I mentioned that just before New Years, the temps shot up, reaching around 10C/50F. And they stayed there for almost a week.
While it’s not warm enough to get me out for very long, it’s warm enough to get the gardens excited. Dave and I came home from lunch the other day, and I noticed a whole lot going on.
It was actually this Sedum that caught my eye first. Such a vibrant green, with bright yellow tops, just tipped with red. It’s even more eye catching in real life.
That brought me in for a closer look.
Bulbs popping up everywhere! Now the temperature has dropped, but that won’t hurt the bulbs. They will do this over and over again until the weather warms up and stays that way.
Unfortunately, I did notice quite a few bits of green popping up in the pathways. I didn’t plant any bulbs in the pathways, so it can only be the dreaded Star of Bethlehem. I dug so much of it out, but it’s not as surprise I missed some. I’ll be battling it for years to come, I’m sure.
It’s not just the bulbs that perked up.
I love the big Sedum when it first starts growing. They look like mini cabbages, or little rosebuds. I will be adding some new Sedums to the garden in spring. They are great for pollinators and add wonderful colour to the fall garden.
It never takes much to get the poppies (left) and Lupins (right) going. Both will bloom by mid-May. And I’ve learned I can keep the Lupins going longer by deadheading. The poppies go dormant in the heat of summer, but sometimes do a second bloom in fall, if you’re lucky!
Even the Butterfly Bush got excited by the brief warm-up! This really surprised me, because normally, the Butterfly Bush is one of the last plants to come back to life. It’s not unusual to no see signs of life until mid-May here!
I didn’t want to poke around too much, and disturb all the little critters sleeping in the leaves, but it was so nice to see these little bits of green.
It’s back to cold now, and of course, there’s still LOTS of winter left.
But smart little me did an order with a couple of my fave bulb suppliers BEFORE January 1st hit. So now I can sit back, dream, and wait for the sun…
… and dream of all the wonderful blooms to come!
Wandering Cat Studio 
My poor potted black-eyed Susans keep popping up and then withering down when it gets cold. This extreme roller coaster has everything confused.
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Sedum is high on my list of plants to acquire in 2023.
The weather has been a bit all over the place.
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That was a good description of your sedums! I should go in my backyard & see if anything popped out. It’s been cold & rainy here in northern Illinois but I’ll take that any day over snow!
You ordered some beautiful plants. Can’t wait to see them bloom.
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I noticed the little start of a daffodil the other day. It sure HAS been crazy for winter.
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You are certainly going to have beautiful gardens in the spring. The weather rollercoaster has brought my area back to winter also. We had several days of upper 60s but cold and rainy today.
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Oh, those are exciting new additions to the garden! Nice to see that the promise of Spring is there just waiting for its turn!
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We have a few things peeking out, too. And then there’s the moss everywhere. Our Mollis azalea looks like a moss bush. Picking that off will keep me busy for quite a while.
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We’ll be in the 40’s for the next week so we’ll probably see a bit of green too. I know there is lots of winter left but I’m ready for spring. And I would love spring to last a long, long time.
Blessings,
Betsy
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