First Flowers

First blueberry blossom

 According to this blog, last year the crocuses were blooming by February 24th, and in 2014 they had budded in early February but didn't actually bloom until early march.  But 'usually' as in 'the way it used to be' they would bloom in late March or early April.  And if it was a good winter (like in 2009 or 2012) they would not bloom until late April.  This year I first noticed the crocuses blooming in the sun yesterday on March 3rd.  So not a record for our house, but pretty darn early. However, we can't really call the crocuses a harbinger of Spring because we never did have winter (and I still have some hopes in that regard).

 Yesterday during my walk with the dogs in Abercrombie I noticed that the blueberries are also blooming.  It looks like it may be another banner summer for picking blueberries in the park.

 When I got home from my walk I checked around in the garden and noticed that my garlic is all sprouting up through the spruce boughs I used to needlessly protect them from the cold, and that some of the shoots are already 3 inches tall.  Of course, like last winter, the kale never did die.  This year the parsley did not die either, and I even noticed that some of the swiss chard bulbs are sending up new shoots.  It will be interesting to see how it tastes!  Of note, the kale that survived the winter of 2014/15 finally did die - so it looks like kale has a 2 year life cycle in a warm climate.  Patrick

Blueberries are blooming in the woods

Garlic shoots in the garden

First Crocus

Kale that never died