Our Cheatin' Blooms ...

Well, both of us have apparently been so bloom-starved that we had the same idea of giving each other blooming gifts for Valentine's Day last weekend! And even though one could say that we're technically "cheating on Nature," I will say that it's really nice to have something blooming in the house right now, especially after the recent snows and cold. At least we can justify the purchases somewhat by intending to plant these out once it's spring, so the plant material won't go to waste. Though they may not thrive again for a year or so, everything depicted in these photos is hardy to our garden, so we'll just be patient for them to get their second wind at blooming.

The bulb basket in the first photo is a gift mix of spring flowers that I ordered from Van Bourgondien, thanks to a clever reminder email they sent me early last week, guaranteeing Valentine's Day delivery ....It's called the "Dutch Garden" gift basket and has a great assortment of bulbs in it ... 5 red tulips, 5 yellow Narcissus, 5 'Pickwick' giant crocus, a Hyacinth and 5 White Siberian Squill (something we don't have). Since they arrived on Friday, they have been practically flying out of the pot once they got some sun, water and warmer temperatures, and since I took this photo late this afternoon, 2 more of the Narcissus have started to emerge, and the crocus are beginning to open up a bit ... the hyacinth has opened its 'alien pod' and we can see the bloom developing inside ... so it's not going to be much longer before this basket will be quite colorful!

In the past I've generally had a dim view of forcing bulbs because it does tend to sap the plant's energies, but since then I've read that as long as one tends to their basic cycle, keeps them watered and deadheaded until they die back, that they can be successfully planted in the garden, even though they might take a year off from blooming, they will eventually return to their original glory. I think what I'll do is just give them some bulb food after they're done blooming, let them die back naturally and then plant this whole arrangement in a spot out front. Maybe we'll get more blooms next year, maybe not, but even if they don't, they'll be back at some future point. At least for now, I'm getting my purple crocus fix! I just love this variety, 'Pickwick,' and we just put in a bunch more of these last fall, so you'll be seeing them again if the ground ever warms up! When I was browsing my archives last week for that one post, I was a bit dismayed to see that last year's crocus were in their heyday in April! I sure hope it doesn't take that long this year, but last year was a pretty nasty winter ... time will tell....
Fernymoss shares my passion for Primroses, and he even managed to find a nice, blooming specimen for his gift to me ... this yellow cultivar is one of my favorites because it has such a lovely scent and is such a cheery shade of yellow. It had quite a few more blooms on it when I got it on Saturday, but before I took this photo, I had to pinch several spent ones off today so the remaining buds will develop and open ...no matter, because I love just about everything about Primula polyanthus, the lush textures of the foliage as well as the delightful yellow and sweet aroma the blooms have. I'm pretty confident this will do just fine in our Primrose Patch out front by the entrance steps. (If you'd like to see those, just click on the labels below this post for last year's blooms.) It took us a few years to find success with Primroses, and not all designated as hardy are truly hardy to our climate, but since I planted a mix of Polyanthus several years ago, we've finally found a spot they like and thrive in, and since then, they have been happily spreading into a nice clump. I'll be really interested to see how much bigger it is this year, because in the 3 years they've been there, they've already doubled in number, so I'm hoping for even more this spring!

Come on,Spring! We're getting a bit antsy here, but at least we have some beautiful harbingers blooming now inside, so let's hope they can tide us over till it finally arrives....

What? No Hanna pictures? Ok, here's one I haven't posted yet ... from 18 January, her first evening here at Casa IVG when she was just getting acquainted with us, and really pouring on the charm....

I think you guys will make really good daddies for me ... can I stay here furever?

How could anyone say no to this sweet little charmer? We sure couldn't! We're still delighting in all of her (well, most all) crazy puppy antics, the newest of which is playing "ice hockey" with an ice cube. She was cracking both of us up before I came up to work on this post ... chasing it around the room, knocking it about with her paws and nipping at it before she finally decided to eat it. Who says dog toys have to be expensive? And we don't even mind that she eventually destroys these particular ones! So here you go, Janet ... she's got the makings of a hockey dog somehow ... at least she knows what to do with an ice puck!