Deep Winter

"In the midst of Winter I find within me the invisible Summer" Leo Tolstoy

I was reading his Three Questions and really thinking about the fact that what matters most is often right in front of you. I'll elaborate more on this later, but I was happy to get some time to do some fun plant stuff this past week, because that was what was in front of me this week. 

Seed Flats are being sown as fast as the orders come in, Hoping we keep some low temps through Feburary as it has been an exceedingly mild winter and I always like a few weeks of reliable frost to keep the Orchard from blooming to early and to help vernalize the seeds. 

Anya and I had a lovely visit to Jane's place, her bulb house was filled with
a wonderful deep winter display of Narcissus and Cyclamen among other things

Narcissus willkomii ,this fragrant little do gooder is perfuming the greenhouse through the deep winter, that along with the spring star flower below make a great combination. 

Ipheion 'Jessie' is starting to add some color in the greenhouse. 

We made a few stops at some nurseries to check out the winter blooming plant collection. Our Chimonanthus is in full bloom now and smells amazing, but we quickly realized we need a Witch Hazel to add to the display at some point. The winter is a great time to shop for dwarf conifers to add winter interest as we.. 

The weather as mentioned was mild and while an unfortunate and heavy fog laden the Valley through the weekend. The dry weather did allow for some garden exploits and a few pictures to be snapped. Lows in the high 30's and visibility a 1/4 mile or less, feels like a cloud forest in the Valley right now.

Cheers,

Mark