Spring is Coming

I planned to do some gardening yesterday but when I got to the p-patch it was too cold and I wasn't dressed for the weather. I did learn (in the few minutes I was there) that something is digging up and eating my buried tulip bulbs. A lot of the spring bulbs have sprouted and are poking up through the topsoil. It looks like it's time to fertilize. Also, the hellebore are showing signs of development (new green leaves and blooms) and the cyclamen coum are in full bloom. Finally, the scilla is also poking up and blooming in small, compact clusters of blue/white flowers. I wished they would gain some height as they tend to bloom close to the ground, and are sometimes hard to spot. 

New Years

I visited the p-patch yesterday to partake in the annual tradition of eating food and trying not to freeze my bum off. There was a pretty good turnout with a few dozen gardeners. Also, I ended up pruning my hellebore a bit as well as the fuchsia. There isn't much growing right now but I did spot new buds nestled in the hellebore crowns awaiting warmer weather (probably by the end of February). Also, the cyclamen coum has sprouted a handful of magenta blooms. Checking under the burlap I noticed several worms at work breaking down my layer of leaves.

So far, this has been a very mild winter. We had about a week of freezing temperatures last month, and a couple inches of snow last lasted one day. Even the rain has been minimal the last few months.