Helleborus niger ‘HGC Jacob’
This lonely Christmas Rose is representative of what is going on outside for this January’s Garden Blogger’s Bloom Day. Â The temperatures got down to 2 degrees after Christmas and have only just begun to recover. Â We did get a few days in the fifties but now it’s gotten cold again. Â It was just enough to get the first snowdrops to declare the end of winter.
1st snowdrops
But mostly this image of a Camellia flower more accurately states the wintry conditions.
Camellia japonica which was red last month
As usual I retreat into the greenhouse for flowery solace in January. Â The Narcissus ‘Silver Palace’ has been blooming for a month.
Narcisus catabricus ‘Silver Palace’
And it’s now joined by one of its yellow flowered brethren.
Narcissus ‘Roy Herold Seedling’
There is one peculiarity that I noted in walking the yard today. Â The Witch Hazel Diane which normally blooms after the more common Chinese Witch Hazel has already bloomed on some of it’s branches but they are yellow. Â This is really strange for a plant known for it’s orange-red flowers.
Hamamelis x intermedia ‘Diane’ with yellow flowers
Other branches are getting ready to bloom red, and I know these yellow branches have been red in the past.
Hamamelis x intermedia ‘Diane’
I am mystified.
I’ll close on this cold January day with the sparkling red of last year’s Arisaema fruit and the promise of Adonis blossoms to come.
Arisaema sikokianum fruit
Adonis buds
It appears that your winter is coming along nicely with all these blooms and promises of more to come. Happy GBBD.
P.S. I would be mystified too if I found a clump of Arum seeds still in the garden. They barely ripen in my garden and something eats them. ??
The photo of the adonis buds is my absolute favorite. So much promise!
Perhaps I shouldn’t mention my jealousy towards the flowering snowdrops…
Strange about the witch hazel. I bet once it comes into full bloom you’ll figure it out, perhaps the earliest yellow flowers will darken since it looks like the unopened buds are going to be darker. I’m sure you know most witch hazels are grafted onto common witch hazel rootstock and often send up shoots from below the graft, but even these are usually fall blooming and would be finished already. It will be interesting to hear what happens.
I need to add a new witch hazel this spring. Orange would be an excellent color I think 🙂
Yes, the first thing I thought of was a shoot coming up from the roots but the yellow flowers are pretty much just on the one side of the tree, and it’s been flowering fine for a number of years without this strange behavior. I’ll keep checking on this one.
So peculiar the odd blooms of witch hazel ‘Diane’… I’ll be interested to read if you come up with a good explanation for it. There are never dull moments in the garden.
Hi beautiful buds and blossoms,we cant grow hellebores and snowdrops here in hot climates ,but we do grow Narcissus tazetta which blooms in spring .
Happy gardening
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