An unapologetic plant geek shares advice and opinions on gardening, the contrived and the natural landscape, as well as occasional topics from the other side of the gate.

April 3, 2010

Happy Fish On A Good Friday

I am now in my spring work load mode and only have Fridays off. Fortunately this past Friday was an absolutely glorious day weather-wise, with temperatures in the 70's, clear blue skies and no wind. I was able to spend nearly the whole day in the garden, mostly working, but also with a lot of time just enjoying the day, listening to the accompanying cacophony of bird song and taking a few photos. My number one goal was to get the fish pond back in working order. I had pulled the pump out to help empty the basement during November's nor'easter, and the pond has sat idle since. I am amazed the fish didn't evolve so they could get up and leave to find a more attentive gardener. After Friday the water is now flowing through the waterfall/filter; all the muck, debris and rotting leaves have been dredged out; and the fish have gotten their spring kosher salt tonic (in honor of Passover). They are now happy fish, and I am a happy gardener.

The most dominant color in my garden right now is yellow. Most of mine comes from the invasive Ranunculus ficaria.

Ranunculus ficaria (2)


I also grow the more well behaved Rununculus x 'Bazen Hussy' with her near black foliage.

Ranunculus x 'Brazen Hussy'


Another source of yellow in my garden is the very self seeding unknown Corydalis (recently renamed Pseudofumaria). My closest guess is that this plant is Corydalis lutea.

Pseudofumaria (Corydalis) (2)


Most of my Camellias are past peak, with the exception of Camellia japonica 'Cherries Jubilee', which is my last to bloom.

Camellia japonica 'Cherries Jubilee'


Poncirus trifoliata (Hardy Orange)

Poncirus trifoliata (3)


Leucojum

Leucojum


I was worried that the Loropetalums would be damaged by this year's winter, but judging from this one, my fears were unfounded.
Loropetalum chinense var. rubrum 'Zhuzhou Fuchsia'

Loropetalum chinense var. rubrum 'Zhuzhou Fuchsia'


Euphorbia wulfenii

Euphorbia wulfenii


Scilla siberica (Siberian squill)

Scilla siberica (2)


Veronica umbrosa 'Georgia Blue'

Veronica umbrosa 'Georgia Blue' 1


Finally another near weed, Viola sororia priceana (Confederate violet)

Viola sororia priceana (2)


I hope you all can enjoy the renewal that is Easter, Passover and April, and may all your fish be happy.

23 comments:

  1. Les,
    Sad you camellias are finishing! Mine are too, the light pink one is half way done with 5-6 blooms right now. Enjoyed the collection of plants and photos.

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  2. My hardy orange is in full bloom. I always have a hard time photographing it. I love that loropetalum.

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  3. Looks like a happy spring in your garden, Les. Happy Easter to you too!

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  4. Beautiful photos as always. So glad that your only day off was a good one...when that happens you just know all is right in the world, if only for a brief moment.

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  5. What a wonderful view of the flowers in your garden! I have been overwhelmed by all the yellow right now, too. Yellow, with the purples and blues you have, make for a very nice combination. (I was so intrigued the other day, I was photographing violets and dandelions.)
    Connie

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  6. Everything looks awesome in your garden! Great pics!!

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  7. There was me thinking you had "Gone Fishing" on your precious day off.
    Brazen Hussy was not only well behaved but lucrative too. What did you do with the prize money :-)

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  8. Gorgeous pictures Les. This is some weather we're having isn't it?

    Happy Easter!

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  9. Geez, Les. You sound just like a nursery manager!

    Your fotos are beautiful... I just sigh. I have daffs and squill. And one beauteous Lenten Rose out my front door. Ain't spring glorious?

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  10. Beautiful photos ... and great to see that link to Sigur Ros--my favorite music of the last few months. Iceland's a spectacular country visually and it produces some wonderful art, music and literature. The Ficaria 'Brazen Hussy'--does it like wet conditions?

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  11. From your great photos you seem to have just as many blues as yellows!

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  12. Randy,
    The 90 degree temps today did little to keep any of the unopened blossoms on the plant.

    Phillip,
    I love the fresh yellow green of the foliage and the pure white flowers.

    Pam,
    I hope you had a good Easter as well.

    Loree,
    Whenever I find myself with all being right with the world I rejoice.

    Connie,
    I once obsessed about all the violets in the garden and vainly tried to remove them. Now I have learned to tolerate them.

    G.G.,
    Thanks for the kind comments!

    Jo,
    Reel fishing will come later. You have a remarkable memory, and I do not. Most likely the money went into the general funds pot and not for anything special.

    Sweet Bay,
    We hit 90 today. Right from March into July skipping the months in between.

    Larkspur,
    Yes ideed it is glorious!!!

    James,
    I fell hard for Sigur Ros several years ago and got most of their recordings. I do normally put them away once winter is over as their music suits my mood more then. 'Brazen Hussy' does not need a wet area, but it is not necessarily drought tolerant.

    Eric,
    You may be right, but the blues are from much smaller blossoms and do not stand out as much.

    Les

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  13. As usual, some really beautiful shots of spring's time in the garden!

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  14. Hi Les, I know you are busy as it seems everyone is cranked up for spring. Glad you got the fish pond cleaned. Poor little fishies. They can be so forgiving-a good thing.

    There are a lot of plants on here I've not heard of before. Very cool plants. The Cherry Jubilee-that is the right now. A very pretty red. Great close ups!

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  15. What a burst of spring in your garden. How lovely to have a day off that turns out to be perfect!

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  16. My fish are being eaten by the herons and egrets...good thing they are in the creek and not a nice pond like yours.
    I am a little late but hope you and your family had a good Passover and Happy Easter.
    Lovely blooms as always.

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  17. What wonderful photos! I especially like the "near weed" growing next to the ancient whelk shell. What a great place to garden.

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  18. Your garden shows that your labor is well worthwhile. I love the close up shot of the Camellia especially. It’s a relief to see that your unusually harsh winter hasn’t hurt your beautiful garden.

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  19. After reading about your Ranunculus ficaria, I did a bit of research and am now fretting about my own. I have loved the plant, not knowing its sinister secret and am now going to work with some round up to kill the strays that have ventured beyond my own garden, edging toward the woods.

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  20. Is the V. sororia the one you are trying to dispose of? I had it in my hand at the garden centre, but it was indeed very 'priceana' and I had already run up quite a bill, so I put it back. One man's weed is another woman's treasure.
    You are sitting on a fortune there :-)

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  21. Jim,
    Thanks for you kind comments.

    Tina,
    I gravitate to the dark red camellias, but I know the next one I get is going to have to be white with red stripes.

    Linda,
    We seem to have been blessed with nearly perfect days lately. Better than the bit of snow you have gotten.

    Janet,
    It was as good as it good be considering that I had to work. We had a nice dinner and enjoyed some Va. Cabernet.

    Rainforest,
    Thanks for coming by. I have a lot of ancient looking whelks lying around.

    Phillip,
    Thanks for coming by.

    Sarah,
    If anything, I think the winter has shocked plants into blooming better than they have in a while.

    Beyond,
    I live in the middle of the city away from natural areas, so I don't fret like I would if I lived in the woods where this plant could do real harm if it escaped.

    Jo,
    The one I can not get rid of is Viola papilionacea which is not the one pictured. Although I see that my V. sororia priceana has jumped out of the bed I put it in, and I will be keeping an eye on it.

    Les

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  22. A wonderful spring tour. I'm pretty sure your yellow corydalis is C. heterocarpa, a bigger plant than C. lutea. It's all over my garden too.

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