St. David’s Day marks the end of the winter and what an interminable one it has been this year. But after a weekend of sun, exciting and beautiful things are happening in the garden.
But to celebrate St. David’s Day and the advent of March today’s vase has to have daffodils, which according to the Bard ‘come before the swallow dares and take the winds of March with beauty’. I couldn’t have put it better myself.
To introduce my vase here is my grand- dog, Hector who no longer gets to spend every Tuesday helping me to dig the garden. Lovely Beatrice has captured his soulful expression beautifully.
The earliest daffodil in the garden is ‘Rijnveld’s Early Sensation’. It is a tall daffodil with a large trumpet and it starts blooming in January. It is still going strong and tides us over until the main March ones get going.
Another early-flowering daffodil is ‘Spring Dawn’ and I love this one, it has pale lemon cups and a creamy white perianth.
But perhaps my favourite early- flowering daffodil in the garden is the dainty ‘February Gold’ which doesn’t loll about as ‘Rijnveld’s Early Sensation’ sometimes does, but who can blame it after a week of snow? But ‘February Gold’ came into bloom after the snow and it stands up beautifully straight and has lovely swept back outer petals.
To go with these early daffodils I used some Summer Snowflakes, Leucojum aestivum which always bloom in winter despite the name. I have clumps of this all over the garden and although it is not dramatic it is useful for vases. The drama is in the sinister- looking black claws of the pussy willow, Salix melanostachys.
It is nice to start off the month with flowers from the garden but there is something worth celebrating in the greenhouse too. It is my mimosa, Acacia deabalta which is in full bloom and filling the air with its warm, powdery scent. The fragrance takes me right back to the south of France where we spent one magical February roaming the mimosa forests of the Massif du Tanneron.
I know that mimosa can become invasive in certain climates and indeed it has become so in the south of France where it threatens the native flora. But here in Suffolk it rarely survives outside although I have occasionally seen it thriving in sheltered corners. Mine lives in a pot in the unheated greenhouse. I am going to have to give it a short back and sides or it will have to take its chance outside next year. But there is no chance of it becoming a nuisance here. I snipped a bit for today’s IAVOM and put it in an old ink pot.
The lemony yellow is a perfect match for the daffodils.
I see that Cathy from Rambling in the Garden who hosts in a ‘Vase on Monday’ has found herself looking towards spring too with some early daffodils. So do go and see. What a lovely and appropriate way to celebrate spring and for me it is a chance to say Happy Birthday to my Welsh friend, David who was appropriately enough born on St. David’s day. Plen-blwydd hapus David. And a very hapus day to everyone now that March is here with all its floral delights.
Chloris
Your spring is having a wonderfully floral start. Makes me anxious for more progress around here. Your mimosa certainly looks exotic – we don’t grow them here. Love the portrait of Hector.
The mimosa has to live in the greenhouse althouh it is not heated. Yes, Hector is adorable and Beatrice has captured his expression really well.
From us here the sight of Snowdrops signals the arrivalof Spring! Yours are even more loveier..beautiful blooms.I look forward to see your Garden in fullbloom.
The snowdrops are getting over now here but there are plenty of spring flowers to enjoy.
Thank you Chloris…I hope to see more colors in the coming weeks too.
I love the daffodils and the Acacia. I wish I had a spot for the latter. I wonder if it could survive my horrid back slope…
I expect acacia would do well for you but it might become a nuisance.
Oh what a beautiful contrast the white touches make with the softer yellows of your narcissi and the mimosa, and your black pussy willow grounds it all together. And a special vase too – how appropriate. Hapus days all round now that spring is on its way! Thanks for sharing your early treasures with us, Chloris
Thank you Cathy, I love these early daffodils.And now we have more and more different ones coming into bloom.
I have begun planting out under the apple trees the contents of pots of little daffodils that have been grown in the Coop, but I don’t label them so it is always a surprise when they bloom
So many lovely flowers – it’s exciting to see spring on its way. 🙂
Yes, it’s an exciting time of year. Each day there is more to look at.
After your big snowstorm, it’s great to see your garden bursting forth – Happy Spring!
Happy Spring Eliza, yes it is certainly burgeoning. The snow didn’t last long, it never does, I shouldn’t really complain, I know you have to put up with it for a long time.
And it’s still here, ha!
Such a treasure chest of spring gifts today! The daffodils are wonderful! My heart is stuck on those wonderful irises and crocuses. Hope all is well with you. Enjoy the week.
Thank you Susie. Spring flowers are such a joy. Yes, we are well thank you but longing for freedom, this has been a long lockdown.
Your garden looks lovely with so many spring flowers. Sadly spring is a long way off in Australia, but when spring arrives the countryside is full of flowering Acacias, ( known as Wattles here) The 1st September is National Wattle day & some people wear a little sprig of Wattle to celebrate it.
Thank you. Of course acacias coms from Australia so they won’t seem exotic to you. Strange to think our seasons are always back to front.
Yes I agree very strange.
I love that you have talked a little about your special daffodils Chloris. Yellow is such a lovely colour, and does it feel so special this time of the year because of the quality of the light? Even should skies be grey yellow flowers shine on in the garden. Do go one enjoying your Mimosa, our neighbour has one out in flower in the garden, and we can share in its beauty, over the garden fence.
Yellow really is the colour of spring isn’t it? And yes, the spring light is wonderful. A mimosa outside? Where do you live Noelle? And do you have a blog? I can’t find a link.
Lovely, the Welsh is indecipherable to me! I was not aware of St David’s Day until reading blogs. I had February Gold daffs in my former garden, they are a favorite of mine as well. I love all the bright yellows and your mug especially.
Yes the mimosa is fabulous. Next year it might be too big for the greenhouse though, I shall have to give it a haircut.
Sounds nerve wracking..
Sorry Amy, my reply must have seemed like a total non-sequitur, it was a reply to somebody else but sometime WordPress puts it in the wrong place. In reply to your comment, I don’t speak Welsh either but I always look up Happy Birthday and Happy St. David’s Day for my Welsh friend. Yes golden daffs are cheery and they shout out spring.
So many beauties in your garden. Oh, so many fantastic daffodils, Spring Dawn is my favourite, she’s stunning. I can almost smell your beautiful mimosa. What a gabulous painting and delightful vase and ink pot.xxx
Thank you Dina. Daffodils are really getting going now and what a joy they are.
What a beautiful illustration of your dog and the daffodils. And the mimosa is fabulous. Dreamy…
Thank you Beth, Beatrice is a very talented artist. The mimosa gives me enormous pleasure, it smells amazing.
The Mimosa is wonderful and I can imagine how good the greenhouse smells. I had forgotten all about St David’s Day but will make up for that by having leeks in my dinner tonight! 😉 Your vase is simply beautiful, and Hector is adorable in that picture too. Was he your dog? Our first daffodils are just sprouting out of the ground and I am glad I have planted some February Gold now that I see how sturdy yours are. 😃
Thank you Cathy. Hector belongs to my daughter, he used to spend every Tuesday with me but these days my daughter works from home and we don’t get to see Hector so often. February Gold is a gem, I love these early daffs.
Beautiful. The mimosa is glorious even with other flowers finally coming on strong outside.
Yes the mimosa is fabulous. Next year it might be too big for the greenhouse though, I shall have to give it a haircut.
OH MY! Acacia dealbata! It is one of the few most aggressively invasive exotic weeds here! Nonetheless, the bloom is awesome! It is difficult to dislike it in bloom.
I know it is a pest in certain climates but it can never be a nuisance here. I love it and it smells so good.
Do you find that the fragrance is variable from year to year? To me, it seemed so different this year from what is normal that I was not sure if the fragrance was from something else. I suspect that it was in conjunction with something else.
I love the portrait of the dog, Beatrice is clearly very talented. It’s lovely to see your garden wake up again after the snow and cold. The shrub in the 6th pic is it a Salix? It’s so pretty. As for mimosa, I had planted one a couple of years ago but sadly it was a pretty cold winter and it died. But there are trees in Najac, a beautiful sight. Roll on spring, I’m ready 🙂
Yes, it’s Salix ‘Mount Aso’ and it is pink, very eyecatching Beatrice is a very talented artist and a lovely person. It looks like spring if you look out of the window but it doesn’t feel much like it yet.
Love all your yellows.
Funnily enough I just bought Salix Mount Aso this evening thus removing it from my want list where it has resided for a while. Salix melanostachys has just gone straight back on to replace it. What a great addition to a vase.
I also have Salix ‘Nancy Saunders’ which is an elegant shrub with tiny pussys.