Bulbs

My Three Devils

| Flower Roberts

I want to begin by saying that I believe in the evils of man. I pity the plants that are given such names. These will be loved by me despite their assigned, evil names. As luck would have it, my next blog post will be about ‘Lucifer’ Montbretia. They are heavenly right now.

My friends, the Popes, delivered their last two Devil’s Tongue plants yesterday. They have purged them from their gardens. I am happy to be their new mama. I have a lovely spot for them picked out.

I put all three pots together for a photo.

The little sprout poking out in the pot to the right is the now infamous Amorphophallus konjac from earlier posts. It is to my great relief that the accidental castration did not kill it. https://floweralley.org/?s=Amorphophallus

The mishap was fortuitous because I never would have uncovered the ‘brain’ bulb had I not be concerned over its survival. https://floweralley.org/?s=Devil%27s+Tongue

I love the umbrella plume of foliage.

Amorphophallus konjac

The stem has unusual markings.

I will update you on the three Devils when they are settled in to their new home.

FLOW

My Future will be Blue

| Flower Roberts

I am planting blue flowers for the spring in memory of my daddy.

I have faith in the future despite the moody climate.

There will be beautiful blue to greet me when this winter ends.

I look forward to a new beginning. My daddy’s love will be there.

I have put these Muscari azureum bulbs in a protective basket (suet feeder).

Some bulbs seem to disappear here. I also surround bulbs with lava rocks for protection.

Notice the satellite cable encircled with rods and an orange chopstick.

Nothing is safe from my shovel. I mark bulbs with swizzle sticks the color of the future flowers.

Looking forward to a beautiful spring.

Keep the faith.

Flow

Seeing Stars

| Flower Roberts

Starflowers are in full bloom today.

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This variety of ipheion is named ‘Alberto Castillo.’

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Some little forager gave this bunch a trim last week.

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The petals have lovely green and brown stripes down their backsides.

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I love seeing stars!

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Daffodil Meme

| Flower Roberts

I am a fan of variations on a theme.

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I also like unusual daffodils.

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Here are some of the many varieties blooming right now in my gardens.

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They aren’t just yellow.

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They aren’t  all mellow.

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Some have trumpets. (Like Dizzy Gillespie)

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I must mention that the cups are called coronas. (These are not contagious.)

They have divisions named for their cup type or lack of one or petal curvature or blooms per stem… (Look Knight, there’s twee!)

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A daffodil by another name, is a Narcissus.

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Tete a Tete Twins

| Flower Roberts

I love anything blooming right now.

Yellow flowers are like spots of sunlight in the garden.

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All daffodils are appreciated, but I do have a favorite.

The Tete a Tete bulbs form little bouquets.

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They look this way because they have short stems

and because some stems hold twins.

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This habit makes the bunch look like a bouquet.

Two cute is too cute!

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Flower

Season Lessons

| Flower Roberts

I appreciate the snow because I know I will miss its whiteness and brightness.

I celebrate in the white confetti falling and clinging to everything.

I listen to the rain with a glad heart.

I will miss its cool drops in the heat of August.

I wish the warmth of summer could stay in my bones through the chill of winter.

Each season has its lessons of gratefulness and faithfulness.

During winter, I have faith in spring.

I know that in the soggy, cold soil are future flowers.

Snowdrops, crocus, scilla, narcissus and tulips.

I know because I put them there. I planned for spring.

I believed in spring during a crisp and colorful fall many years ago.

Even in the cold, dark winter. I have faith in spring.

Everybody needs some spring in their heart.

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HAPPY VALENTINE’s DAY

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Name this Angel

| Flower Roberts

It’s been a tough winter so far.  I have not gotten to spend much time outside.

I walked around my yard today.  I took my camera, just in case.

I could not believe my eyes when I spotted this beauty.

What is it?  When did I plant it?

My records have turned up nothing. Could it be a Ziva in January?

Maybe it is an angel.

My angel would be a plant.

If you know its name, please let me know.

I will treasure it forever.

It brightened this day in a special way.

Flower

Another Star in the East

| Flower Roberts

This is called “Star of Bethlehem”, but it is not the weed that is native to North Carolina.

This is Ornithogalum arabicum.

Its blooms sit on a eighteen-inch stalk.

It has a lovely fragrance.

I love the shiny black eyes in the center.

Mine are planted near our walkway into the house.

It is a star in my eastern garden, though it comes from the Mediterranean.

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