I woke early today, I don’t know why, perhaps because of Daylight Savings. Seeing the sunrise inspired me to wander the garden with the Pentax.

The only other flower in bloom this week is Dorothy Wycoff Andromeda (Pieris japonica ‘Dorothy Wycoff’). It’s early-March with little else going on and Dorothy is covered with red buds. Andromeda is a reliable broadleaf evergreen growing 4 to 6 feet tall, the perfect size for the back of a foundation planting. Andromeda prefers partial shade, full sun can leave her foliage yellow and susceptible to lace bugs.

Gladiator Alliums (Allium ‘Gladiator’) are starting to emerge. I bought these on a whim and LOVE how easy they are to grow. Alliums, in general, are easy and deserve to be on the ‘Hard to Kill’ list.

There are several groupings of poppies around the yard. For such a fragile flower they are a ‘Die-Hard’ plant.

I have a funny story about poppies.

When my wife and I moved into the house twenty years ago there was a red oriental poppy by the front door. The previous owners were going for a period garden to match the age of the house.

My wife loved that red poppy. I didn’t realize how much until it was too late.

One day, I asked one of the crew to weed the gardens and, unfortunately, he didn’t know the poppy was a plant, not a weed. That poppy was my wife’s favorite plant in the yard. I’ve tried to replace it at least three times. I can never find a deep enough red.

My wife shows gratitude for the replacements but I can tell they’re not right in her eye. I’ll keep trying.

I bought a few tree peonies at Cricket Hill Garden in Thomaston, CT years ago. If you’re a fan of tree peonies you should visit Cricket Hill Garden when the peonies are in bloom.

The peonies have lingered since I planted them, yet it’s no fault of Cricket Hill Garden. They grow extremely slowly and only have a few flowers every year. Last year I culled two of them. This peony is surviving but only gives 3-4 flowers for a week each spring. The flowers are absolutely GORGEOUS so the plant keeps its place in the garden.

Last spring I was ‘Gung Ho’ about my square foot garden but as the season progressed enthusiasm waned. I cleaned out the weeds and vegetable plants last fall. I guess I missed the red onions. If onions can grow in the fridge why not the garden in the middle of winter?

Onions are biennials. The first year they get established the second year they flower and set seed. I should have a nice crop of onion flowers soon!

That’s it for this post. I’ve got to go move the clocks forward.