Vernal Equinox

To celebrate the arrival of spring in the northern hemisphere, here are some of the flowers in my garden this week.

Helleborus niger, commonly called Christmas rose or black hellebore

The sap is rising, bees are waking up and buds are bursting.

Cowslip

Hollandia Anemone

Chionodoxa

St Brigid Anemone

Muscari ‘Pink Sunset’ and ‘Latifolium’

aubrieta

Hollandia Anemone

Narcissus ‘Canaliculatus’

Crocuses

lilies

Fritillary

Muscari ‘Night Eyes’

Narcissus ‘Rip van Winkle’

Lungwort

Hollandia Anemone

Hyacinth

St Brigid Anemones

Snake’s head fritillary

Muscari

What a difference a week of sunshine makes.

Species tulips – Sylvestris

Let the longer days begin!

Macro Monday #78

(click to enlarge to full size)

Tulip ‘Avignon Parrot’ in late bud form

This year I added a new French Parrot tulip with long stems and an outrageously large  flower head. In retrospect possibly too large for my windswept plot.  From green buds unfurl brilliant orange blooms. The feathered flowers have hints of pink and green brushed along the petals. The finished article combines  tomato red, a sweet pink flame and an apricot-yellow edge.

‘Avignon Parrot’ with the elegant ‘Ballerina’

There is a non-parrot type with the same colouring, but with a neat goblet-shaped head which seems eminently more acceptable.

Named in 1966 after the Southern French city of Avignon where the pope had his palace in the Middle Ages and also famous for its ruined bridge.

“Sur le Pont d’Avignon,
On y danse, On y danse.
Sur le Pont d’Avignon,
On y danse tous en rond.”

I have to say I am not overly fond of this tulip, and I never thought I would say that about a tulip!

Macro Monday #71

(click to enlarge to full size)

Spring delights

“I gazed – and gazed – but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought.”
~ William Wordsworth

Tulips

In May…

A bluebell wood is one of nature’s unforgettable wonders. The iconic flowers reach their peak of perfection during this month in England, creating drifts of colour and filling the air with a delicate perfume. Preferring a moist, shady position bluebells thrive in the dappled sunshine of our ancient broadleaved woodlands. Enjoy a walk in the woods and discover this native wild flower.

“How the merry bluebell rings
To the mosses underneath…”
– Alfred Lord Tennyson, “Adeline”