Our garden is really starting to come together now, the fourth season of our five-year plan. Our first flowers, other than the sprays of forsythia which I've been able to force since January (due to the warm days then) have been the daffodils, along with some very hearty wood violets and the ever-optimistic violas. I do get new violas every year, to set out in the front terracing as borders, but our old ones have in many cases wintered over to bloom again a second year, and, if not, at least graciously toss their seeds around to surprise me with little stands of completely unplanned flowers. As the weather has been fluctuating wildly, both the plants and I remain confused. I have set back outside the petunia baskets that wintered over in the completely unheated glassed in porch, and they are happily blooming away - apparently not aware they are supposed to be annuals.
Right now, we uncovered our tomato, cucumber, basil and pepper plants from last night's frost warning (the second since we eagerly put in our little vegetable patch) to today's 70 degree weather. The iris are up and setting some blooms which I hope will open in a few days. The marigold plantings have just begun to sprout, I think careening from 30-something to 80-something degrees in 24 hours was a bit much for the seeds to cope with. The most spectacular showing this week is the creeping phlox. The white, lavender and shrieking magenta swathes of color are really beautiful, and wherever they are not in the front, the ajuga has taken control, and is presently in full flower, with hundreds of blue spikes of flowers. I did notice myself what I had read beekeepers around the country complaining about, the decimation of the bee colonies. Last year I could only pick the 3 to 4 inch spikes in the dark, there were so many bees hovering around all day. This year, I've seen less than half a dozen thumb-sized bumblebees.
Last year's plantings have surprised me in several ways. Some of the peonies moved radically from where I remember planting them, I think in the heavy rains. In any case, we've dug the ones hanging right at the edge of the terraces and moved them back, hopefully to stay in the more secure place. The seedling ecchinachea, which did not do well at all, have amazingly come right back up where they languished all last summer, but big and hearty-looking. Perhaps they'll even bloom this year, I don't really know as I've never tried them from seed before. Several of our stands of lily of the valley are also blooming or about to, the scent is wonderful, as is our single surviving white lilac.
And as for wildlife, the resident group of four, still lead by tiny Annette Deer, are coming around down by the pond these days, and rarely up in the planted areas. In what is probably my most brilliant stroke of gardening genius, I planted garlic and onion sets in the lower terraces this year, and as I suspected, Annette and the kids really don't like them! I see hoof prints occasionally but not a single munch mark - silly deer, garlic is great! I will definitely do this every year from hear on in, it's an easy way to dissuade the munchers and I can always use both garlic and onions in almost everything I cook.
Most excitingly, a mallard duck and his mate came by for a few afternoons at the pond about two weeks ago (oddly enough, friends of ours who live both here and the Hamptons reported they too had a pair of mallards, in their pool at the Hamptons house, at the same time we had our visitors). Mr. Mallard was gorgeous, his bright green head quite visible on the cold, rainy day he appeared. Mrs. Mallard I observed mostly butt-up in the pond, busily eating algae and whatever else she could find, for hours. Mr. M. was not too upset by my approach, but Mrs. definitely gave me a dirty look, and then took off. I hear them sometimes at night, or at least think I do, quacking off in the distance. We've also had a wild turkey or two wander through, but not the large groups I used to see in West Virginia. Thankfully, no skunk (yet)and no bear! And now, I'm off to patrol and see who needs what...
