Phew

The potatoes emerge

This is obviously not my most dramatic image. But it is my potatoes, finally emerging after more than two weeks post planting. I can't tell you what a relief this is. I had two rows of prime garden real estate tied up with them, and knowing that they didn't rot. . .of for some more nefarious reason show themselves. . .is pretty dramatic for me.

Oak seedlings 

Perhaps a little more dramatic is this very dense bunch of oak seedlings.

We had an enormous number of acorns last year. Walking across the lawn felt like you were walking on large ball bearings. They were actually dangerous. So now, the oak seedlings are everywhere, often in bunches. I'll be pulling these and the Ash tree seedlings out of all of my beds for the foreseeable future.

Double-File Viburnum flowers

Speaking of drama, the Double-File Viburnums are putting on their annual show now. I, once again, am so grateful to the folks who planted them. Every year I have pause to wonder why I never saw them growing up. And every year I'm so glad that they're here in this place that is called ours.

In hindsight, it seems odd that someone like me, who has 3 degrees in Horticulture, was unfamiliar with this plant. I'll need to find out how recently they were released. With all of the plant I.D. classes I had, you'd think. . . after all, that was where I first developed my love of Metasequoia glyptostroboides. And yes, spellcheck, that is the proper spelling.

Double-File Viburnums

I have, as promised in a previous post, been checking on our Jack-in-the-Pulpit. It is a surprisingly long lived flower, as these forest species go. Someone has eaten one of the leaves, which are poisonous to humans, but the flower survives, with that central anther becoming increasingly prominent.

The leaves are the trifoliate ones in the image. You can see that one has had a bite taken out of it. 

Jack-in-the-Pulpit, day 5

Jack-in-the-Pulpit leaves