MySecretGarden

I like to have dry plant material on my potting bench in fall and winter.

When I clean the garden, I select nice looking pieces and leave them on the bench.

Poppy heads are my favorites.

I watch them changing their color from light grey to almost black during the winter.

In spring, they usually go to the compost pile.

Recently, I was cleaning my potting bench and reached for something on the back of one of the shelves.

I knew there were poppy heads there, but what I saw made me pause.

I've never seen anything like that - an explosion of life from the old grey boxes!

The poppy heads still had seeds inside. They got enough moisture and with some warmth started to germinate.

Here they are, two seedheads looking like green hedgehogs.

What a will to live and grow!

I divided heads into several parts and planted them in the garden.

It was impossible to separate individual seedlings, so I planted them in bunches.

We'll see what happens. They usually don't grow well when crowded.

Even if they don't grow into good plants, it was a nice surprise.

Happy Easter to you!

In April, every day brings something new to the garden.
Here are some pictures.

Forget-me-not is a star of the early April garden:

Camellia growing in the big pot:

This Euphorbia is the smallest of all my euphorbias. I'd say it's very small.
I can't figure out what she needs.

Herbacious peonies are doing fine:

Meanwhile, my tree peony got some frost damage and lost several buds.
*
Hosta (Thank you Jim!) in the tall pot. I hope slugs are acrophobic and won't reach it so high.

Blackcurrant has pretty small flowers and fragrant leaves which I add to my tea:

Magnolia is finishing its bloom, and now, there is a carpet of petals beneath it.

Monarda never disappoints me:

Saline:

Hostas surprised me with how fast they emerged from the ground and began to grow!

Hooray! Blue poppies look very promising:

Schisandra chinensis is famous for its shade tolerance, but you can see how much it enjoys sun.
I see some buds. It means I might have berries:

All astilbes in my garden came from the same mother-plant, but different plants are on different stages of growth. Some have unfurled their leaves already, but others are still looking like aliens:

Edgeworthia is a newby in my garden. I bought it at the NWFGS in February:

As I said before, forget-me-nots can be seen in different parts of the garden:

I need to keep these boxwoods in control.
The potager garden doesn't need them to be too high:

Japanese maples are slowly opening their leaves:

This one is growing in a container. I found a seedling in the back yard, and now,
I'm watching as the little ugly duckling is turning into a beautiful swan:

Pieris was planted under the huge fir trees without any hope for long lasting.
It replaced other shrubs which didn't make it competing with firs.
But it looks wonderful!