Sunday, February 15, 2015

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day & Foliage Follow-Up February 2015: Frosty Garden Views

February Garden
It is mid-February and several storms have passed. After Blizzard Juno on January 27th delivering 20 inches of snow, and with temperatures in the 20's, the gardens have been covered in a blanket of crystal white.  Today there is another blizzard warning in effect for here on Long Island and it is time for another Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day and Foliage Follow-Up!  While not much is blooming this time of year, the garden is magical with nature’s artwork. Since the snow is too deep to walk out into the property I am using my Canon telephoto lens to share some frosty views. I think you will get an idea of how cold it is here in my northeastern garden!
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Before we start the tour I would like to make a very special announcement.  On February 17, it will be the fifth anniversary of A Guide to Northeastern Gardening.  I am also very excited to announce the recent publishing of my very first book. There are links to access it in the sidebar and below, and further information will be forthcoming! 
Skylands Oriental Spruce 
Ice Crystals on Blue Spruce
Coral Bark Maple Acer 'Sango Kaku' Winter Bark
Ice Crystals on Blue Spruce and Skylands Spruce
Globe Montgomery Blue Spruce
Skylands Oriental Spruce
Barberry and Gold Lace Juniper
Weeping Norway Spruce
Thundercloud Plum Winter
Weeping Blue Atlas Cedar
Barberry 'Rosy Glow' and Golden Oriental Spruce 'Skylands' 
Weeping Pussy Willow Catkins Forming
Garden Gal Waiting for Spring!
Here We Go Again...

The blooms at this time of year take the form of ice crystals so I am counting on our warm climate bloggers to show off some early spring or summer blooms.  There is hope for spring with some buds starting to form despite the snow and cold temperatures. Please be sure to visit Carol at May Dreams Gardens who makes it possible for us to have blooms on the 15th of every month with her meme Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day and Pam at Digging for hosting Foliage Follow-Up.  I am also linking with some other wonderful hosts and hostesses at Creative Country Mom's Tuesday Garden Party, Today's FlowersFloral FridaysMosaic Monday at Lavender Cottage, I Heart MacroMacro Monday 2, and Nature Notes at Rambling Woods.  

I hope you enjoyed your winter garden visit. If you leave a note I will know you stopped by and will be sure to visit you as well.  Also please visit the Blurb Book Store or Apple I-Tunes to preview my new book!  Also...just in...Amazon Kindle. More information to follow.

And As Always...Happy Gardening!


Author: Lee@A Guide to Northeastern Gardening, © Copyright 2015. All rights reserved

48 comments:

  1. That is a lot of color! My favorite photo is the tree by the fence.
    Happy Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day!
    Lea

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    1. Thank you Lea. It was really nice seeing your Daffodils in bloom already since we are under snow here!

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  2. What a wonderful winter photos, These chrystals on the spruce are amazing!

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    1. Hi Janneke. It has been really cold here so the ice crystals were actually a fun thing to photograph. Thank you for stopping by!

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  3. Enjoyed your wintertime photos. And the previous post from Hawaii was wonderful. Some friends just vacationed there, and now I want to go! Especially on a blizzard day here in Nova Scotia, Canada. Thanks.

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    1. Glad you enjoyed the photos Jeffrey. The warmer days ahead are looking more and more inviting as the snow comes down here as well. I enjoyed your colorful indoor blooms and soon there will be outdoor blooms for us.

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  4. Feliz Sant Valentin. Ha estado un regalo el visitar tu bloc, he encontrado cosas muy interesantes, te invito a visitar el mio y si te gusta me encantaria que te hicieras seguidora y asi compartir nuestros blogs
    Elracodeldetall.blogspot.com
    ❤️💌💔💌❤️

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    1. Thank you visiting and leaving a comment Julia. I will be sure to stop by and visit your blog. Happy Bloom Day!

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  5. Lee congrats on the book....and we just had a few storms this week. The snow is almost 5 ft in the garden and the wind chills today are 30 below....hard to believe spring is almost a month away.....maybe.

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    1. Thank you so much Donna. I put a lot of work into it and am still having a time trying to get it converted to Kindle format but it is very exciting that it is done. After hearing that you have 5 feet of snow I am feeling much better about the two feet we have. Let's just keep hoping for spring weather!

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  6. I love the pic of the ice crystals. It reminds me of rock candy on a stick - my mouth just started watering thinking of the sugary delight. Or maybe it reminds me of the ice queen in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. In any case - great pictures!

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    1. You are right Rebecca...it does look like rock candy. Nature is amazing. Thanks for stopping by.

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  7. I enjoyed my visit to your winter garden! All of your photos are wonderful, especially the ice crystal ones. But the shot of garden girl, smiling as she emerges from the snow, is delightful! It looks like the snow and ice may not reach us, although our temps are dipping into the 20s at night and may plunge into the low teens on Wednesday. I just want spring to get here!

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    1. The poor garden gal has been buried over her head and her little face is starting to poke out...maybe a sign of spring. The snow is pretty but I will be much happier when spring arrives!

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  8. Congratulations on the book and on your garden surviving the heart of winter with its beauty intact. Even covered in snow it looks good. Happy Bloom Day!

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    1. Thank you so much Dorothy! I enjoyed your blooms at this time of year, especially the beautiful primrose. You are giving us hopes of spring.

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  9. Gorgeous Lee, I am especially drawn to the catkins forming on the willow branches! Thanks so much for sharing the love up-close with I Heart Macro and your kind words of encouragement to keep on blogging.

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    1. Thank you Laura. The catkins are always the first sign of spring around here and they get a little larger each day, despite the cold temperatures. Thank you for hosting and happy blog anniversary to you!

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  10. Magical, wintry photos. I thought the ice crystals were particularly pretty. A lovely post and thank you so much for linking with Today's Flowers :)

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    1. Thank you for hosting Denise. It was certainly a cold encounter with the elements but I just couldn't resist getting the photographs of the frozen ice crystals. I call it nature's artwork!

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  11. Years ago winter gardening never entered our minds but look at what you can show from yours!
    Congratulations are in order for a 5th anniversary and your published book Lee. Can't recall if you are a member of the GWA, it 's always a pleasure when the publishers send us new books.
    Thank you for linking to Mosaic Monday.

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    1. Thank you for your kind words and good wishes Judith and I will certainly check out the Garden Writers Association. Also, thank you for hosting Mosaic Monday and giving us the opportunity to share our photos!

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  12. Nice to see your February garden, despite snow storms and blizzards it looks lovely in the winter sunshine. Congratulations on your 5 year anniversary and so exciting about the book!

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    1. Thank you Helene! You are certainly ahead of us with spring blooms. We won't warm up for at least another month, so seeing your blooms make one hopeful.

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  13. Beautiful photos - even covered in all that snow and cold. Love dreaming on the potential underneath. Just a matter of time now (& patience -gggrrrr!). ;)

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    1. There's just another five weeks to go Carrie and we should then start warming up. It has been a very snowy winter but I do like your wishful thoughts! Spring weather will be here soon.

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  14. Gorgeous photos! I love the icy branches.

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    1. Hi Gunilla. It looks like you have some of your own icy views as well. Nature is amazing with its artwork!

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  15. Very winterly for sure! Nice ice crystals!

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    1. Thank you for stopping by and commenting. Your winter photographs were lovely!

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  16. Oh my... A hearty congrats on your book and your 5th year of blogging.!!! I will go and look at your book. I have a Nook not a Kindle, but I will look. I am glad you have a good telephoto lens to show you wonderful photos. My husband has kept pathways to our backyard and around it since the winter began so that I can get out for my bird baths and feeders. But with the temps in the single digits, I can't take the camera out. LOL....I do have a willow that is near the pond edge, I would love to look, but maybe I can get it with the camera when it warms up. I love catkins... Michelle from Nature Notes

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    1. Thank you so much Michelle! The book is something I have been wanting to accomplish and I am thrilled that is finally published after all the hard work! I do not have it in the Barnes and Noble Bookstore but it can be viewed on mac or on an I-Pad, etc. with the free Kindle app. Thank you so much for hosting Nature Notes and keep warm. Spring is on the way!

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  17. I really enjoyed the magnified views!! Even in its barest form, nature is always beautiful!!

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    1. Thank you Debbie. You have some snowy views there yourself. I enjoyed your winter photos!

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  18. We expect a few days in the high 30˚C range, so it is refreshing to look at your ice flowers!
    Thanks for participating in Floral Friday Fotos, hope to see your new contributions this week.

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    1. Its a balmy 21 degrees Fahrenheit right now and 3 degrees for tonight, but with the chill factor it feels colder. I am ready for spring...or at least some warmer weather!

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  20. We have a difficult time growing spruce down here, and when I first saw 'Skyland' I really wanted one, but was not about to risk a substantial financial investment only to have it fail in our heat and humidity. Well what do you know, I have seen two down here that seem to be growing, albeit slowly. Now I just need to find a killer coupon.

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    1. Hi Les. The Skylands is a beautiful tree and does grow slowly, which makes it the perfect candidate for smaller spaces. If you do get one make sure it is getting partial shade in the afternoon to avoid burning the foliage. Good luck with your venture!

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  21. You have catkin buds, Lee -- how lovely. Your beautiful pictures illustrate the importance of evergreen shrubs for winter interest. I know I need more. Congratulations on your book and your 5th blogaversary. P. x

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    1. The new catkin buds get a little larger each day Pam, which is a sign that spring is on its way! Thank you for visiting and for your kind words.

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    1. Thank you so much Robert! I just checked out your photography and it is really beautiful.

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  23. Congratulations on your new book, Lee! Wonderful news! You've had your share of snow and ice. I thought I was the only one that couldn't get out of the house because of all the snow we had. And it's been very cold here. We made it up to 28 today. Our warmest it's been in quite awhile. I saw today that our area (Syracuse & north) never made it above freezing the entire month of February so far. Well, it's only a few weeks now and we'll be seeing the red-wing blackbirds. Your photos of the ice on the trees were beautiful. I loved them!

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    1. Thank you so much Susan! I am happy it is all done and published and now I am working on getting the preview fixed on amazon...to be continued! We had a one day thaw on Sunday and now record cold temperatures are in the forecast for tonight. I do enjoy winter for photographing the snow and ice but to put it mildly, this winter has been particularly invigorating. Keep warm..spring is on the way!

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  24. Your garden gal looks happy to have a coat of snow. Spring is bound to come to us soon. Your garden looks happy it's winter coat.

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    1. The weather is changing finally. One day it is 20 degrees and snowing then the next day it is 40 degrees and thawing...meaning spring is finally trying to make its debut. Thanks so much for stopping by!

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Thank you for visiting. I love reading your comments and knowing you have been here, and will try to reciprocate on your blog. If you have any questions I will try my very best to answer them. As always...HAPPY GARDENING!