Springtime brings a proliferation of colors, shapes, and the promise of beauty and fragrance yet to come.
From the rhododendron laden with heavy buds ready to burst open, to thousands of delicate light blue to dark purple flowers on the pleasingly pungent rosemary bushes beckoning bumblebees and hummingbirds to partake of the feast, and the multitude of dogwood bracts getting ready to impress us with their hues and aromas, the garden is alive and well this year.
Last spring, after a cold winter with ice and snow storms that took a substantial toll, the dogwood produced only a handful of blooms. The rosemary plants lost many branches — snapped off from the weight of the frozen precipitation. The rhodies (and azaleas) were not nearly as prolific as they typically are. Our primary afternoon shade tree, a 50-60 foot paper birch, alas, also succumbed to the storms. Sad for us, equally sad for the crow families which would gather in its many large branches hoping for a handout of bread crusts which they would soak in the bird baths before ingesting — yum! Soggy bread!
So with this year’s relatively mild winter, bearing little ice and snow, it is good to see last year’s survivors returning in full bloom.
Did I mention the weeds?
NWDuck Blog 
2 thoughts on “Budding Hopes”