African Garden + time

December Bloom Day '11

The little Fuchsia I've managed to keep alive for several years now is back in bloom, just in time for Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, hosted by the ever-inventive Carol of May Dreams Gardens. We're experiencing unusual warmth here at Squirrelhaven, with highs in the 40sF in recent days (54F/12C yesterday) and lows above freezing. The warmth comes too late for the garden, however, after a low of 9F/-13C with no snow cover last weekend. Consequently, we must look indoors for blooms.

This florist's Cyclamen is a bit of a cheat. I just got it the other night. It had been a decoration on the stage for the girl's Christmas choir concert. The school asked parents to purchase the plants for the decorations, which could be taken home after the concert. My track record with this type of Cyclamen has been uniformly dismal. I'll enjoy it through the holidays, then it will probably need to be euthanized. The Amaryllis is still blooming and has a second bloom stalk that's nearly ready to open.

Outside this morning, I did manage to find one bloom.

the last pansy

Were this unusual weather to hold, there would be snowdrops for Christmas.

Galanthus elwesii

However, there's already a change in the weather, and the temperature is beginning to head back down to normal. Now I'm just hoping for a white Christmas.

Happy Bloom Day!