New gifts every day!

The Northwest Flower and Garden Show opens today and runs through Sunday, February 24. I always go, and I’m always overwhelmed by it – so many informative talks, so many beautiful garden designs, so many vendors and educational booths, so many people to talk with. It is sensory overload, but I love it!

And what a good time to celebrate gardens! Life is already emerging from the earth. Yesterday I saw the first clump of my own purple crocuses blooming, sheltered in the reflected warmth of a dark green, glazed pot.

Clearing away last year’s dead stems in the front garden, I saw clusters of green bumps – the new shoots of Euphorbia polychroma just barely surfacing. Late last summer, I was smitten by this euphorbia’s large, bright yellow flowers when I saw it in a neighbor’s garden paired with burgundy-leaved barberry. (Technically, the big yellow parts are called cyathia; like its cousin the poinsettia, the flowers are tiny bits in the center.) Soon after, I found two – one half-price and one given to me. Desire is a magnet! I’m excited to see how large they grow this year.

Ribes sanguineum - Flowering red currant

 

 

 

 

 

 Last weekend I saw a flowering red currant (Ribes sangguineum). Pink flower buds shaped like tiny grape clusters and new leaves decorate its twiggy branches. One neighbor’s front yard quivers with masses of snow drops and early yellow crocuses. Walking in the neighborhood feels like finding new gifts to open every day!

crocuses and snowdrops