Visions of Spring

Those are snapdragons in my header picture.  I planted them on March 7, 2012, and I am so ready to start digging in the dirt again. Unfortunately, Mother Nature seems to have other ideas about when Spring will make an appearance this year here in central Mississippi.  Two days ago, the low temperature was 18 degrees, and the forecast for the next few days is daytime temperatures in the 60s, with lows hovering in the 50s ... better than 18, yes ... but still not favorable for planting Spring flowers. The growers were hit hard this winter, and the local nurseries are suffering too.  Their stock is way down and the plants they have on hand were bitten back by the extremely cold temperatures. Even Home Depot doesn't have anything, except for some straggly Pansies and a few Cyclamens. I guess I'll just have to be patient for a little longer ... but in the meantime, I'd like to reminisce of springtimes past by sharing pictures of some of the flowers I planted. Lavender Lantana, May 2013  Sunpatiens, May 2011 Home Depot Mix, April 2009 Purple Verbena, March 2008 Red Verbena, April 2007 We have a new landscaping project in progress which I hope to share soon.  We've done the ground work and are now (not-so)-patiently waiting for the nursery to get some new plants in.  After looking at these pictures, I've gotten some ideas on flowers I'd like to use in the new planting areas.  I especially like the purple verbena cascading over the rocks along the stream in our courtyard. I hope Mother Nature is being more cooperative where you live ... and I wish you a March filled with many happy hours spent digging in the dirt, with visions of Spring flowers dancing through your head!

Goodbye Moon, Hello Sun

A trip to the coast wouldn't be complete without pictures of a sunrise.  The pictures I captured on our recent trip aren't spectacular by any stretch of the imagination, but I'm going to share them anyway. I took these behind our hotel and the view facing the East was the beach at low tide.  The water was calm and there weren't even many birds out.  As we waited for the sun to come up over Biloxi, I took some pictures of the moon going down over Gulfport ... It was a nice way to begin our day. I captured this picture a few seconds before the sun peeped over the horizon.     It's amazing how quickly its position changes.    It was the beginning of a great day, with plenty of sunshine and bright blue skies.  We left Biloxi later that morning and headed West towards Bay St. Louis.  I hope you will join me next time to see a few of the pictures I captured there.