baby trees, hearts and butterflies...

it's that time of the year again,
the house is scented lilac.

i hate to snip stuff from the garden,
but i get over it pretty quick.
what's nicer than fresh flowers?

well actually...
i love me some baby trees  a lot too.
i have transplanted over 100
onto our 1 acre lot.

when we landed here
almost 5 years ago...
things were looking bare.
the yard was wide open...

i think people snickered
and judged.
pffff....
look at those silly little trees...

...crazy chick
with her
little itty bitty trees...
well...with patience and faith
they are getting big and beautiful.
some are over 6 feet now...
my own forest to be.

it takes time,
but stuff happens
and it all fills in
and spreads out...

yesterday the butterflies and dragonflies arrived.
gotta love those dragonflies.
they. eat. mosquitoes.
enough said.

one of my all time favorites.
bleeding heart....
whoever came up with this design
must have been a helpless romantic.

i swoon

they make me smile.
poppies and irises are on the way.
daisies too....
yay!
xox

why i love to garden...

you must move slowly,
take your time to weed out what isn't
meant to be.

if i'd been in a mad rush to pull and dig
i would have missed these tiny lupins.
it's their first time here
and i am so glad for them to stay...
thankfully i saw them before they were mistaken
for clover.

i would have destroyed this pretty little web...
perhaps the spider would have ended up in my hair...eww.

my garden will never be perfectly pruned,
my lawn will never be without weeds.
these wild strawberries are everywhere...
and i know the bunnies and birds will
enjoy them later.

clumps of these sweet blossoms have managed to
seed themselves in the oddest places
and i haven't the heart to pull them while they
are looking so spectacular.

this petite tulip is growing all alone
looking a bit like the runt of the bunch,
but i know that if i just let it do it's thing
it will be bigger and better next year.

gardening just makes you take the time to appreciate
the unexpected.
all the time we've lived here
i never knew that this tree flowered.
i stood in the yard looking at it and said out loud,
"who knew?"

when you slow down and look closely at things
you see the good you've done.
planting seedling evergreens
means you have to be very, very patient.
 but sure enough, every spring they get a bit bigger...

i plopped these pussy willow cuttings  in  a wet corner
...two years ago...
and now they are finally starting to feel at home.

Allie loves the company.
she is happiest in the garden too.
she takes after her mama...
she was a neighbourhood cat that the girls and i
affectionately called Garden Gal.

...be gentle in the garden.
accept that it doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful.
make up your own rules.
one of mine is to let it stay where it is as long as it
isn't bothering anyone.
this lily of the valley is coming up
in the middle of a hosta.
i'm not touching it...

this wild violet is cozy
in it's hiding spot.
i'll leave it be...

i love to garden.
it's dirty and not easy,
but it just calms me down every time...
and it's not on my chore list,
because it is my pleasure!