Tiny Flowers

Some of the things blooming in the rock garden right now have very tiny flowers.

I'll lead off with one of the brand new sedums. I'm very happy with it, but it may not be hardy. I'm going to leave some out for the winter and bring another pot inside to be sure I'll have some come spring. I think I do need to buy a grow light. I suspect my poor luck with overwintering is related to poor light.

This is the 'Little Missy' Sedum. The flowers are extra-tiny. The leaves are only about a quarter inch long.

Here's one I've shared off and on. This is one of the Sedum hispanicum varieties. I have 'Blue Carpet,' and 'Pinkie.' They tend to move themselves around and pop up who knows where. I expect they also get promiscuous. But my guess is this is 'Pinkie.' Betsy just gave me another clump, too, that seems to be neither blue nor pink.

Can you even see the flower on this one? Unlike the Creeping Thyme that gets covered with blossoms, this is Thyme 'Sparkling Bright.' It's taller and the foliage looks more white from a distance. But it does get tiny light purple flowers.

This is the Creeping Speedwell 'Georgia Blue.'

Finally, here is a really, really tiny one. I won't tell you what this is today, but it will be featured again.

In other news: The ground squirrel must be slipping under the fence. He's doing some damage. I put out repellant. Lets' hope he doesn't like it.

In the morning, I worked my little part-time summer job and weeded the driveway flower bed in the afternoon. I finished the big section of that and was going to show you, but the light is all dappled now, and pictures are no good. So that will be another day.

Tomorrow, I'll be doing trail work. Have to get up earlier than I like, but I can do it. And if I'm home in time, I have a meeting in the afternoon.

See Sorting Out Sedums

More New Things

We'll start with the last two of the new plants. The final one I had ordered came today. It's very tiny, but I have hopes it will spread. Actually, it will probably do so faster if I separate the rosettes. Maybe tomorrow. It's a Sempervivum- one of the arachnoideum (has filaments like a spider web on it) and is called 'Arctic White.'

Here it is in context. Definitely need it to spread. I spent a fair amount of time deciding where best to put it.

The other new plant I bought last month may turn out to be a mistake. Or not. The leaves are a vary dark green, which is a nice contrast depending on what's next to it. (Not much yet.) And the flowers are a deep blue. But they are also very small, so they are pretty much lost in the rock garden. We'll see if it survives. It is Veronica peduncularis 'Georgia Blue.' Common name- Creeping Speedwell.

The thing down on the road that is new is the paving project. Lots of people are complaining about how disruptive it is, but I can assure you that when I was a kid a project of this magnitude would take at least one whole summer. They will probably have all 5 miles of this done in a month. I'm impressed. The only thing that's tricky is they are doing it so fast you never are positive which lane is the one you are supposed to be in. No accidents so far!

This is new only in the fact that I've never seen a mourning dove come on the deck before. It both used the bird bath and took a few seeds from the saucer. Fun!

In other news: We got 0.7 inch of rain yesterday, but things dried out pretty well by afternoon so I could work in the garden without getting too wet. I did all the tasks as usual. Still trying to work my way through the rock garden for the second time this season. But I've now completed all the spaces where I have to be slightly acrobatic to get to them. The rest will definitely be easier.

Sigh. I have 3 plants in an online shopping cart. Because I had a gift card for most of what I've bought so far this year, I'm not even remotely close to what I spent on the gardens last year. But I still need more money for my tooth, and I just had a big car repair too. Decisions, decisions!

See Some of the new plants

Little Pretties

 
Just some little pleasures as I walked to town. Two are alien, I'm sorry to tell you, but I can enjoy them anyway.

I always love the clear blue of Speedwell. This is common speedwell, Veronica officinalis. This one is native at least.



Here's one you can munch on, Cerastium vulgatum. It's a chickweed. In general they are easy to ID as a group because the white flowers are small and have five petals that are cleft so they almost look like 10. All the chickweeds are edible. Put the flowers and tender leaves in salads, or cook the leaves and stems as greens.



That said, This one is Mouse Ear Chickweed. You can see why it's called that. The leaves are really hairy. You are supposed to cook these leaves before eating. I've actually never tried any of them as a cooked green. Maybe I should.



Finally for today, we have the English Daisy, Bellis perennis. They are supposed to be invasive and I've tried to get some to grow in my yard. Not invasive for me! Can't convince any to live.



Well, I did mow some grass. And I walked to the P.O. and bank, which is when I took these pictures. Worked on another little outside project that I may show you tomorrow. Then I started another puzzle. Now that the maps are done, I can play on that table again.

See Spring Out and About See Little Pleasures

Spring Out and About

 
Out doing cases today and sure enjoying all the bright spring colors!

First of all, just some plain old weeds, but I love them. Bright yellow dandelions and blue common speedwell.



Here's the speedwell, closer.



Moving along to flower beds. Suddenly, from not being spring at all, there are now whole beds of tulips blooming.





But I always have to return to the rebellious little flowers that like to bloom wherever they want. I have no idea if this is an actual variety name, but my mother always called the two-toned violets, Confederate violets.



I'm pretty much over my cold. Good thing because I have to set the alarm and be at work in the morning. Work isn't bad, it's that morning part that gets me!

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Birds-eye Speedwell

 
The other day when I featured buttercups, Carol of Duxbury Ramblers said she saw some speedwell hiding among them. She's right! And who needs more snow? So I bring you the Birds-eye Speedwell, Veronica chamaedrys, also known as Germander Speedwell.



It's so bright blue and stunning when sweeps of it fill the roadsides or meadows. It never gets this tall where I live, but on the last two New York hikes we've seen lots of it looking this healthy. Here's a closeup.



And, if you care, it can be distinguished from common speedwell by the sessile leaves (no stalks).



When they grow with the buttercups, it's my two favorite colors together.

	See FLT- Fletcher Hollow Road to Delaware River
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FLT- Fletcher Hollow Road to Delaware River

 
Wednesday we hiked in warm temperatures, almost too warm, but not terrible. It's just hard to go from cool to hot so quickly. We were on roads all day long. I know that probably sounds unpleasant, but it isn't really. The roads are little traveled, and you often get views, because the trees don't close everything in.



Can you guess that we walked over Walton Mountain? It was 1200 feet up, but the grade wasn't bad, and it turned out to be a really easy day at 8.2 miles. We were actually done by noon.

The day was hazy, so views were muted, but with a beauty of their own.





Two of my personal roadside favorites- yellow common buttercup and birds-eye speedwell.



We were not sorry to finish hiking quite early. We spent part of the afternoon sitting in the cars waiting out a downpour.



But the evening cleared up, and the geese brought their brand new babies out for a first swim.



OK- gotta head to work fast! Bye.

	See FLT Hiking - Barbour Brook Rd to Fletcher Hollow Rd.
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