Saturday, March 24, 2007

I Think They Were All Waiting for the Official Okay....

Spring officially arrived sometime Tuesday night/Wednesday morning. I'd intended to post a blog for the occasion, but flu and life intervened. I'm happy to report that I'm much better...although life (and a "used" house) are throwing some curve balls our way.

Seemingly knowing that it's now officially spring, the rains have come and the leaves are simply bursting out of their buds. Tuesday was our big rain (2.8"); by Thursday the Bradford pears had gone from bud to full bloom.

...Okay, I know that I officially don't like Bradford pairs, but... their blooms sidelighted by the porch light and shining against the black night sky are truly breathtaking. For a week or so, at least, I'm almost happy to share my yard with them.

By the way, sniff those lovely blooms sometime. They smell like rotting meat. A real olfactory treat for the flies that they rely on for pollination! (Actually I've seen quite a few honey bees buzzing around them during the day too, so I guess the bees aren't always attracted just to sweet scents. At night it seems to be primarily flies coming around.)

In the past 5 days, our view out the kitchen door has transformed from a far-sighted westerly view through open screens of bare branches to the enclosed feel of a green-walled courtyard. I've been dreading this a little bit, not sure how I'd like feeling closed in, but it's rather fun to get enticing glimpses of the treetops in the swale and the prairie through the hedge-opening. Classic "enclosure and mystery beyond" gardening stuff. I'm going to have fun playing with this.

No comments: