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Sunday, February 24, 2008

Weekend Snapshot: Number 25

My weekend snaphot will be thematic this week. The theme will be spring is in the air. Where I live, the official last frost date is April 14. Of course we all know that nature doesn't look at calendars.Last year by mid April the gardens and trees were so far along, after a moderate winter, that it looked like summer. Then BAM, on April 20th we had record breaking low temperatures and the leaves on the pecan and mulberry trees died along with a multitude of flowers. Therefore, as happy as I am with all the signs of spring I'm hoping the growing season doesn't plow ahead too fast.
I've already had some damage from freezing rain that pounded on some early flowers. The first shot of the American Robin is a sign of spring I love. Around this time of year the robins begin to forage for food and can be spotted strutting around my back garden. This one flew up to a tree to wait out my photo shoot but the minute I walked on by, it hopped back down to the ground. The second shot is of a magnolia liliflora (tulip tree) which is the first flowering tree I usually see. I found out it is technically a shrub but this tree is at least 18 feet tall. I read that they can get up to 13 feet but apparently this one didn't read that book and kept growing.
My camellia is starting to bloom and is usually the first bush that has blossoms at my house. It also already has some winter damage. You can see the brown in the center of the blossom above. Some of the buds which haven't opened are brown and may not do much but I am enjoying the early flowers anyway.
The narcissus above is holding it's own although it has been slightly bowed down since the freezing rain we had this week. My narcissus usually blooms a few weeks before my daffodils. My daffodils are budding out but they wait for my daughter's birthday to open all the way up. When I went into labor in 1985 there was snow and ice on the ground and nothing was blooming. After my daughter was born the sun came out and when Bill came home to pick up a few things, the daffodils were in full bloom. I told my daughter the story of how the flowers bloomed in honor of her birth. The funny thing is my neighbors daffodils are already blooming but the special ones that I think of as my daughters, are holding out a week for her birthday before they will open. They often do that so I'm expecting to see them wait until March 2 to open.I'll end with my crocuses which are invariably the first flowers to bloom. They've already been beat down by sleet but opened back up and are doing fine. These snow crocuses live up to their name and don't seem to mind the back and forth weather we're having.

You can find other participants here - Weekend Snapshot or on Technorati here -

31 comments:

Isadora said...

That is unfortunate when it happens as it often does. We lost almost half our grape harvest last year in the same way. That translates to a lot of wine. Good luck to all of us.

SandyCarlson said...

That robin stole my heart! And the magnolia...and all those other wonders of spring. Thanks for the view, Carver!

Juliana said...

I love spring .... You have lovely flowers :D

My WS in here

Anonymous said...

Great pics

Will you visit my WS“

Liz said...

Lovely photos! The flowers are so beautiful. Happy WS.

Lilli & Nevada said...

I am so jealous that you are getting all those beautiful colors around you.But yes sad when the freeze can wipe them out in a flash.

Jeanne said...

spring is coming... beautiful flowers , i love crocus and narcis.. :) happy ws

Trish ~ ♥ ~ said...

My crocus have just started to break ground. It is such a wonderful site to see.

Sharon said...

Those pictures give me hope! They are beautiful!

Emmyrose said...

Those are beautiful photos.

Have a nice week ahead!

Napaboaniya.Elaine Ling said...

All the photos are fascinating.
March will be arriving soon and soon you'll have a lot more of pretty flowers :)

Christy Woolum said...

Sigh.... if I have any buds, shoots, or plants even I am afraid they are buried in the snow. Gorgeous photos. Thanks for reminding me spirng will arrive at some time.

Anonymous said...

Beautiful photos! I just love the flowers:) glad you had a fab weekend!

Anonymous said...

What lovely photos, Carver. I know you can't wait for spring to come :)

Have a great week!

My WS:

Starfish

Seaside

Natalie said...

That makes me excited for the spring to be here...I agree though, not too soon in case winter rears it's ugly head one last time.

eastcoastlife said...

Oooo... I can smell Spring from Singapore!! You are so blessed with such beautiful nature around you.

I'm sure your lovely daughter's going to be welcome home with the lovely colours of Spring!

Smalltown RN said...

A garden in bloom....how lovely .....the American Robin is frequently in my yard.....it's so wonderful to see them back....your daughter was born in 85....so was my eldest daughter....

Lalaine said...

That's a great shot of the lovely bird!

tigerfish said...

I actually like all the pictures here. Nature...so beautiful. :D

rayearth2601 said...

what a beautiful picture

regards

Anonymous said...

Beautiful Carver! Absolutely beautiful. I love all the photos that you've shared with us. Thanks! :-)

Heart of Rachel said...

Although I've never experienced it before, I believe Spring is a beautiful and much anticipated season.

I love the beautiful flowers you shared with us. When I saw the magnolia liliflora, I first thought that they were birds perched on the tree. I love the striking colors of those flowers.

Thank you very much for visiting both of my blogs. I appreciate it.

Bengbeng said...

clap hands...wonderful...love these beautiful absolutely calming but beautiful pics of yours this week especially of the robins and the flowers...

Barb said...

Pecans, Magnoilia, Camellia... you must be a fellow Georgian! Your garden is lovely!

Carver said...

Thanks to everyone for visiting. For Willthinkforwine, I'm just a little bit north of you. I live in the triangle area of the NC piedmont.

Jen said...

These are all such gorgeous shots!!! I'm eagerly waiting for spring/summer to arrive!! :)

Unknown said...

How gorgeous! I love all of these photos! I love flowers, too.

Carver said...

Thanks again to everyone for visiting and commenting.

MaR said...

Your pictures are so beautiful!! I am ready for spring!!!

Anonymous said...

Such beautiful flowers. Daffodils and crocuses are my favorites. Those spring plants don't do so well here in Texas. I guess they really need a freeze. I've been told I could dig them up and put them in the fridge but that is too much work for me.

Thanks for visiting.

Anonymous said...

Really neat post! I love the picture of your grandma! I posted a picture of my grandma too! She's about 91 in the picture! It's up at http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/prodoceo/490627