My hardy little violas were not hardy enough to survive the near zero temperature overnight so they looked rather sad and wimpy. And so with the last of my flowers gone for the season, it probably will be another six months before snow glories like these can emerge when the snow melts in the spring.
Half Year Wait
I don’t live in Virginia, but these pretty flowers are called Virginia Bluebells so I wonder if I can rename them Wisconsin Bluebells. But when they first open up, they are a pink color before the trumpet-like blossom turns to the pretty shade of blue.
Pretty Virginia Bluebells
I may only have a few blossoms of certain wildflowers, but the violets this year have taken over large sections of my lawn. The dog violets have created a carpet of pale blue which makes it difficult to walk without stepping on their blossoms.
A Sea of Pale Blue
These small native wildflowers might have to be called Summer Beauty instead of Spring Beauty as they are enjoying summertime temperatures instead of normal cooler weather. The blossoms of the Spring Beauty open up on warm sunny days, like today, but close and nod down during cloudy weather or at night.
Pretty Pink Spring Beauties
The Yellow Trout Lily might not be as noticeable as Marsh Marigolds, they are interesting find since it doesn’t flower for the first four to seven years. I have a lot of single leaf trout lilies but only a few paired leaves which have the flowers. The lily colonies can be up to 300 years old, although I doubt mine are that old, but only about a half of a percent will have the double leaves and blossom.
Long Wait to Bloom
The goldfinches have regain their summertime bright yellow which helps to spot them in the trees just as the yellow from the marsh marigold stand out against the ground that attracts the returning butterflies to the blossoms.
Yellow in the Marsh
With the temperature in the 80s today, it is hard to believe that snow was still on the ground last Monday but already my neighbor mowed his lawn in less than a week later. I did see a lot of white in the woods today between the bloodroots and the wood anemones, which is more pleasurable white to see than snow.
Bloodroot White
A century ago, a tradition of May Day was to make May baskets, usually filled with flowers or treats, and after leaving the basket at someone’s doorstep, the giver rang the door bell and ran away. With the snow only leaving yesterday, the May Day baskets wouldn’t be filled with too many flowers from the yard this year as just a few are blooming today.
First Wildflower This Spring
Spring finally arrived the last day of April as the temperature reached 81 and the last of the snow melted in my yard. The south winds blew in a male oriole, dragonflies, butterflies and the female bluebirds. And some flowers finally opened up with one lone daffodil, two hepaticas, and some clumps of snow glories.
Snow Glories Open Up
Although it didn’t quite reach 70 degrees at my place today, it did farther south and down there some crocuses opened up on the first nice warm day. Eventually some wildflowers might poke up in my woods if warmer days continue to melt the snow.
Sign of Spring
