When the temperatures heated up yesterday I opened up windows to discover that the outside temperature was warmer than my inside temperature, so I closed the windows. I did turn off the heat and opened windows overnight. Today the house was pleasant, but my thermometer actually showed 80 degrees at 2 p.m. today. It felt like a warm spring day, not February 4. I finally spent a good portion of the day in the garden, cutting things back, raking up leftover leaves and fertilizing. Plants are moving at warp speed. I study the weather forecasts voraciously and they seem to be changing daily. As of tonight, we are going to get rain and hover at a high of upper 60's for the next few days, then dip down to the mid 20's again. If the forecast is correct, Thursday we are supposed to get up to 66 for a high and 24 for a low. That is a huge difference. As I was working in the garden I saw a lot in bloom or on the verge of blooming. My blueberry buds are about to burst open.
The hydrangea buds are swelling and showing a hint of color, and the daffodils are beginning to bloom.
I have plenty of open blooms on my japonica camellias
and still a few errant blooms on the sasanquas. The highly fragrant tea olive is in bloom now
along with almost all my hellebores. I do love them all, but the older varieties, while showy have flowers that face downward,
while the newer varieties are more showy when viewed from above.
Not all the blooming plants were planted by me--I have some winter weeds kicking in, including this dandelion with a bee working it.
The bees were all over the hellebores and camellias too.
I hate to admit that I had a glorious day in the garden, but I wish the temperatures were more in keeping with the season. If the plants get lulled into thinking spring has sprung and then winter reappears, we may be in for damage. Pay attention and keep your fingers crossed!