End of Month View: April 2013
Helen at The Patient Gardener‘s Weblog hosts a meme called End of Month View, which is pretty much what is suggested by the title. This is a very useful exercise because I am often tempted to show close ups of a particular plant or a grouping of plants. Wider views of different sections of the garden tend to appear much less frequently, especially when it is not at its glorious peak. So here’s a picture of the bed that lies along the driveway and front walk.
In this bed there is stock blooming at the far end, plus some daffodils and species tulips. The stock is wonderfully fragrant, we can smell it every time we go in or out. The celandine poppies (Stylophorum diphyllum) are filling in, as are the nepeta and hardy geraniums. Round fuzzy flower buds have appeared on the celandine poppies. There are clumps of grassy Muscari leaves, and the foliage of species tulips not yet ready to bloom. On top of that, I must have planted three flats of pansies of various kinds in order to get a full, colorful look early in the season. Somehow it still looks rather sparse.
Here’s another view of the front garden, looking out towards the street. Y(Sou can see part of the driveway/front walk bed, the parkway bed, the sidewalk bed, and the front island bed. As I mentioned in my last post, the blue squill (Scilla sibirica) is naturalizing in the front island bed. New England Aster and some other perennials are starting to emerge. However, the swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata) and some other plants are still dormant.
By the way, here’s a picture of the tulips in containers on the front steps. Some already have their flower buds.
Here’s a view into the back garden. Forsythia, spicebush (Lindera benzoin), squill, and daffodils are blooming. Virginia bluebells (Mertensia virginica) should be blooming by next weekend. Hardy geranium, more celandine poppies, allium, jacob’s ladder (Polemonium reptans), and various other bulbs and perennials are pushing up green growth.
This is looking back from inside the back garden toward the side path.
Now that spring has really arrived, it seems to be moving along in a hurry. Are you happy with how your garden is emerging this spring?
gardeninacity 
Your garden looks great Jason! Mine is full of weeds and someone keeps bringing pots of interesting-looking plants home and covering every available surface inside and out wth them. Someone really needs to get to weeding and planting or “Hoarders” will come and film an episode here.
Thanks, Peter. Who could possibly be bringing all those pots of new plants to your house? Have you considered a security camera?
Jason, it’s great to see gardens in the making, instead of perfectly constructed and fully grown ones, I do realise that a lot of your plants being perennials are still waiting for more warmer weather and you have a lot of new plants too, all looking great. Enjoy your spring.
You too, Karen. I do like to follow the progress of the garden through the seasons, and don’t expect it to look perfect all the time. I think plastic flowers would be the only way to achieve that.
I love your garden space it has such great bones. The arbor would be fun to work with. My spring project is to add an arbor and gate to give the side of the house more interesting detail. I am looking forward to your photos as your garden moves from spring to summer.
I have a rose growing up each side of the arbor. On one side, ‘Darlow’s Enigma’. which is a rambler. On the other, ‘Westerland’, which is actually a shrub rose but I am training as a climber.
It is nice to see these pictures of your garden. You have quite some space. Everything is going fast now, but it still looks a bit empty in my garden. Please show more photos like this when everything is in bloom.
Yes, things look a little empty this time of year, but then they start to fill in fast. I also planted a bunch more annuals this spring, stock and pansies, to help things look full earlier.
its all coming together isnt it, I love this time of year. Thanks for joining in this month
You’re welcome, and thanks for giving me the idea.
Nice to get an overall view of your garden. I’d forgotten all about stocks – will have to try growing them!
The fragrance is very nice, light but quite noticeable.
Very nice pictures of your garden as it has many things to focus on (not just some boring evergreen bush which many houses have and the only things they have). I am going to write down the names of all these flowers and buy them in future. Species-tulip and stock are new to me.
See if you can find seeds for stock, I bought plants but they were a little expensive.
Fragrance near the front door is a good thing. You’d be surprised how many people pay no attention to fragrance in the garden.
Many people don’t think of it or aren’t sure what plants will work, but they appreciate it when the smell it.
I love the long shots that show a garden’s layout and how it flows. I like the look into your back garden — even without all its greenery and summer beauty it invites you in. Especially those delicately beckoining spicebushes. Nice!
I’m happy with how my garden is emerging, but at this stage the lawn grass is so green compared to everything else, that it overwhelms. Later the grass becomes the framework for the gardens, rather than the whole show.
I think I may have to mow my lawn this weekend, not that there is much of it.
Lovely to take a step back and see some ‘bigger’ shots of your garden. Such vibrant bursts of colour from your spring bulbs and pansies, and all the burgeoning shoots of waking plants – it’s a lovely time of year, especially when the weather obliges!
Spring bulbs are glorious.
It really does move along at a fast pace in spring! I really like seeing the wider views. And I can imagine how wonderful it is to walk out and be able to smell the wonderful fragrance of the stock. Looking good!
Thanks! I hope to always have something fragrant blooming near the front door. There are also some fragrant roses as well as Clethra.
Once things get going in spring, the garden starts to progress in leaps and bounds. I am definitely one blogger who tends to take close-ups, rather than long shots. I put a post together a few years ago that showed the whole garden. I need to do something similar, so much has changed out there.
That’s why I decided to participate in this meme, it gets me to do the long shots once a month.
I am guilty of not taking long shots of my garden too! Spring is being kind to your garden. Looks great! Have you ever had spicebush butterflies host on your shrub?
I never have had the spicebush swallowtail caterpillars! Very frustrated by that, but I guess all I can do is wait and hope they will find me.
Jason, I think this spring is very late and I would like more flowers in my garden. I love your forsythia and pots with tulips. Happy gardening!
Same to you, Nadezda!
I enjoyed seeing the “wider view”, I often end up focusing on particular plants so it’s lovely to see the bigger picture. I’m sure the tulips will be giving you a cheery welcome any day now!
Yes, in fact they are almost ready to bloom as of today!
Looking very much like Spring. Hurrah, Jason.
Hurrah, indeed.
this is my fourth spring in my garden and I’m super excited about it this year as I’m hoping things will look a bit more filled out. Like you my squill is starting to naturalize and I’m so thrilled, that blue is just gorgeous.
Every year at that stage makes a huge difference so I bet you will be very happy. The squill just keeps going, doesn’t it? The more it spreads, the happier I am.
Great to see the long shots of your garden to get a sense of perspective. It’s all happening at once now, when spring finally has arrived – my garden has exploded the last 2 weeks although there are still plants yet to emerge.
Yes, same here, things are going almost too fast to stay on top of.
Spring stresses me out!!!
My advice: take a deep breath and eat some chocolate.
done! hahaha
In my case because we don’t have the seasons like you, i normally don’t get wide angle shots because they don’t look nice and cared for. And the plants stay there all year, and succeeding years. I don’t like our view but i just changed my perspective, just called it a biodiversity garden.
Biodiversity garden, I like the sound of that.
Glad your spring is now going well after your few freak weather ups and downs, Jason! And great to see some long views of your garden, so we get to know how it all fits together. Happy spring gardening! Ursula
Thanks, Ursula, same to you!
Lovely pictures of your garden, it’s a great idea to have a review and think over what’s been accomplished. I’m in an ever struggling battle with getting my beds ready for planting, but I think the end of April was the first time I had the upper hand.
I think the beginning of spring is the hardest, after that the hill is not quite so steep.
I have the wide shots for mid-month – Then and Now to compare with previous years. Right now the garden is emerging fine, and the pear is in full bloom. All happened since yesterday as we had temps in the eighties today. What crazy weather. Cools off tomorrow at 75°.
Yup, the weather in general seems a lot more volatile. Today was downright cold after a long warm spell.
Just finally catching up with some of my reading…I really like the look of your front beds…spring will go back to normal with rain and cooler temps soon which I am fine with so the blooms don’t fade so quickly.