Friday, August 10, 2012

Sweetly fragrant signs of a spring to come....

After what seems like weeks of rain it has been a nice change to finally have some fine weather and get outside. I had a walk around my garden on Wednesday afternoon just after yet another heavy rain shower and was pleasantly surprised to find quite a few things blooming in my garden. Several Camellia's are starting to flower and the above one is one of my favourites. 
The first Rhododendron in our garden to flower is this one with the little trumpet flowers catching a drink of water from the rain.
These Hellebores are growing right over a path that leads down the side of the house but they are just covered with flowers and buds so I haven't the heart to trim them back.
These Grape Hyacinth's grow in numerous places around my garden but they are one of my favourite late winter/early spring bulbs so I don't mind them spreading themselves around a little. 
I picked a good sized bunch of these sweet smelling violets yesterday and have them in a little vase on my kitchen window sill so I can enjoy their fragrance while I do the dishes or prepare meals.

I just love the smell of Daphne and used to have 3 Daphne shrubs in my garden but sadly one that I'd had for years and had actually moved from a previous garden died earlier this year so I'm down to two. This one has such a strong fragrance that can be smelt from quite a distance away.
When our garden was made-over 3 years ago a half a dozen deciduous small trees were planted in different spots that seemed quite pointless to me as they just had leaves every summer with no sign of any flowers. A neighbour at the time told me they were Magnolia trees but I didn't really believe her as the leaves were quite different to other Magnolia's that we did have in our garden. Well I'm pleased to say she was right as they are all covered in buds this year and are just beginning to show their beautiful white/pale pink blooms.

Every afternoon Caitlin lets our hens out to have a roam around our garden. They especially seemed to enjoy my freshly mowed lawn on Wednesday afternoon so much so that they escaped their fenced off enclosure the following afternoon, thankfully after they had laid an egg each. I'm really not sure how they got out but they were just pecking around our garden so I didn't have to search too far for them. Phew I had visions of them walking down the road! They now have both their wings clipped. Thanks Mum!
Mosaic favourites 10/08/12
1. mini hexi garden quilt, 2. Wreath #2, 3. Slow, 4. playhouse, 5. window seat, 6. O que os olhos veêm, o coração sente!!!, 7. Hairclips, 8. oilcloth bag, 9. Sampler Tree Embroidery

And here is a nice little mosaic of some pretty inspiration I have found on Flickr recently. One day I intend to tackle that Sample Tree Embroidery. The pattern can be purchased here.
Wishing everyone a great weekend whatever you have planned :-)

11 comments:

Lara said...

So much beauty in your garden! Lovely :) the girls are filling out too. Pleased they are laying well.

Needled Mom said...

I wish we were heading into spring instead of fall. The flowers look so beautiful.

Lis Harwood said...

Love your garden, beautiful flowers. We are winding down to autumn, although it's warm today it was misty this morning with all the car windows needing wiping :-(

Katy Cameron said...

Oh, I've seen the tree embroidery in person when I was over at Jo's a couple of weeks ago, hope you do get to make one, it's such a stunning design :o)

Michelle said...

Your garden is beautiful! My little plot is starting to show sign of spring too, it must be just around the corner...Enjoy your weekend!

Deb Robertson Writes said...

Your garden looks amazing I love it :)

Cath said...

I love your garden photo's. It looks so inviting, no wonder the chooks like to make their way there!
Cath @ Bits 'n Bobs

Karen said...

Great photos of your rained on flowers. They look so pretty. You are lucky to have so many different flowers in your garden. How good are your eggs? How many do you get a day? Enough for everyone? We have had hardly any rain lately. Not looking good for summer. The August winds have hit and the weekend has been freezing with awful winds.

Julie said...

I loved seeing your violet photos. When I was young and my grandparents lived in Moana Point,Whangamata we would walk up to the point where there was a large patch of them growing wild. A bunch was always picked. Think they have all been mown over now,

Catherine said...

Hi Julie! Glad you enjoyed seeing my fragrant patch of violets which have reminded you of a happy childhood memory. Yes I can imagine those violets of your childhood are no longer....do you still have any family connections in Whangamata?

Cathy @ CabbageQuilts said...

I love seeing around your amazing garden Catherine, your green thumb is incredible. Love those tubs of flowers and herbs? in behind the chooks too. Lovely mosaic inspiration. xo

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