February 2013 Blooms

What's blooming in February?  Some usual suspects and a fun (for me) surprise.

It's crocus time.  Mostly yellows, a few purple, and one just-starting (unpictured) white.

It's the first week of Lent - a good time to show off the Lenten roses (Hellebores).  I have several plants.  The greenish-white-flowered one blooms at the end of last year's stems, showing off the flowers:

The purple hellebores send up new flower stalks from the center, so the flowers get hidden behind last year's leaves.  Especially this year - the mostly warm winter means those old leaves are still pretty vigorous.  I had to dig to find the flowers.



What is exciting and new this year:  some of my self-seeded hellebore plants are finally blooming.  These youngsters are 3-4 years old and putting out their first flowers.  One of the white variety and one of the purple:

(Also blooming this month:  some rather un-showy snowdrops, rue (still), pansies (barely), and winter weeds.)

Happy February Bloom Day!

(I finally posted January's blooms, too. You can see them here.)

January 2013 Blooms: Unseasonable

Before I post February Blooms, let's go back and look at what was happening in mid-January:

What's blooming in January?  Nothing "seasonal", that's for sure.

First, the rue has never stopped blooming:

Along the curb, this anemone is determined to be the first "spring" bulb to bloom.  Not crocus or snowdrops, but anemone.

Over in the side yard, what is this oddity?

Yep, a single dogwood bract.  In January.

 I think my "everbearing" strawberries have taken their name too literally.

Finally:  not a bloom, but noteworthy in this unseasonal post.  The weeping Japanese maple is still holding onto its leaves.  What a wierdo.