Waiting

The first day of spring is tomorrow, but we still have some cold weather to make it through. The lows are forecast to be below freezing for the next several nights, with the highs projected to be only in the 40s and 50s through the weekend. Yes, right now it is all about waiting.

All of the pretty daffodils and crocuses that have already bloomed will be very sad-looking in the morning.

Emerging crocus flower

I have so many flowers that are sprouting right now. Unfortunately I'm pretty bad at keeping track of what I've planted, so some of the shoots that are coming out of the ground will be a complete surprise!

Stella D'oro daylilly sprouts

There was a Lowe's flyer in the paper today, and they were advertising flowers already. I would love to buy some, but it's just too soon. Even April is still a risky venture as far as buying hanging baskets and such - May is much safer. =sigh=

I long for the color, and the fragrance of the flowers. Some of the monarda that I planted last year is sprouting now, and the leaves of one particular strain already smell heavenly.

A tattered leaf intertwined with the many trailing arms of Vinca

Almost every day now I poke through the thick layer of leaf mulch that accumulated during the fall and winter, wondering what the next item of green will be to force its way through the soil. Will it be the hostas, or that other columbine? Some of the irises are starting to peek through, but not the others. And what of the Lilly of the Valley?

The remnants of winter's carpet still remain, but all the while the ground is waking up with new hints of green here and there. The yellow flowers of Coltsfoot line the ditches along our road, and I wait for more spring wildflowers to come in. We always start off with white, yellow and purple - wild violets, coltsfoot, dandelions, garlic mustard, daisies and geraniums.... then there's the red of Fire Pink, the pink of the Redbud trees, maybe even some spiderwort (AHA! I just remembered one of the mystery flowers that I planted last year - a cultivated version of spiderwort). And then there's the ferns... oh the ferns!

Yes, spring, I'm waiting....




Happy Vernal Equinox!