A Sunny Valentine

I was quite excited to find this sunflower growing in my garden last fall. It was shaped exactly like a heart! I wanted to post it on my blog immediately, but after some thought I decided it would be perfect for a Valentine's day post. I want you all to know, I had to exercise great restraint to save it until now. :-) It is my Valentine to my fellow garden bloggers, friends, and family.

I was struck at just how perfect a heart shape it was, right down to the green point on the bottom!

A close up view. I regret that I didn't save the seed from this one, just for fun....to see if it might reproduce itself.

Happy Valentines Day!!


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Valentines are people who
Are willing to be flowers,
Letting us enjoy their beauty
Even if for hours.
No Valentine hides from the sun,
Though sometimes lost in light.
If you love them, they just open,
Not unhappy to be woken
Even in the night.

Author unknown

Thoughts of Spring

We have had several snows and thaws already this winter. Recently, we received another fresh blanket of snow, with a couple more storms in the forecast for the coming week. We've had more snow and cold weather this winter than I recall for many years. Though it is all quite beautiful, I am beginning to look forward to spring...and warmer weather!

The trees are heavy with snow, but it was the morning sky that drew me outdoors to capture some photos....it was the most glorious shade of blue!

My greenhouse waits in silence for planting time....and I wait, too. In the meantime, I am browsing the seed and garden catalogs, planning, making seed orders, and starting some winter sown containers of perennials and hardy annuals.

The quacking aspen tree we planted in our front yard around 17 years ago has died, so it will have to be cut down and replaced this spring. But for the moment it is still beautiful, dressed in it's pretty white frock!

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Longing for Spring

Once a day and sometimes more
I look out my day dream door
To see if spring is out there yet
I'm really anxious, but mustn't fret.

I see the snow a melting down
and lots of mud and slush around
I know the grass will surely sprout
and birds and flowers will come about.

But why oh why does it take so long?
I'm sure the calendar can't be wrong.
Sunshine fills my heart with cheer
I wish that spring were really here.

Soon mother nature will sound the alarm
Wake up! get dressed, turn on your charm
Winter's gloom has gone its way
It's Spring! It's Spring! Oh Happy Day!

Edna T. Helberg

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Winter Sunset

The two photos below were taken in our neighborhood, on an evening in early January of 2005. It was unusual, in that we don't normally have such colorful sunsets in the winter time. The beauty of the sunset was greatly enhanced by the sunlight reflecting off a layer of fog, which is quite common for our area during the winter months, as we live in a river valley.

Sunset....with pines in the foreground.

A walnut tree in our neighborhood, with sunset as a backdrop.


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I'm afraid I have woefully neglected my blog...during the busy holiday season. And I have just returned from a trip to North Dakota on Amtrak with my daughter, son-in-law, and grand-daughter to visit my 85 year old Dad who still lives there on the farm. It was quite an adventure with an almost 2 year old, but she did remarkably well on the trip, in spite of a freight train derailment which made it necessary for us to be bussed for 6 hours on the return trip, and put us 4 hours behind schedule. It is good to be home again, and I will soon start my 2008 gardening year, with the preparation of containers for Winter-sowing.

Let the growing begin! :-)