Monday, April 1, 2024

The 366 Project: March

 

Despite having surgery and not being able to move around a lot for a couple days I continued my 366 project, taking a photo every day. Sometimes the photos are not particularly interesting - especially day 8 to day 11 since I spent most of the time on the couch and inside the house. Here are all 31 days:


Some enlarged photos plus a couple more from my garden in March. It was a very rainy month (so grateful for that), but we also had some beautiful sunny days and the garden was just happy.

Last year I planted Pacific Bleeding Heart (Dicentra formosa), a native that is different from the "normal" Bleeding Heart that I knew from home since this one can withstand a certain amount of drought and some heat - it just goes dormant in the summer and reappears in the fall/winter. I had planted it in filtered shade and this spring it came back in abundance, having spread silently over the months. This is the first time that I have been successful with Pacific Bleeding Heart; every time I tried to grow it before I eventually killed it.

In the middle of March I saw beautiful buds of my French Lilac "Pocahontas" and by the end of the month is was in full bloom. Oh, the fragrance!


Growing tulips in our climate is not easy and most of the time they don't come back after the first spring or just as "empty leaves". This spring, however, because of the wet and cool winter, almost all of my tulips came back and also some that I don't remember having planted. A nice surprise.

Orange van Eijk

Dordogne

Marguerite Daisies are such happy little flowers. I was surprised that it did so much better in a pot than in the ground (another failure a few years ago).


Spanish Lavender, of all the lavenders I have, is always the first one to bloom. I didn't plant this one, it just appeared in my garden. Its "parent" died a couple years back.


The ephemeral beauty of dandelion - what is not to love?


This is what a small and relatively new part of my garden looked like just a couple days ago on a rainy morning:


Wolf spiders have become very active, carrying their egg sac around. This one is a wolf spider with a turquoise egg sac, however, I saw more of them with a white egg sac. To all who say "eek" now - spiders are big helpers in the garden. I welcome them because they eat the insects that I don't want to have in my plants like aphids and mosquitoes (raise your hand if you like mosquitoes). No need for insecticids in my organic garden.


Today I don't exactly have a drink for Bleubeard and Elizabeth's T Tuesday, but I want to show you these two mugs that serve as containers for my watercolor brushes and charcoal and graphite pencils. My daughter bought these during her internship in Cape Town, South Africa, as well as the little fabric elephant. The photo of the coyote that you can see behind the elephant was taken by my husband in the Island in the Sky district of Canyonlands National Park in Utah. It is one of my favorite images.





21 comments:

Bleubeard and Elizabeth said...

Even when you are recovering from surgery, you still take incredible photos. LOVED the bread and those tulips are stunning. I'm super impressed with your camera skills. That spider looks scary to me. Stunning raindrops on the tulip. And I would love for my lavender to bloom like yours.

Those mugs from South Africa are gorgeous. And that little fabric elephant certainly makes the vignette complete. Thanks for sharing these wonderful. photos and your mugs with us for T this week, dear Carola.

My name is Erika. said...

Your garden is looking gorgeous Carola. It must be lovely to have so many flowers on April 1. And it's great to see your 31 photos for March. You did a good job of getting varied photos, even though you were recovering from surgery.And those mugs with your art supplies in them are really great. What a super gift from your daughter. And you get to look at them when you work, which makes them even better. Happy April to you and have a great T day too. hugs-Erika

DVArtist said...

Hi Carola. What beautiful blooms. I have no flowers right now. I think this year I will have to purchase and plant some. For some reason nothing has come back. Great shot of the Wolf Spinder. Ohhh I love the mugs. Great post. Have a nice day today.

Mae Travels said...

I love seeing your garden in its spring blossoming phase. The tulips and lilacs are especially impressive, but everything looks glorious. I hope you continue to have such exceptional weather that encourages all this beautiful growth.
best, mae at maefood.blogspot.com

peppylady (Dora) said...

The deer eats the tulips around here. I pretty much given up on lot flower. It makes me sad.

Iris Flavia said...

Sind doch tolle Fotos!
Das blutende Herz habe ich bei uns im Botanischen Garten gesehen.- ach, alle sind so schön!
Ja... Ingo sagt auch immer dass die Spinnen doch helfen. Wenn sie mich nicht beißen ;-)
Schöne Tassen!

roentare said...

I am so envious of your garden. What a great variety of plants. The spider is also lovely to see.

Elephant's Child said...

Loving your photos. I hope you are in full recovery mode now.
Your garden is beautiful - and I envy you the rain. We need some. Badly.

David M. Gascoigne, said...

Congratulations on your success with Dicentra formosa. It is a gorgeous plant and I am glad that it has finally responded to your care and attention. I am especially pleased to see the wolf spider and to know that it has found safe haven in your little corner of the organic world. It is such an interesting creature to observe and given a chance to live its life free from human harassment, a real friend to the gardener. As for a picture every day, keep on doing it. It’s eye candy for all of us. Hugs - David

Michelle said...

I love seeing your blooms and the lilac is gorgeous. Best wishes for a continued recovery.

Lorrie said...

All those beautiful squares representing days in March make for a colourful collage. Life's like that, isn't it?
What a gorgeous garden you have, filled with lovely blossoms. Wolf spiders hang out around here, too, but I notice them most in late summer when their webs glisten in the morning dew.

CJ Kennedy said...

Wonderful photos especially those of the kitty. Spring is really in full swing at your house. It was so nice to see all those beautiful Spring blooms. Happy T Day

Beatrice P. Boyd said...

You 366 project for March photos was very well executed, Carola, considering that you were couch bound for a few of the days. I enjoyed seeing your plants and interests and, of course, the photo of yourself and your cat too. The Pacific Bleeding Heart is a beautiful bloom. As we are experiencing a spring (?) nor'easter here in New England, I am more than envious of the blooms in your garden.

If I asked you before, please excuse the repeat question, but I was wondering what photo equipment you use for your photos as the details are wonderful.

Spyder said...

Hope you had a great Easter and a happy late T for Tuesday! Sorry I'm soooo late! Love all your flower pictures and even the spider. Doesn't look like its a big sack of babies, but it will probably grow!! Have a great weekend ((Lyn))

Jeanie said...

Your blooms are so very far ahead of ours and absolutely gorgeous. I love your 366 project. I should have joined in on that -- it's a wonderful idea!

John's Island said...

Thank you, Carola, for sharing your dedication to your 366 project, even amidst recovery from surgery. Your commitment to capturing a photo every day is truly admirable, and it's inspiring to see how you found beauty and interest even during days spent mostly indoors.

Your appreciation for the role of spiders in the garden ecosystem is refreshing, highlighting the importance of coexisting with all creatures, big and small. It's a testament to your commitment to organic gardening and fostering a harmonious environment.

Thank you for inviting us into your world through your photos and reflections. Wishing you continued recovery and many more days of creativity and discovery ahead.
John

Violetta said...

Ich hoffe, es geht Dir bald wieder besser liebe Carola. Nette Bilder, die Du uns da zeigst. Ich weiß nicht ob Du meine Anwort in meinem Blog bekommst. Daher antworte ich auf Deine Frage nach der Hungerburg auch hier: Das habe ich aus dem Netz kopiert.

Der erste Hof, der Attlmayr Hof, wurde 1840 am Plateau errichtet, der auch Mariabrunn und Oberweiherburg genannt wurde. An diesem Hof wurden Wanderer verpflegt, woher sich der heutige Name ableiten soll: Adolf Pichler soll nach einer sehr mangelhaften Mahlzeit den Ort als „Hungerburg" bezeichnet haben.

Alles Liebe
Violetta

Teresa said...

Me alegra saber que todo va bien para ti y te recuperas bien y sigues con tus proyectos. Gracias por tus fotografías. Yo sigo esperando la llamada para la operación. Un abrazo.

Lowcarb team member said...

Fabulous photographs.
I hope you are continuing to recover well.

All the best Jan

Hilary Melton-Butcher said...

Hi Carola - I love the South African mugs and your elephant - delightful ... having lived in SA for 14+ years ... two friends from here and France have just been back for brief trips ... I'm so envious!!

But brilliant plants you've got growing ... and fascinating to see the Wolf Spider with her turquoise sac ... incredible colour.

I'm pleased your health is obviously continuing to improve ... lovely to see the photos - thank you - cheers Hilary

Sean Jeating said...

Ha ha ha! By "accident" dropping by via Sue (Elephant Child), after a while I spotted "Die Häschenschule", which let the corners of my mouth start an expedition to my ear-lobes. And thus I thought I ought to at least leave a short com(pli)ment. Herewith done. ;-)