Lilacs in Full Bloom

Iowa's Lilacs are full bloom this week, the smell is heaven on earth.

Camera Critter Saturday

Ants are on the peonies, fragrance nirvana is soon to follow!

Ruby Tuesday-Salvia

Today's Flowers Blue Bells

The Blue Bells are currently in full bloom in Iowa, which is a good 2-3 weeks earlier than normal.    Growing up I remember picking them for Mary's May alter.  I have had them growing in my yard for over 30 years, they are so pretty with the buds being pink and the flowers the most beautiful sky blue.

Camera Critter Saturday

Nap Time.

Blood Root Again

This is what the blood root looks like after it's leaves come out.

Nanking Cherry Blossoms

We have several Naking Cherry Bushes, they get tiny little cherries on them that the birds love later in the summer.  They are the 1st shrub to bloom in the spring. 

Blood Root

Bloodroot is a variable species growing from 20 to 50 cm tall, normally with one large, sheath-like basal multi-lobed leaf up to 12 cm across. The flowers are produced from March to May, with 8-12 delicate white petals and yellow reproductive parts. The flowers appear over clasping leaves while blooming. Plants are variable in leaf and flower shape and have in the past been separated out as different subspecies due to these variable shapes; currently most taxonomic treatments lump these different forms into one highly variable species. Bloodroot stores sap in an orange colored rhizome, that grows shallowly under or at the soil surface. Over many years of growth, the branching rhizome can grow into a large colony. Plants start to bloom before the foliage unfolds in early spring and after blooming the leaves expand to their full size and go summer dormant in mid to late summer. Plants are found growing in moist to dry woods and thickets, often on flood plains and near shores or streams on slopes, they grow less frequently in clearings and meadows or on dunes, and are rarely found in disturbed sites. The flowers are pollinated by small bees and flies, seeds develop in elongated green pods 40 to 60 mm in length and ripen before the foliage goes dormant. The seeds are round in shape and when ripe are black to orange-red in color. Deer will feed on the plants in early spring.

Caution: the sap is toxic;

Blood Root

My blood root is in full bloom right now.  It is one of my favorite plants.

Today's Flowers

Spring has finally sprung in Iowa.

Camera Critter Saturday

Quasi-Boy makes such a nice soft pillow.

Hoya Bloom

Someone asked to see the photo I started with to do the kaleidoscope, this is not the exact one, I couldn't find it, but this is the shooting star hoya, it blooms almost all year long, the only bad thing about it is that it drips sap off the end of the flowers that is really really sticky.

Hoya Bloom

This is a Shooting Star Hoya Bloom turned into kaleidescope.

Wordless Wednesday

Mosaic Monday

Mosaic Monday................ this is also my 500th blog post.

Today's Flowers

Quite a bit of photo manipulation on this one.......... from last spring's garden.

Camera Critter Saturday

I took this photo at the Reiman Garden Butterfly House...................... kind of  Easter Eggy colors, don't you think?