Spring – Weekly Photo Challenge

Welcome to spring in my garden. Unlike the dessert which may burst forth with life overnight after a soaking rain, here in New England spring is more of an unfolding; a familiar well-loved play with scenes we anticipate seeing that always surprises us with a detail – subtle or bold – that we have somehow overlooked before or strikes us in a new way. As a plant-lover I greatly anticipate the first crocuses and daffodils pushing up through the ground with the melting of the snow, then other perennials each in their own turn sprouting new life adding various shades of ripe green and their own shapes and forms to the garden. Some days it seems that life stands still with new buds closed tight against a chill breeze only to burst open when the temperatures rise and the sun warms them.

The various micro-climates in my yard with varying amounts of shade, sun and soils are most evident in spring. Right now the daffodils in the warmest part of my yard are turning brown while others are in peak bloom and those in the coldest spots are just opening. In the last couple of days the lungwort and trillium have begun to open and the Solomon’s Seal are just showing hints of the arched stems that will curve gracefully in the shade garden as they grow taller. The hostas are now a few inches tall but still curled upon themselves. The lilac buds had been closed tight and with the recent warmth the leaves are beginning to unfurl and the flower buds are slowly growing. The huge willow trees in the back yard are all tinged lemony green as the leaf buds pop open. The grass is greening up with several spring rains and slowly rising temperatures.

Spring reminds me that each day is a miracle.