Path to Garden Bench
SE Corner, Heatherwood Garden
We do not have many cloudy days like this in Eastern Washington. Cloudy days make colors pop in the garden. Tones of green mixed with yellows, blues, and pink draw me into this little garden path. Where does it lead? Around the corner in an Adirondack bench shaded by a Wireless Zelkova. It’s a perfect private place to sit and enjoy a view upward to the garden and hills above.
Lower Patio Garden Bed
Heatherwood Spring
It has been almost a month since my last post. How time flies by! We have been very busy working on developing our new southern conifer bed. Meanwhile, other parts of the garden have been busy bursting out their spring color. This part of the garden is now its peak color of the year. My camera has been replaced by a shovel and I almost missed recording some of our spring color.
The part of the garden that we have been working on is not at the photographing level yet. It is a dirt path lined with small conifers with no bark or ground covers. It will take a year or two to get to a state of interest. So, in the meantime I will continue to focus my photography on the more mature parts of the garden.
Acer Palmatum ‘Katsura’ Leaves
Heatherwood Spring
Our Katsura is one of the first Japanese maples to leaf out in the spring. It has these beautiful yellow leaves outlined along the edges in red. It pops out among our other conifers and deciduous trees. Currently we have it planted in an open area in our woodland garden section. The leaves get a little scorched in late summer. Finding the right spot in our harsh eastern Washington summer environment is difficult and requires a bit of trial and error. Should I be patient and wait for other trees in the woodland to get larger and provide some afternoon shade, or should I make the move now and transplant it in a more protected area?
Crabapple Grove
Heatherwood Spring
The first of our crabapples have started blooming. For several days the flower buds kept getting bigger and bigger. Then two days ago they just started bursting open. There are seven different varieties of crabapples in our Heatherwood garden. They all reach their peak bloom at different times. This brings us a gift of blooming crabapples for around two weeks. The crabapples highlight the south east corner of the garden as the field of daffodils decline.
Akebono Flowering Cherry
Heatherwood Spring
It pays to stroll through the garden every day at this time of year. New blooms burst out every day. In this case with our Akebono cherries, the glory of the full bloom only lasted one day. The temperature dropped into the 20’s the day that the cherries burst out in full bloom. The next morning the bright white blossoms were brown.
Garden strolls remind me to stay in the present and enjoy each and every moment. When I see something that catches my eye, I take the time to stop and explore it. I sometimes get close and touch the plant and feel its uniqueness. Who knows, tomorrow it may change.
Lower Garden Entryway
Heatherwood Early Spring
Late afternoon sunshine brings warmth to our Heatherwood garden. This was taken at about 5:30P just before the sun set behind the hills to the west. The yellows and reds of the yellow and red twig dogwoods highlight the scene. The Selah Ridge above sets the background. The curving grass walkway provides an entryway to the garden from the road. It gives a peek into the garden for walkers as they pass by.
Cornelian Cherry Dogwood (Cornus mas ‘Golden Glory’)
Heatherwood Spring
When I think about dogwoods I envision large white or pink bracts. When I think about ornamental cherries I see tight white or pink blooms. The Cornelian cherry dogwood has neither. However it does have small red cherry-like fruit in the fall.
I first saw a Cornelian cherry dogwood in the Morris Arboretum in Philadelphia. In late winter/early spring on one of my walks, I saw this large yellow blooming shrub-like tree. At a distance, I thought it was a large forsythia bush. As I got closer, it looked very different. I had no idea of what it was. I went to the visitor’s center asked what it was. To my surprise, they told me it was a dogwood!
For many springs and many visits to the Morris Arboretum, I scouted for the yellow blooming dogwood. It was consistently one of the first if not the first blooming tree in the Arboretum. It was truly a harbinger of spring and many later flowering trees.
When I moved back to Selah, WA and started developing our Heatherwood garden, a Cornelian cherry dogwood was one of the top ‘must have’ trees on my list. I always think of the many happy memories of the Philadelphia area and strolls in the Morris Arboretum when I view our special tree here in Heatherwood. Even though I live across the country from the Morris, I still am a member and supporter of the Arboretum. It is a must see when visiting the Philadelphia area.
Crabapple Grove and Daffodils
Heatherwood View From Upper Lawn
Spring brings a wave of daffodils to Heatherwood’s crabapple grove. When we planted the crabapples and daffodils, we were hoping that their blooms would overlap. The leaves of the crabapples are just showing life as the daffodil blooms are peaking. The crabapple blooms will arrive about two weeks later. When they do come out, the daffodil blooms will be in their decent. As we all know from experience, the best laid plans do not always work out. On the positive side, between the daffodils and crabapples we have about four weeks of spring blooming in this section of the garden.
Star Magnolia Bloom
Heatherwood Spring
I can hear the magnolia blossoms speak, “I am almost there. Give me one more day and I will be in my full spring glory.” One day makes a huge difference when the star magnolias start to bloom. One day there are only buds waiting to burst open. A day later more buds are enlarging and a few start to emerge into blossom. The next day blossoms are unfolding all over. Then they are all in full bloom. The wind starts to blow and the edges begin to look a bit tattered. Then the tips start to turn brown. Soon the blossoms cover the ground like a blanket of snow. I try not to miss a day walking by and enjoying the spring glory of our star magnolias.
Cornelian Cherry Dogwood
Heatherwood Spring
Spring started with sunshine and warm days here at Heatherwood. The Cornelian cherry dogwoods, star magnolias, forsythias, and early flowering cherries are in full bloom. The daffodils are right behind.
Spring brings new growth and re-emergence. It is a catalyst for fresh new thoughts and experiences. Enjoying new things in the garden helps me focus on what is right about this world. Positive thoughts are essential with all the crazy things that are currently going on.