Earth Day 2010

I would feel more optimistic about a bright future for man if he spent less time proving that he can outwit Nature and more time tasting her sweetness and respecting her seniority. ~Elwyn Brooks White, Essays of E.B. White, 1977

Erythronium Time!

We are now experiencing peak bloom this year for Erythronium - or Lamb's Tongue as they are more commonly called. These beautiful little members of the lily family are found most profusely in dappled shade, though the double specimen shown pictured left is growing on a bank in almost full sun. Many of the lamb's tongue on our property fall victim to the appetites of deer before they reach peak bloom. But a few of our neighbors have amazing drifts of hundreds of plants. Last Sunday I took a walk and captured the pictures below. Enjoy!

Blooms in the Forest

As Spring progresses, there always comes a time when ,quite suddenly, there are beautiful white flowers in the forest. Upon further inspection you find that there are pretty delicate trees growing, with branches completely covered in small white blossoms. I don't have an exact identity for these trees, though my mother swears they are a "wild" cherry. I have found 4 or 5 of them on our property and there are many more you can see along the road as you drive. Whatever they truly are, they radiate like a white beacon in all of April's intense greenness.

April Showers..or downpours!

After such a dry and mild February and March, April has been a different story. In the last week alone we have had hail storms, snow flurries and thunder & lightning. But the real difference has been the rain storms that have come through every few days. They have dumped inches of rain at a time. In response , the seasonal creeks on our property have been running strong, fast and muddy.

Happy Easter !

I hope that you have a Happy Easter.

The Farmer's Market - A Brand New Year

Today was the opening day for the 2010 Lane County Farmers Market. Thankfully, the stormy weather that we have had the last week blew out last night, leaving just a few showers today. I arrived at the market later than usual and found it busy, despite the grey skies and cold wind.

The flower vendors seemed to be doing an especially brisk business. I think many of the bouquets bought are destined for an Easter table tomorrow.The tulips were beautiful.

I especially admired this variety of tulip. It was a mauve colored, tipped in yellow.

Many of the farmers supplement their incomes by selling vegetable starts early in the year. It is so hard to resist buying them right now. I had to smile at all the folks who had purchased tomato plants. We still have a good 5 weeks until the last frost date and the soil won't truly start to warm-up until the end of May.

It is time however to get the sweet-peas going. These were beautiful looking starts.

And we can't forget the produce! It was only the first week but there was a great array of greens, leaks, radish, and baby carrots to be had.  And kudos to all the farmers that had to pick all of this in yesterday's rain, thunder, hail and sleet. Have you thanked your farmer today?

Cherry Blossoms

The cherry trees at work have opened within the last week. All the trees are completely covered in clusters of white, bell-shaped blooms. Too soon the show will be over and the ground will be littered with white petals.

Trillium

On one of my walks this weekend, I discovered the first Trillium blooming.

Most of the plants are still in this stage. They should all be in bloom by next weekend if the weather continues to be so mild.

A large clump of 7 or 8 plants.

I also discovered that my large patch of Shooting Stars have been growing like mad the past few weeks. I even found an immature bud buried deep in one clump of leaves.

Early March..In like a Lamb.

Well, the calendar has changed pages and it's now officially March. The weather has continued its rhythm of mild, mostly dry days. Yesterday was amazing. Solid blue skies all day and it was already 50 degrees by 11 AM. It topped out somewhere in the low 60s. It was one of those days where it was close to impossible to stay indoors "and get stuff done". Plants continue to burst from the ground, leaf out, and bloom at a much earlier than normal schedule. When I was filling the bird feeder, down in the big garden yesterday, I noticed the first batch of violets were blooming. I think these violets are ancestors of violets planted many, many years ago by the gardens first keepers. Dorothy's first violets were obviously happy and have multiplied all over. Interestingly, these are three different colors that bloom at three distinct times. The whites are always first. Right as they finish up the magenta violets open. And the show is always finished by the true dark violet colored ones.

I also discovered yesterday during my walk that the wild Lamb's Tongues have not only come up but are getting close to sending up their bloom stocks. It's important to look closely where you are walking this time of year. The main path is littered with small plants, hidden among the leaf litter and moss.