Wishing you a Happy New Decade!

Mother Nature has graced us with an incredibly mild season so far. In fact, yesterday it seemed a little spooky it was so warm, mid-70s. The lead photo was taken in the beautiful morning light. Everything is so bright and beautiful (you know the song) even with the long shadows of winter. I like to think that this all bodes well for the year 2020. Update- Apparently, we aren't the only ones with super mild winter temperatures. Western Norway just set a record high of 66 degrees in January.

The first Spring like surprise is the japonica camellia. Last year we had a heavy snow storm which caused a branch from the neighboring ligustrum to fall on the camellia and shook off its flower buds. Normally, we wouldn't see open blossoms until late February.

The oxalis are flowering profusely.

Blue scabiosa plants ( pin cushion flowers) that havent died back.

Jack Frost brunnera plants. I look forward to their beautiful blue blossoms this Spring.

Early blooming hellebore. This one plant is much further along than the others. It is probably receiving more sunlight. I transplanted this last Spring.

Love in a mist, nigella damascena seedlings

Black Knight butterfly bush, It's so green right now that my sister asked me what it was. This bush is flanked by the ligustrum hedge.

New growth on the bay plant.

The epimediums didn't get their fall color this year, so they haven't gone through a "stressful" period yet.

The yellow pincushion flowers are still blooming, although it's sparse.

On Dec. 29th I saw a cloudless sulphur butterfly. I hope he has found some food.

Of course the Moody Blues Pink veronica is still going strong.

There is very little die back in the fern bed.

Both the wild and cultivar columbines are still above ground. Unfortunately, I'm not seeing signs of the Lavender Lavinka columbine that is in the front yard. I hope that the flash drought of autumn didn't kill them. I planted seeds in a few places so hopefully they will continue the line.

We often plant pansies in the autumn here in zone 7. They are thriving in the strawberry pot. This is the first time I've tried that. So far, so good.

Snow drops are emerging, at least I hope that's what these are. I planted a few this Fall. We also have plenty of Star of Bethlehem. In Georgia this is described as a "noxious" weed. We let some grow when we saw their white star shaped blossoms one year. They are nice, but they will colonize.

Venus has returned to the evening sky in late 2019. She is so beautiful.

Another reason to feel positive about 2020!

Hey, my new 2020 calendar just arrived. Happy New Year everyone!