hospital - exactly where we were trying to not end up.  The doctors are trying to get everything done as quickly as possible as our COVID numbers in Massachusetts are increasing.

October

Other than the doctor visits, October in New England has been glorious.  Fall is my favorite time of year, and the changing of the leaves has been spectacular this year.

Well, until yesterday anyway...

A record for an October snowstorm here, of course.

Seems on par for 2020, right?

Happy gardening?

What do Hummingbirds do in a Downpour?

We've had some cold and stormy weather lately with heavy rain throughout the day, and the bird feeder has been quite popular.  But what do the tiny hummingbirds do in a downpour?

Researchers used slow-motion cameras to find that hummingbirds have a method to cope with even heavy rain.  Much like a dog, they whip their heads back and forth in mid-flight to shake the water off of their feathers.  Incredibly, hummingbirds do this with acceleration that reaches a g-force of 34 - five times faster than a Formula-1 race car!

Of course, even with this capability, these tiny birds appreciate a sheltered place to dry off a little.  This female hummingbird spent a rainy afternoon going between the flowers out in my garden to feed and a hanging plant under my front porch to rest.  It was apparently a good place to dry off her wings and stretch a little...

... and catch a few little bugs.

She looked so cute fluffed up against the cold, wet day.  I doubt I will see her or the other hummingbirds for very much longer, as it is about time to head south for the winter.

After this week's weather, she is probably eager to start her migration!

That's One Cold Shower

If April showers

bring May flowers...

what does April snow bring?

The coming May blooms might want to go into hiding for a little while!

Happy spring?

Out of Order

A beautiful February spring:

Followed by...

a very, very wintery March.

I feel like something is wrong with this picture.

Today the third nor'easter this month has arrived, hammering us with yet more heavy, wet snow.  We are fortunate that we live in an area with underground power lines and thus rarely lose power.

Stay safe out there, fellow New Englanders.

Winter is Here...

In New England we have nine months of winter and three months of darned poor sledding.

~old New England proverb

I think this bird is wishing it had migrated south for the winter.

Thankfully it's not usually as bad as that old saying would make it seem, but winter in New England is now in full swing.  The holidays were lovely, if cold.  Though my family coming from down south was delayed by our ice storm, they made it up before Christmas to spend the week with us.

crabapple tree encased in ice

Everything was covered in an impressive layer of ice.  The curly ting in my winter containers had a little extra pizazz.

We were lucky enough to get snow on Christmas.  It was so lovely to have a white Christmas, especially for my family up from the south.  The temperatures then dropped to below zero (-20° Celsius) for a true New England winter experience.  Despite the cold, we all had a great time spending time with family that we don't see often enough.

The bitter weather continued into the New Year with a blizzard the first week of January that dropped about a foot and a half of snow.

The second week of January it rained and then got up to about 60°F (15°C).  The poor plants were probably totally confused, but the birds were ecstatic to get some respite.  I've never heard them sing so loudly.

Bluebird basking in the sun

This week it is back to snowing again.  While it might not last nine months, New England winters can get rather long, so it's critical to have hobbies.  Bird watching is one that really helps me through the winter.  When all the plants are brown and frozen, it is so enjoyable just to see signs of life outside.

Northern flicker

Every year I've had Bluebirds overwinter here, and I was glad to see several Bluebirds stay this year as well.  It was once quite rare to see Bluebirds this far north in winter, but it is now becoming more common.  They are one of my favorites, with their brilliant blue plumage.

The story of the Bluebirds is also one of my favorites.  Their population saw a steep decline between 1920 and 1970 due to widespread pesticide use, an increase of house cats, loss of habitat, and invasive birds that aggressively took over suitable nesting sites.  By the 1970's, Bluebirds were on the brink of extinction.  Thankfully a grassroots movement took hold to save them.  Organizations such as the North American Bluebird Society formed, which set up and monitored trails of bluebird nesting boxes.  Concerned bird-lovers put up nesting boxes all over the country.  The movement was a smashing success, and the population of Bluebirds rebounded.

Isn't that such a hopeful story?  Other conservation efforts have really caught on recently, such as helping the bees and the Monarch butterfly, and I do hope that these efforts will be just as successful.  (And hopefully these efforts will also have a positive effect on the environment for the many creatures out there that aren't quite as flashy or as noticeable.)

Judging by the tracks and plant damage I think our bunny and deer populations are doing pretty well, though... 

bunny tracks on the front walkway

...possibly too well.

Happy winter, and stay warm!

The Daffodil Awards

One afternoon in early May I was browsing the plants at a local nursery.  There was another woman shopping there, and we looked at each other.  She was wearing a long down winter coat; I was wearing my fleece and winter hat.  "Only New Englanders would be dressed like this while plant shopping," she commented dryly. 

Ah, spring in New England.  It's been a rollercoaster of cold and rainy mixed with unexpectedly warm and sunny (that early thaw! that late freeze!), but it's made for a long season of spring blooms this year - especially for my favorites, the daffodils.

This year I got to go to the Daffodil Show at Tower Hill Botanical Garden in Boylston, Massachusetts.  It the first Daffodil Show I've seen, and while others said it was quite small this year, due to being in the middle of the week and a very rainy one at that, I loved it.  It was so interesting to see the different types of daffodils - and get ideas for which ones I want for next year...

Clockwise from top right:
Narcissus 'Actaea', Narcissus 'Sentinel', Narcissus 'Oh Wow',
collections of pink-cupped daffodils,
a split corona miniature! Narcissus 'Itsy Bitsy Splitsy',
Narcissus 'Crackington'

It was hard to pick a favorite out of the show, but I think Narcissus 'Chipper' has stolen my heart.  I just love this division of daffodils, called the Triandrus Daffodils, with their nodding heads and swept back petals.

Narcissus 'Chipper'

In honor of this nice long daffodil season, I've decided to highlight some of my favorites from my own garden this year.  They might not win a prize at an awards show, but I enjoy them nonetheless!  Here are my awards for just some of the beloved daffodils here at the Red House Garden:

The Earliest Daffodil Award:

(aka The Most Anticipated Daffodil)

Narcissus 'Rijnveld's Early Sensation'

The last days of winter are usually spent in eager anticipation of the first daffodil to bloom, and Narcissus 'Rijnveld’s Early Sensation' is usually it. This year they started blooming on March 11 and kept on blooming despite late snow and freezing weather.  Definitely an award winner in my book!

The Cutest Daffodil Award:

Narcissus 'Mite'

The pictures I have (taken on my phone) of the miniature 'Mite' Daffodils sadly do not do them justice.  These are teeny tiny little daffodils, and oh so adorable!

Congeniality Award:

(aka Plays Well With Others)

Narcissus 'Thalia'

Narcissus 'Thalia', another one of those beautiful Triandrus daffodils, is lovely just on her own.  However, I think when paired with some of the other spring blooming bulbs, 'Thalia' gets even prettier.

Narcissus 'Thalia' with 'Blue Giant' Glory-of-the-Snow

'Thalia' is especially nice for pastel-colored gardens, where yellow daffodils would be discordant.  I could also see it being great for a patriotic-themed garden with its pure white petals. 

The Showiest Daffodil Award:

Narcissus 'Replete''

The hands-down most luscious daffodil in my garden this year was the doubled Narcissus 'Replete'.  This unique garden diva has so much going on with all those petals!  The colored segments start out yellow-orange...

...and then turn a fabulous coral color.

Narcissus 'Replete'

Replete' is classified as a 'pink' daffodil; however, I would not call the color truly pink.  The coral fades to what I would call a shade of apricot or peach.  Either way, it is a very striking daffodil!

Narcissus 'Replete'

Most Unusual Looking Daffodil Award:

(aka Looks Least Like a Daffodil)

I was chatting with my mailman the other week, and he pointed to a patch of flowers and asked, "What are those flowers?"  "Daffodils," I answered.  "And what's that?" he pointed to some others.  "Daffodils."  "And that?"  "Also Daffodils."  This went on for several more iterations, much to the amusement of my mailman, who probably now thinks all the flowers in my garden are really just strange looking daffodils.

Narcissus 'Trepolo'

There are so many different types of daffodils now, and some are quite a far cry from the standard yellow trumpet variety.  There are some very unusual looking doubles (like my showiest daffodil 'Replete'), but I think the most unconventional looking daffodils are the Split Corona Daffodils, where the cup is split.

Narcissus 'Trepolo', a Split Corona Daffodil

Last year the Most Unusual Daffodil Award might have gone to Narcissus 'Trepolo' with its orange starburst of a center; however, this year it's been edged out by the new addition of the very undaffodil-looking Narcissus 'Electrus'.  Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas any more...

Narcissus 'Electrus'

Unusual and unexpected-looking daffodils are so much fun to have in the garden.  They add a different look, but are usually still as easy to grow and as critter-proof as the standard yellow trumpet varieties.

There are so many different and beautiful varieties of daffodils that it is easy to catch 'yellow fever', as it's called by daffodil lovers!  Daffodils are one of my favorite flowers, and I'm thankful that this year's season has lasted so long.  The first daffodil bloomed on March 11, and different daffodils were in bloom from then until now near the end of May.  My last to bloom, the miniature Narcissus 'Baby Moon', are finishing off the daffodil season with their diminutive, sweetly-scented flowers.

Narcissus 'Baby Moon'

That is, unless my rather sad-looking (but still alive!) 'Watieri' Daffodils decide to bloom.  (Narcissus 'Watieri', a white-flowering subspecies of daffodil that is native to the mountains of Morocco, is the lucky recipient of my Most Challenging to Grow Daffodil Award!)

Do you have a favorite daffodil?

Narcissus 'Baby Moon'

As always,

Happy Gardening!