Views of Sequim, the Olympic Peninsula. . .and beyond
These enchanting fairy slipper flowers (calypso bulbosa) are gems I’ve found each April since I’ve lived in Sequim. This year only one has bloomed where I’ve typically found two or three. But a peek around the trunk of a tree revealed these.
The blossoms are less than an inch in size and the tallest of these plants is probably six inches high as it leans toward filtered sunlight. As you can see, aside from stems and blossoms, there is little foliage to herald these diminutive plants.
If you like the color yellow this is a fine time to be in Sequim. We’ve got yellow, plenty of it, and it’s seemingly everywhere. It’s dandelion season again!
This is a view across our back “lawn,” former pasture land. It was mowed one week before this shot and immediately after. Around here most people with land spend plenty of time mowing in a futile attempt to stay ahead. But these are power plants. Most of them duck when they hear blades coming. And if you listen carefully you can hear them murmuring, “Sucker!”
No. We have not tried to make dandelion wine. And I know they’re nutritional powerhouses. If you want some, just drop by. They’re free for the taking.
Taxes are due in the U.S. today. It’s no fun for procrastinators and rarely a cause for joy for anyone else, either. So here are some bouquets for all, seen at the Pike Street market in Seattle last week.
Tulips are in bloom. That’s good for something, right?
Red-flowering currant is one of our early harbingers of spring. In the natural landscape still awash in winter drabs, its bright splash of color is a welcome sight.
The little daffodils were blooming but they were crowded out by last year’s dead ornamental grass and summer flowers. As I cut away the grass a mass of little white shells caught my eye. Eggs!
Last year’s grass had sheltered a batch of bird eggs, each about an inch in size. I suppose you could call it a “nest,” though it doesn’t appear to have the typical bits and pieces a bird might call home. I don’t know what sort of birds they might have been. They’re long gone now.
Spring’s almost around the corner and I know summer’s not far behind. But I sure could use a big dose of blooming flowers about now.
Coming soon to a garden near you!