Every year I pick the first spring bouquet, and take a picture of it. In
the past years, I've done this with first a 110 camera, then a 35 mm camera,
then my first digital, and now tonight with my newer digital. It marks the
first breath of spring regardless of the date, or the weather later on.
More often than not, the first bouquet reflects who I cut and bring in to
save against Mom Nature's winter fits. I also cut them to have at least one
vase to bring in to look at and smell and be reminded even if the warmth of
the house causes them to fade faster than the cool nights and late winter or
early spring days.

This year I took the plunge and cut a Hellebore stalk and added it to the
mixture of narcissus and one lone woods hyacinth. Each narcissus was
perfection. Creamy white with darkening butter yellow ruffled cups, an
orange red short cup with a soft yellow petal, a ruffled orange with ruffled
cream and yellow gathered like poppies with soft white petals, good strong
yellow King Alfreds, ruffled white cupped with greenish white petals, the
Hellebore was the slight greenish purple with freckles, and the woods
hyacinth was a soft sky blue that competed with the subtle fragrances of the
narcissus.

I picked out a ceramic pitcher that my mom had found at Woolworths 5 & 10
store for a nickle with the painted daylily on it and put everyone into the
little container, stopped at a secret place and picked 25 strong butter
yellow daffs to fill in the container and took it to work for everyone to
enjoy during the cold, rainy, miserable day. On my way home I picked the
pitcher up and the mom with the hyperactive, bouncy girl scout out front
selling cookies asked where I got the flowers I was taking home. When I told
her they were from my yard, she exclaimed "in THIS WEATHER???? You have
spring flowers at your house already??? This gives me hope!! " g

Just around the corner honey, it won't be very long now..............

madgardener up on the ridge, back in fairy holler overlooking the shadows of
English Mountain in Eastern Tennessee where it's been a bone chilling rainy
cold all day and into the evening, zone 7 (feels like zone 4 today) Sunset
zone 36