Chilly And Drizzly

Erythronium sibiricum

It has continued to be rather chilly and drizzly here in the northeast. Customers are coming to the nursery and commenting on how squishy their gardens are and for some this means a slight halt to any spring planting. There is certainly some wet areas in our own gardens, but we are still enjoying the blooms of early varieties. The coolness is helping to preserve their blooms and we are delighted by the extended show they are offering.
I’ll post some photos and move along to the outdoor activities that are calling, it’s 5:30 a.m and there’s a full day ahead, best get started! We are still potting up plants for the sales area, continuing to label any new varieties of plants (some real beauties!), sowing seeds in the garden and tending the seedlings in the greenhouse.

Trillium cuneatum

Peony ‘Little Red Gem’

What’s happening in your garden at the moment? Do you feel stalled by the weather? Is it squishy underfoot? What’s blooming?
In a strange way, I actually appreciate that the weather and conditions are present to ‘rein’ me in. I am reminded to work along and beside the natural world I am so privileged to bear witness to. I can engage with it but on her terms and at her pace. When I am impatient, the earth gently waggles her finger at me and says ” I’ll get there when I get there, stop hurrying me”. Thank you dear buds and blooms and shoots and seeds, thank you for reminding me to be still, to wait, to work with and not against. A good blessing for the day!

Allium tricoccum

Sanguinaria canadensis

Primula

On Our Way To Another New Season

Cypripedium pubescens

“The energy of the Earth flows through the veins of Springtime.”
— Terri Guillemets

This weekend we’ll be deep into greenhouse work potting up some great Asian and native Arisaemas, an array of Hepaticas, and several new varieties of Primula. Hard to believe we are only a month away from opening for the season! In addition to many rarities from around the globe, our selection of native and woodland plants is large and varied. The first of the early ephemerals are soon to appear. The snow is melting!! We’ll be offering our Spring Ephemerals and Early Risers class again this year on Sunday, April 29th from 10:00-12:00. For more information and to sign up, please look here.
It is always exciting to start uncovering last year’s propagation work to see what’s come through the long winter slumber. We are already getting mail from customers with questions and thoughts about their own gardening endeavors. Folks are signing up for classes and making plans to visit. The thrill of a new growing season is in the air! No stopping it now!
For us, it’s time to hit the ground running (and avoid sinking too deep into the mud!). Time to head into the cozy earth-smelling greenhouse with a cup of hot tea and some classical music to fill pots and sow seeds for the upcoming season. Ooh, La La! We’re looking forward to seeing everyone next month, can’t wait to talk plants and share ideas. Any specific plants on your ‘have to have it’ list? Any new garden beds being developed?

“Anyone who thinks gardening begins in the spring and ends in the fall is missing the best part of the whole year; for gardening begins in January with the dream.”
—Josephine Nuese

Words of truth, I’d say! We begin winter here thinking about the long, silent months ahead. The deep snow and the frigid temperatures which will turn us indoors for more reading and knitting and fire-warmth. We drop our shoulders, breath deep, and feel thankful for the slow pace of winter. We’re some of the few who are not in a hurry to move these cold months along…the sun and the warmth will come back to us, all in good time. But we can feel the stirrings now, the seed catalogs spread across the table, the lists of new plants for the nursery ( some dandy primula!), the urge to ‘hoe’ out the greenhouse and fire up the stove that heats it. Oh, truth be told, our minds are never completely void of gardening and plants and soil. Notebooks are filled with lists and ideas for a new season of promise. Are you thinking about spring? Does a bit more winter trouble you? Are your veggie seeds ordered? Any new garden plans? Let’s hear!

Primula

We have had springs like this before, cool and wet. The upside of this kind of weather is that the water table is being replenished and this is a blessing. Water is a blessing, yes? Another advantage to the cooler temperatures is that the blooms on the early woodland plants last longer. The chilly days are slowing the growth of many plants and this allows us to enjoy them a bit longer. We’ve had springs that rush towards summer and cause those same plants to come and go much quicker. We never want to rush things!
Visitors to the nursery wander the gardens discovering and enjoying each little delight….a newly opened trillium, a dainty anemonella, or maybe a sweet crinkled leaf primrose. I think the gardens are like an art gallery at the moment. You stroll through, stopping at each exhibit, and ponder.
Here are a few delights on exhibit at the moment….

Trillium cuneatum

Hellebore orientalis and Cardamine glandulosa

Trillium recurvatum