perfection

This weekend, as I gardened, I felt like I was living in paradise. The sun came out on Saturday afternoon, and while the temps remained cool, I began more extensive weeding in my perennial beds.

With the soft ground, the weeds came out easily, and this gave me an opportunity to edit a bit, moving plants around that no longer fit, or dividing a few and putting them in new places. The soil was cold, but not all that muddy except in the lower part of the yard. I ended up throwing off gloves as I teased out the roots of grasses and weeds that do not belong in my perennial borders.

I must have a million brazillian verbena sprouts popping up like a moss patch. The ones around my roses, I wiped out. I will not smother the roses. I also moved a few of the smaller larkspur seedlings.

I divided a few hostas and moved some fern. I thinned out the black-eyed susans and added plants to a new patch I am starting this year. The shade garden ( more than half my front garden) is starting to shape up nicely. I am thinking about putting a bird bath or a piece of some kind out in it.

The purple columbine are aflame with blooms, and with bad eye sight or distance, they could be confused for purple irisies (the mass of purple at that height, not from the foilage). I will thin them after the temps warm up abit and they are finished blooming for the spring. They will return in fall.

My bearded irises are all opening. They should never be taken for granted. This is their peak week.

The quality of my dirt varies from bed to bed. I resolve to add more compost -- soon.

My New Dawn climbing rose planted last year is loaded with buds. In fact, all my roses have buds on them. The old rugosas in the back are heavy with wide, perfumy dark pink blossoms. The winter affected most of my front yard roses fairly severely, but they are all bouncing back.

Oddly, instead of one spring season, this year we have had hot days followed by quite cold ones, effectively giving us mini-springs followed by mini-summers.