Seedlings etc.

( Note: Blogger is acting up this evening and won't re-size my images. So, as always to see a bigger version of the pics, simply click on them.)

Nature continues it's showy spring roll out with a seemingly endless array of sights, smells, and bird song. Oh, what a delight it is. Pictured is a Sessile Bellwort which has found a place in the front yard. So perfectly delicate and colored. The other morning I went out to the front deck with a cup of coffee and found myself listening to the beautiful song of some bird I could not identify. It was glorious. The Lilac has been in full bloom these past two days and it's heavenly scent is wafting through the yard imbuing the whole place with a magical aura. Beautiful, moving, and reassuring spring.

Some tulips that blossomed in the past few weeks...

I was late sowing tomatoes, didn't get them started until about two weeks ago. They should nonetheless provide a crop... I hope. With this week's high temps they grew much in the past few days and I potted them on, earlier this evening. They'll go in the ground in a couple of weeks. I have been able to place them outside during the day ever since they germinated and doing so has given them a robust character. Seedlings that are exposed to breezes develop stronger stems than those that are coddled in hot houses. These are going to be very good plants I think. Also sown were some zucchini, which is growing gung-ho, some nasturtiums--doing well, petunias--terrible germination, and black-eyed Susan vine--also far from satisfactory germination. I have 2 of the vines and 2 or 3 petunias! There are enough zucchini plants to probably feed the whole town, prolific as they are. Several plants will go to the neighbors.

Just after potting on the tomato seedlings this evening, with some of the zucchini visible on left...

The cost of plants in nurseries has sky rocketed. Shockingly so. I was at a local place this week, 4" pots are over $8 each! A hanging pot with a large geranium: $50!! I shall say no more other than that is not going to make gardening a money saving effort!

The latest quilt square is presenting challenges. Firstly, the pattern's author pictured the central shapes as two-tone leaves and that didn't suit me, so I decided to make them a stylized sun. So far so good. But there are four flowers, one in each corner, and they have many petals that become very narrow near the center of the flower. I have successfully cut out two of them, but the third one started falling apart at those narrow areas. I think I need to find a more tightly woven wool to use for these. Also, because of the narrowness, blanket stitch is out of the question. I checked the author's sample and she put blanket stitch along one edge of each petal only. I wasn't keen on that either, so I'm sewing these down with whip stitch and may then decorate the edges with something else. Not sure yet.

(I've decided not to crop out my current reading. I never read it as a child, only ever saw the wonderful movie that used to come on TV once a year. It's never too late, and it's an enjoyable quick read! 😊 )