Here we are at the end of April and Maine still can't quite make up its mind about what season we're in! We woke up to a dusting of snow yesterday morning...nothing unusual for up here but discouraging nevertheless especially since it has been decidedly chilly and wet most of the week, and the forecast isn't all that encouraging either! But the Snow Crocuses were still beautiful with their white frosting, don't you think?
And everything seems determined to grow despite the weather! My gardens are starting to come to life and there is already so much that needs to be done. I did manage to do some cleaning up of the flower gardens a few days ago. This one was still under some snow and too wet at the time though, so it still looks like a tornado (aka winter! 😁) went through...
The herb garden with more Crocuses. The camera doesn't do it justice, but I love to look at the gardens from a little distance at this time of year and see the tiny spots of color in the fresh earth! I'm also very happy to see that my Foxgloves survived this time!
And the third of my flower beds...notice the little patches of blue under the rose bushes!
And if you'll come closer, you'll see that heavenly blue comes from the first Chionodoxa flowers which just opened this morning!
The first Dutch Crocus bloomed today as well...
The seed population is growing slowly but surely. I have started sprouting seeds on moist paper towels in baggies and then potting them and moving them out immediately so the kitties don't get to them. I'm able to start a lot more at a time that way! 😁
I'm hoping to be able to move the Heartsease plants into the garden sometime next week. They don't mind the cold...there's even one lone plant in the garden now that actually survived the winter and is trying to bloom!
The woods have been calling me the last few days but it has either been too cold and wet, or I was too busy with other things (like sewing). But I finally managed to sneak away for a little while this morning. It was delightful! There is such a fresh, earthy smell in the air everywhere!
Oh, but before we go too much further, I wanted to show you this picture...of a fence! 😃 Well, the reason is to show just how high the snow had been. That fence and the T-post in the middle were completely buried a month ago!
Entering the woods...the snow is down quite a bit but there were still a few areas that were quite deep yet and almost impassible without snowshoes.
I was mostly focused on looking for Coltsfoot again, but I actually didn't get very far before I made a discovery of a very different nature! It turned out to be the skull of an Alces alces! It had evidently been there for a while, so I'm not sure how I missed this all last summer...I suppose it could have been well-hidden amongst the plants.
Look at those teeth!
A leg bone was laying 10 or 15 feet away and there were some other, smaller bones around, but not the full skeleton.
A better view of the skull, which I couldn't resist taking home to show my family!
Just for size comparison...
Alright, I will leave you with a prettier sight now. 😊 The morning glories continue to delight with new flowers almost daily. This morning they surprised me with 5 flowers open at once!
What a find in the woods...and clever giving it some scale. It must be such a privilege to know there are such beautiful creatures close by.
ReplyDeleteI never thought I would see a moose, until we moved up here 10 years ago...now they are a common sight and I've even had them raid my garden! They are magnificent animals for sure.
DeleteSometimes living with creatures around can be a battle...but then without them we would feel bereft. I remember visiting Malta many years ago, and there was no bird song whatsoever, maybe it has changed as I believe they are shooting less birds. Sport they call it...man is learning too late sadly.
DeleteWow, I imagine visiting such a place would be a bit eerie with no birds singing. That's sad. Moose are pretty well protected here thankfully. There is a hunting season for them in the fall but they only give out a specific number of permits each year according to how the population is doing.
DeleteCool find, moose are so huge! The rate of your snowmelt is certainly amazing- so nice to see and smell the earth again, eh?
ReplyDeleteSoon you'll be planting out all those seedlings!
Yes it's amazing how fast it goes! When we're that buried it's hard to believe that it can possibly melt before June or July!
DeleteSo glad to find you again, and at the perfect time of year - Spring! Spring is such a welcome time of year after the long winter. Makes me kind of homesick for Crocus et al now that I'm living in a semi-tropical climate. I miss the Christmas Rose and Lenton Rose and the Snow Drops we'd find under the snow. Soon there'll be Grape Hyacinths, Tulips, Iris and Daffodils. I look forward to your spring blogs.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you found me! :) Yes there is so much to look forward to at this time of year and it is all the more appreciated after a hard winter. I can't imagine spring without these early flowers, but then I'm sure your climate lets you grow some beauties that I can only dream about!
DeleteA moose skull! Quite a counterpoint to your crocuses and other dainty flowers. Your photography is really excellent.
ReplyDeleteHaha! It sure wasn't what I was expecting to find out there, but exciting and interesting nevertheless.
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