What a difference!

Spring is the season where everything is waking up from it's long winter's nap.  Every day there seems to be a new bud opening on the flowering trees.  Or maybe it is another bush finally showing signs of life.  Everything wakes at it's own pace.  Spring never seems to look the same from one day to the next.  Here are a few examples in my own yard.

On March 16th this is what one of my Dogwood Tree's looked like close up.

Today April 26th this is what it looks like.  Not a big difference but a noticeable one.

 On February 26th my Oregano in the Greenhouse looked like this.

As of April 24th it looks like this.  Almost a different plant.

 My little Lilac tree looked very dull on March 6th.

Ahhh but not on April 24th.  Lots of life is showing on this small little tree.

 March 12 the Forsythia bush showed very little signs of any kind of growth.

 A month later on April 14th the beginnings of it's signature yellow flowers started to show.

And 6 days later on April 20th the bush is now is full bloom.

 The 22nd of March showed signs of the Garlic Chives growing outside the greenhouse were alive and beginning to grow.

A month later on April 25th, it's almost time to harvest those Chives.

 Inside the house on March 24th a mixed plant pot was looking very good.

But a few short weeks later on April 11th that same mixed pot is beginning to look a little crowded.

April 26th brought big change to that same pot as the palm needed to be removed due to lack of room.

 March 25th showed that this Spider plant in water is growing roots.

Nearly a month later on April 24th that same spider plant has quite a bit more roots.

 Walking outside on April 14th showed the Peony bushes beginning their upward growth.

Almost 2 weeks later on April 26th showed that these guys mean business when it comes to growing.

Inside and out spring is changing the world around us every day.  Some days in far more subtle ways than others but it's there.  The spider plant growing may not look different from one day to the next but when it is growing in just plain old water you can see that not all the growth is above ground.  A few warm days and leave buds on trees begin to open.  One rainy day and you have to mow the grass.

As of next month I will have been truly gardening for 1 year.  In that one year of gardening I have learned a lot.  This spring I am very aware of what is happening around me.  I notice ever tree and flower around me as they change.  The wonders of Mother Nature are all around me.  

Take some time between now and the end of April to take a look back at pictures you took last month and this month of certain plants.  Write about it and post a link below.  Lets see what the difference is in your gardens from one day or month to the next.

I created a meme for this called Changing Gardens.  Not sure how often we will do it but I love looking back at pictures I took of certain things and looking at how they are now.  So maybe 4 times a year or once a season we can step back and take a look at what is Changing in our Gardens.

Earth Day 2011

All day today my lovely daughter reminded me that today is Earth Day.  Every time she went to throw something away she checked to see if it could be recycled or not.  I am glad that they are teaching things like Earth Day in school.  Over at The Sage Butterfly a Earth Day meme is going on and I was invited by DD over at The Sundial Garden to join.  I have been busy and wanted to do the post some justice so I waited.  So on with the post.

I have been asked to list at least 3 books that I have read that have inspired me to live green in some way.  This was very hard for me.  I read a lot.  But after being in the Navy I wanted to get back to my roots.  My Grandparents on both sides of my family grew vegetables in their yard growing up.  I loved going out there and helping my Grandfathers pick them or just simply check them.  But some inspiration has indeed come from books.

Garden Up! was one.  I can't remember who mentioned it in a blog post one day but it sounded interesting.  So I got it.  What wonderful idea's.  A book that shows you how to garden in a vertical way not just in rows. Although many idea's are a good ways off for me to even think about implementing it did get me thinking about what I can do to garden in more unique ways and maybe better ways.  Living walls.

Greenhouse Gardeners Companion has also inspired me and taught me a lot.  Granted this was after I got the greenhouse and started my gardening journey but regardless that book brought a whole new passion to my love of gardening.  Although last year I loved gardening in the greenhouse this year I am smarter about it and bringing the passion to the rest of the yard as well.

Nora Roberts wrote a Trilogy based on the Garden.  Although not a gardening book I read this trilogy many times and loved the way these 3 women came together from very different walks of life and helped each other.  Being a romance book each book one of the women fell in love.  The first brought the new nusery manager and the landscaper together.  The 2nd book brings the home and nursery owner and a detective together.  But my favorite was the last book.  A distant through marriage relative and the owners son fall in love.  But the best part was when he created a flower just for her.  Through propagation and hard work he combined two flowers to make a new one.

I know it may  not sound like much but just the thought that his love for the Earth and his girl could create a new beautiful flower is inspiring.  I may not create a new flower or plant but I do get to take a small seed and watch it grow into something wonderful.

Gardening doesn't have to be just for food.  It can be for beauty.  Feed the birds.  Feed your soul.  Earth day is a day to appreciate the natural environment around us.  A day to get inspired on how to preserve that environment.