Yesterday I saw a cardinal - the first I’ve ever seen. I also heard Killdeer.

They're so common around here, at first I was astounded to hear it's the first one you've ever seen. But then I remembered that the full name is "Northern Cardinal" and you were in California for so many years, so.....duh....

In addition to cardinals, we've got lots of robins, mourning doves, woodpeckers (downy, hairy, and flickers). And my yard is overrun with rabbits. I have three of them wreaking havoc back there.

I've been out for some short stints working in the garden, mostly cleaning up the winter debris and also downsizing the collection of old nursery pots I keep for transplanting/giving away. It's been getting warmish during the day, but below freezing some nights, so the ground is still hard.

The buds on the currant bushes are starting to swell a little. They're the early birds.

The landscape crew is here!

The cherry trees are blooming!

Portland Oregon cherry blossoms by pianomom2001, on Flickr

quote:

Originally posted by AdagioM:
The cherry trees are blooming!

I'm going down tomorrow!

Beautiful!

quote:

Originally posted by Nina:

quote:

Originally posted by AdagioM:
The cherry trees are blooming!

I'm going down tomorrow!

Have fun! Here’s hoping any rain is gentle, and that the blooms are long lasting!

March 20 was spring (Spring?) and I had to Google it this morning.

April 1 appears to be the day all of the stores start selling plants again. Every store, all at once. Remarkable.

Costco is selling bulbs cheap. If I plant them now do I have to wait until next year for them to flower?

Depends upon what kind of bulb it is.

What would you suggest that might flower right away?

Here's an overview of bulbs and things that aren't bulbs but are often called that anyway...

Some bulbs are winter hardy, some are not. Some bloom in spring, some during the summer, and a few in the autumn. They have varying light requirements.

Let's start with the spring blooming winter hardy ones, which are planted in autumn and will flower the following spring after they go through the cold weather (they actually need it to bloom). These are the usual suspects...snowdrops, tulips, hyacinths, crocuses, daffodils. Those won't be available in bulb form right now. Look for them around Labor Day.

https://www.thespruce.com/when...spring-bulbs-4164060

The only winter hardy summer-blooming bulbs I can think of off the top of my head are allium. Basically...onions...really cool big round purple balls on top of a long stalk. They need full sun.

https://www.thespruce.com/how-...ental-onions-1402878

There is also an autumn crocus, which is kind of cool. Here's a plant profile (note the toxicity element if your dogs eat plants). But it might not bloom the first year.

https://www.thespruce.com/autu...lant-profile-4768180

Then there are the non-hardy bulbs that bloom in summer, probably what is available now at Costco.

Canna lilies (not really a bulb, but everyone calls them bulbs) are used a lot, but they have to be dug up in the autumn and stored inside. Or I guess you could treat them as annuals and toss them at the end of the season.

https://www.thespruce.com/growing-cannas-1402837

Also dahlias. Beautiful flowers.

https://www.thespruce.com/grow...-for-dahlias-1402255

Oh, wait...there are gladiolus...technically a corm. I think people treat those as annuals...plant them in spring and they'll blossom this year. Your winter is too cold, so they'll die over the winter unless you dig them up

https://www.thespruce.com/gladiolus-flowers-1315704

From wtg's personal gardening notes...

The only spring bloomers I put in are snowdrops, daffodils/narcissus/jonquils and grape hyacinths (not regular hyacinths). Squirrels usually don't dig up the bulbs and rabbits won't eat the leaves. They do okayy in less than full sun. They naturalize beautifully. I love crocus and tulips but they almost always fall prey to the varmints.

I don't have enough sun for allium, but love them.

I have planted cannas and dahlias but I've had trouble overwintering them indoors. They seem to either dry out too much or they rot. Plus I tend to be pretty busy with leaf raking in fall, so adding another chore to the list digging up bulbs just doesn't work out for me.

What else does Costco have out there now?

So I guess the cannas I planted last year aren’t coming back up?

Looks like they're ok down to USDA hardiness zone 6a, and that's where I think your town is (I had to look it up). I think we're zone 5b here in Chicago, so I tend to think in terms of where I'm located.

It was a pretty warm winter. And better still if they were close to the house and/or well mulched....

I'd say there's a good chance they survived.

Things are really hopping around here garden-wise. Besides the three huge rabbits...

All the berry bushes are leafing out. Well, except the alpine strawberries that look dead, but I think I see tiny signs of new growth. I should know in the next few days, as temps are in the 80s here.

Daffodils are blooming!

Mertensia (Virginia bluebells) are up and the buds are forming. Really nice ephemeral perennial. Comes up now, bloom, and completely disappears in June.

The primroses are up but not blooming yet.

And I'm seeing star magnolias in bloom all over the place. We may actually get to enjoy them this year. Most years they get hit by a nighttime frost and they turn brown and drop the petals. Not happening this year.