“Won’t you come into my garden? I would like my roses to see you.” – Richard Brinsley Sheridan
What a delight this morning to go out to the garden after breakfast and discover the buds on my Mr. Lincoln rose wide open. Mr. Lincoln is a sturdy tea rose bush with fragrant deep red roses, regarded by many as one of the best roses of all time. It’s truly lovely!
My big project for the week is rearranging my shade garden to accommodate an Empress Wu hosta that my mother-in-law kindly bought for me over the weekend. Empress Wu gets to be 5′ wide and 4′ tall, so some (i.e. a lot of) moving of plants here and there is definitely in order. In planning the new layout, I’m trying to come up with a pleasant design in terms of the plants’ varying heights, textures and colors.
“Half the interest of a garden is the constant exercise of the imagination” – Mrs. C.W. Earle Pot-Pourri from a Surrey Garden (1897)
… but of course, if one is a gardener, exercise of the imagination tends to lead to exercise of the entire body. Mrs. C.W. Earle forgot to mention that part. After all that digging I’ve done so far, boy is my body tired.
Here’s a picture that I took – while taking a break from digging – of one of my favorite foliage arrangements. (Bottom right, heuchera Plum Pudding; bottom left, hosta Liberty; top, unknown hosta variety.) This corner of the garden I am happy with so I am going to leave it be … for now ; ) Happy gardening!
I enjoy growing herbs and edible flowers. Chives are wonderful to grow because both the greens and the blossoms are edible. My favorite use for snipped chives is mixed into plain Greek yogurt with a little salt and pepper for a veggie dip. I use the chopped blossoms in salads and omelets and whole blossoms for garnishes. I just made a bottle of herbed vinegar with whole chive blossoms, snipped chives, golden oregano leaves and a peeled clove of garlic.
To make vinegar wash herbs and shake well to dry. Add to a sterilized bottle. Top with white vinegar or a blend of white and rice wine vinegar. It is generally recommended that the vinegar be of 5% acidity.
Seal bottle with a cork or plastic cap. Store in a cool dark place for several weeks. The flowers will have a bleached appearance and the vinegar will have picked up color from the herbs. Strain vinegar before using. Use in salad dressings or sprinkle on vegetables.
Our irises started blooming about a week ago in back and a few days ago in front. They’re almost a month early this year. Usually they are at they’re peak in mid-May, right around time for K-State graduation and Mother’s Day. This year, they will probably be at their peak in about a week. There are lots of buds ready to pop open. These white irises really glow planted in front of sand cherry bushes! I just love them whenever they bloom. Expect more pictures in the weeks to come. 
Some plants just invite whimsical accents. Here a pot of flouncy petunias, nestled by a pixie statue, adorns our side porch. The key to not going overboard is to place just a few pieces of garden art here and there by informal plantings. On the other hand, if you want to go overboard … enjoy!
“There are many things that catch your eye, but only a few that catch your heart …”
Twelve years ago, I planted two bleeding hearts (dicentra spectabilis) by the front steps, pink to one side, white to the other. The pink was the showier of the two but disappeared a few years ago for some unknown reason. The white, more petite and less showy, keeps returning. Though it goes dormant as soon as summer’s heat sets in, I appreciate the subtle beauty of my white bleeding hearts while in bloom. 
One of my favorite lilacs is Charles Jolie. The one that we have is currently blooming and smells so delightful from the front porch. It has quite a history too. I originally planted it at our old house in 1997. Then when we moved here in 2000, I dug it up and brought it with us. About five years later, it developed lilac borers and we cut it down to the ground leaving only sucker shoots. It took a few years, but the shrub rejuvenated and has been replete with blossoms the last few Aprils. Oh, yes, and you really should smell it.
This is a beautiful time to take walks in Manhattan, not just because of the weather, but because of all of the flowering trees: red buds, white buds, pear, crab apple, and so forth. These are some pictures that I took yesterday while walking past the Manhattan Public Library.
If I was a tulip
And you were wind’s wings,
I would not count
My broken dreams,
But bless the coming spring. (author unknown)
What a beautiful time of year. The rooms on the eastern side of the house have an especially magnificent view right now of crab apple blossoms.
A Taste of Morning 