Scenes around the Cottage 6PM Walk

Base of my faux bois birdbath with mini daffs.

Late afternoon shadows.

Path down to the way back is turning green.

Bed of daffodils I can see from my kitchen window.

It got up to 71° today and really felt like Spring.

xo

My Miniature Daffodils

These miniature daffodils in my front garden are in full bloom and they make me very happy just to look at them. The deep yellow color is glorious.

I divide them each year and I have 6 clumps about this size. They were presented as hostess gifts to realtors who attended a broker open house several years ago. Each year, I email a photo to that realtor and thank her once again for them.

xo

Snowdrops Under a Tree Overlooking My Cottage

Are you tired of snowdrops yet? I have seen so many blooming daffodils in friends' yards but mine are all still in the bud stage. Snowdrops never disappoint and keep on blooming until the other spring bulbs start performing. I started these clumps in the fall and they are loving this woodland setting. Have a great Wednesday evening. xo

Snowdrops are for Sharing

I discovered some rogue snowdrops on a bank where I threw some weeds from one of my beds with snowdrops and daffodils. It's impossible to weed those areas and not pull up snowdrop bulbs so I am careful to dispose of the weeds in a designated area. Each spring I have blooming bulbs to share with friends. I took these two pots to a friend who lost her mom recently and told her to plant them where she can see them. They always bloom in February and will be the start of her memory garden.

Have a great weekend.

xo

A Jar of Tulips from A Friend

A friend dropped off a jar of tulips at my front door while I was out today. What a nice surprise to come home to.🌷 

She planted 700 bulbs in raised beds. Sunday at Easter dinner she said she would drop some off for me. And she did.❤️

Saturday Snowdrops

My snowdrops are pretty excited about the first day of spring tomorrow and they are putting on a big show for her. I got up nice and close with my camera to show the green detail on the inner petals that looks as if one of the garden fairies applied it with a watercolor brush. Hope you are having a great weekend. xo

Grape Hyacinths Growing in A Cotswold Courtyard

This photo stopped me in my tracks yesterday when I spent a few minutes scrolling my Instagram feed. It shows Grape Hyacinths growing prolifically between the cracks in this courtyard garden in the Cotswolds. I forgot to bookmark the source but I will when I find it again. I have one patch of these delightful spring flowering bulbs but they need to be moved so I can enjoy them in a more prominent location. Isn't this garden beautiful? My snowdrops are still in full bloom and the daffodils are starting to emerge. Happy Friday. xo

My Snowdrops

I worked outside on this lovely Sunday afternoon cutting back the Limelight hydrangeas and some more general spring cleanup. It's really too early to do very much but it was nice being outdoors. The snowdrops are in full bloom and they are my harbingers of spring and the daffodils will be next.

I recently finished watching all five seasons of Kavanaugh QC on Tubi and loved it. It's on Amazon Prime too. Kavanagh Q.C. is a British Series about a barrister with the designation of Queen's Counsel (hence the title) starring John Thaw. I love all legal dramas, especially the English ones with barristers and judges wearing robes and wigs. I learned John Thaw was the original Inspector Morse and now I am watching and really enjoying all of those old episodes on YouTube. Somehow I missed them when they aired on PBS. I don't think the new Morse on Endeavour can hold a candle to the old Morse! 

xo

Mini Daffodils at My Cottage

These mini daffodils have been so lovely this year. This photo doesn't include all of the clumps that are to the right of the corner with my hellebore in my front walled garden. They were a gift from a realtor who was conducting an open house and every year I thank her for them. I thought this was the greatest present ever that keeps on giving. I have already started dividing the three original clumps and now there are six.  It was below freezing last night and I brought my potted geraniums inside for the next couple of days and nights. We are having a very dry April so I guess the April showers are being pushed back to May. 

HAPPY EARTH DAY. xo

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My Mom Anna's Daffodils at My Cottage

I am so happy I dug up these daffodils my mother planted, from a spot I couldn't see without going outside, to a spot I can see from my kitchen window. Last spring was their first year and this year I do believe they have already multiplied. They are a later booming variety too and I like that. The daffs I transplanted in an area close by with a sundial have already almost bloomed out.

How does your garden grow? I am having such a good time outside this time of year. I have been organizing my barn/garage too, no easy feat! xo

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Freshly Picked Daffodils

She wore her yellow sun-bonnet, 

She wore her greenest gown; 

She turned to the south wind

And curtsied up and down. 

She turned to the sunlight

And shook her yellow head, 

And whispered to her neighbour: 

“Winter is dead.” 

 ~Daffodowndilly” A.A. Milne.

I love everything about this. Found here.

Don't you love flower-gathering baskets full of daffodils? Photo found here.

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MARCH: Planting Bulbs

Eugène Samuel Grasset (French 1845-1917) 

The Beautiful Planter 

Calendar page for March 1896

via

Eugène Samuel Grasset was a Swiss decorative artist who worked in Paris in a variety of creative design fields during the Belle Époque. He is considered a pioneer in Art Nouveau design.

Golfing Snowmen + Siberian Iris in The Snow

Seeing is believing!

via

I had beautiful purple and white miniature Siberian Iris at my first house and I miss them. Maybe this will be the year I plant some at my cottage. I normally have tons of snowdrops popping up in late February but they are buried under two feet of snow. I will be lucky to see them by April. The rest of the week will be warm with 40s and even 50s on the thermometer. Let the melting begin. via

May Snow: Lily of the Valley Blooms

Late Saturday afternoon photo showing sleet and snow on a tabletop next to blooming Lily of the Valley. Crazy May weather!! Legend says that when the lily of the valley blooms, happiness returns.

Spring Bulbs Planted in Baskets

Could anything be lovelier? I think not. I adore all of these spring flowering bulbs planted in baskets.

Baking Sourdough English Muffins

I baked sourdough English muffins yesterday and they were easy and good but way too small. They look pretty normal in the photo but the are more like sea biscuits in real life, but good. The recipe called for a 3 inch cutter and that's what I used. My mother used to use tuna cans with the bottoms cut out. They don't make the cans that way anymore and you cannot cut out the bottoms. I just transferred the muffins from the griddle to this pan for the photo. To see more photos, go to my Instagram where I posted three photos. Use the forward arrow on a computer or swipe on phone or iPad. The jonquils were planted by my mother and I love seeing them sway from my kitchen window in a new garden where I transplanted them. xo

Lady's Mantle and Before Weeding Grape Hyacinths

Lady's mantle is lovely this time of year and especially with raindrops. The scalloped edges look as if they were cut with the pinking shears and they catch the droplets too.

This is a before photo of the edging I did by hand on my hands and knees with clippers that operate like big scissors. My poor grape hyacinths were in danger of getting choked out. It looks a lot better now and I will put down fresh woodchips around the two shrubs that no longer have leaves underneath to hold in the moisture. A hired landscaper would have whacked everything down to the bare earth in no time but I like my way better and it took hours. 

I baked sourdough oatmeal bread today and it it's delicious. I will post a photo and the recipe tomorrow. xo

Miniature Daffodils on Sunday

Last spring I went to a Broker Open House and the realtor was giving out pots of miniature daffodils instead of having a luncheon for the agents. I rushed home and divided the pot into three clumps and they are such a source of joy in these trying times.

They are planted near my hellebore.

I am still overjoyed with having this hellebore in my front garden. The window in my pantry where my laptop lives, overlooks this area behind my birdbath and I can see it from my living room too.

This intense shade of yellow is stunning.

My front yard photographed in the late afternoon yesterday. The governor officially closed down New Jersey last night to all non-essential travel and we are to stay home in order to prevent further spread of Covid-19. Stay put and be safe. I will continue to checkin and post frequently. xo

Waiting for My Daffodils

Title: Daffodils. 

Etching, Isabel Saul (early to mid-1900’s)

I am still waiting for mine, The shoots are several inches out of the ground but I don't have any buds yet but it won't be long. via

Daffodils come before the swallow dares, 

and take the winds of March with Beauty.

The Winter's Tale. William Shakespeare.

Snowdrops are So Delightful

This photo doesn't begin to capture the true beauty of a clump of snowdrops along my walk and almost against the foundation at my front door but it will have to suffice. I moved a few more clumps I found in the woods to different locations in the front and back yards. I cannot ever remember doing so much gardening so early in the year and I'm loving it. Hooray for mild winters. All of my snowdrops are the result of just a few clumps I brought from my last house. They are trouble free and they multiply like crazy. The bulbs are very tiny and it is hard to weed around them later in the year without pulling up a few so I try to dump the weeds in certain spots in the woods so I can dig them up again a few years later after the clumps become sizable.

Take care, try to stay healthy, and wash your hands often. The only thing I have stocked up on so far is Bathroom Tissue. I went to Costco yesterday and there was none...the shelves were bare. I went immediately to Wegmans and got what I needed and then some to store away. It's my favorite brand anyway. No panic buying there....yet. xo