The sun decided to make an appearance today

Lo and behold, the clouds departed today and the sun came out. I read a few days ago that we had only had 3 sunny days this entire winter. I am not sure I believe that, as we do have lots of "sun breaks", but it has rained quite a lot this past month. 

I spent the afternoon in the garden, planting seeds and getting some pruning accomplished. The Dutch iris I planted earlier are blooming. That said, they are on very small stalks. Hmmm, lack of sunlight perhaps? Nevertheless, they brought us quite a bit of cheer today.

 
The Lily of the Valley Shrubs (Pieris) are also blooming and looking wonderful. I never grew this shrub in Alabama and I don't know why. It is quite abundant here and everyone seems to have them. I have planted three in the garden ('Mountain Fire' is not pictured). They are still quite small, less than 2 feet.

Pieris 'Passion Frost'

 

Pieris 'Valley Rose'

 The rain is scheduled to make a return tomorrow morning but we have several sunny, dry days predicted for next week. And the temperatures have climbed into the 50s now. Spring is coming!

Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy