Stirrings in the garden...life goes on

Hamamelis 'Jelena' blooming now

The brutality of this winter for us is evident in many ways. Tempers are short, a wake of dead plants liter the property, depression dips its ugly head when day after day, all we see is grey skies and no signs of life.

Yesterday was still a grey and cold day, after a string of many, but I trudged around the yard after feeding the birds, to see what was happening. There are stirrings. The Hamamelis, or Witch Hazel are in bloom. A sign that all of this should be coming to an end in a few weeks. The dark orange 'Diane' and the lighter orange 'Jelena' are in full bloom. The yellow 'Arnold Promise' was the one that bloomed in the fall and we were thinking that it had reverted back to its origin, Hamamelis virginianus, which is supposed to bloom in the fall, instead of the others blooming in the late winter/early spring. But there are buds on the 'Arnold Promise', so we'll see.

Hamamelis 'Diane' in bloom now

The tulips had been trying to get out back in December, I think, and they are still stubborn and trying to come out, despite the frigid temperatures. Yesterday I observed deer prints in the garden and the tops of some of the tulips have been unceremoniously beheaded. Hopefully they will still bloom, while looking like they had a too-short haircut.

Tulips emerging

We have several large, old Rosemary plants throughout the yard, supplying us with ready herbs, evergreen ground cover and year round interest. These, I am afraid, have been hit hard, along with the Jasmine. The Rosemary is usually dark green and keeps the garden looking alive, but these abnormally frigid temperatures have turned them all bronze, and a close up will look like the thin leaves are blistered from the extreme cold,

We'll have to wait and see of what becomes of them, but while taking a photo for this blog post, I noticed a hint of life on the Rosemary. So maybe all is not lost.

cold damage on the Rosemary

But wait! Is that new growth!?