Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day & Foliage Follow-Up March: Countdown to Spring!

Welcome!

As spring approaches in less than a week and with temperatures finally getting up into the upper 50’s, the garden is starting to come to life after its winter sleep. It has been an unusual winter all around with mild temperatures followed by temperatures in the teens and single digits with very little in the way of snow to insulate the garden, followed by lots of wind during the month of February and into the beginning of March.  It has been within the past week that Mother Nature has thrown the switch for spring to arrive. Welcome to my zone 7B Long Island garden, and join me for a tour!

Hellebore 'Shooting Star'

One of my favorite views in the garden this time of year are the colorful bracts of Hellebore ‘Shooting Star’. The buds started back in January with some blooms in February and they have been somewhat delayed due to the weather, but they are now in full speed ahead for March.

Hellebore 'Merlin'

Hellebore 'Merlin' is just getting its buds and 'Champion' will probably not be blooming until April, but for this gardener it just brings more anticipation and something to look forward to.

Nandina 'Obsession'

While waiting for early blooms, I am still enjoying the colorful foliage of Nandina 'Obsession' against the lime green foliage of Dwarf Cryptomeria...and some signs of spring are upon us!

Hello Hyacinths!

Well, hello Hyacinths! The foliage has surfaced in just the past week and give hope of blooms to follow. 

Kousa Dogwood 'Greensleeves' 

While walking throughout the garden, the bark of Kousa Dogwood 'Greensleeves' really catches the eye. It is not something I have particularly noticed before, but this March it seems to call to me to get a closer look. The bark exfoliating is an adaption for shedding old growth and creating new; hence, strengthening the tree.

Coral Bark Maple

While the garden is waking up, the coral-red bark of Coral Bark Maple 'Sango Kaku' is still vibrant against the deep blue sky and soon the Weigela in the foreground will start to get some new buds.

Crocus!

Slowly but surely, crocus is starting to emerge from its dormancy. I have gardening friends in cooler climates with crocus already blooming, so these are taking their time! I just looked back at the March post from last year  and the crocus were in full bloom. I think the spans of temperatures in the teens and single digits really delayed their growth. Is your (almost spring) garden on time or delayed?

Front Island Bed

Here on the front island bed is the view for March with some signs of new buds on deciduous shrubs and perennials. As mentioned before, the evergreens hold down the fort in winter with their continuing interest.

Holly Berries

The bright red berries of Nellie Stevens Holly are always a treat both for the senses and for the birds...

Weeping White Pine

and something as simple as a single pine cone from Weeping White Pine can be fun to photograph.

Hello Allium 'Globemaster' !

In the same garden bed, Allium 'Globemaster' is emerging on time. I enjoy the pinkish-red tips that border the foliage, with large lavender-purple blooms to follow!

'Low Glow' Pine

Along the patio border is the interesting foliage of Pinus 'Low Glow', which will get even more attractive as it produces new brighter light green clusters, that almost glow. Alongside 'Low Glow' is Juniperus 'Gold Strike' with its deeper winter foliage that will become more golden as the temperatures warm.

More Hellebores!

As we get near the end of our stroll, here is another look at Hellebore 'Shooting Star'. It's creamy-rose blooms and golden yellow stamens make for a wonderful addition to the northern border, and it will continue to bloom through April.

And Indoors...

As the landscape awakens outside, African Violet continues to bloom indoors...

Blooms Continue!

while Thanksgiving Cactus just keeps on giving. I find that by pinching back growth slightly after bloom, new growth emerges and more blooms develop bringing interest right into spring.

Thank you for Visiting!

I hope you enjoyed your visit to my March garden. I so appreciate you being here, look forward to your comments and enjoy seeing what you have growing in your garden. Special thanks go out to our hostess Carol at May Dreams Gardens, who makes it possible to see blooms on the 15th of every month with her meme Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day. Also, special thanks to Pam Penick at Digging who had hosted Foliage Follow-Up, a meme I will continue to honor. I am also linking with some other wonderful hosts and hostesses at Floral Friday Fotos, Nature Notes at Rambling Woods, Image-in-ing weekly photo share every Tuesday, Weekly Photo Link-Up at My Corner of the World on Wednesdays and Garden Affair at Jaipur Garden. 

IN THE NEWS! Celebrating two months since The Houseplant Guide: How to Easily Select & Maintain Indoor Plants came to be! If you are into houseplants, this may be the book for you! I cover over 120 plant selections with full color photographs of each one and detailed descriptions on care and maintenance.

Other Places to Find Me:

You can visit my Author Page to learn about and Purchase My Books , each one focusing on different aspects of gardening, including landscape design principles, gardening by month for all-season interest, gardening tips and maintenance, shade gardening, gardening inspiration and more. And also be sure to check out my newest publication, The Houseplant Guide, to guide you on your houseplant journey!

Check out my newsletter Northeastern Gardening News for monthly updates all to do with gardening! It's free to subscribe and receive monthly updates right into your inbox!

Find me on Instagram at Northeastern Gardening and Facebook at A Guide to Northeastern Gardening Blog & Author Page.

Until we Meet Again...Happy Gardening!

Author: Lee @A Guide to Northeastern Gardening, © Copyright 2010-2025. All rights reserved. 

For the Love of Gardening: A Gardener's Story

"A Beautiful Garden is a Work of the Heart"

Welcome to This Month in the Garden! I have been feeling a bit nostalgic and with the craziness of the world have been thinking a lot about life in general. It seemed like a good time for some reflection on how I got into gardening in the first place, the events that lead to this blog fifteen years ago this past February, and how writing this blog eventually lead to becoming an author. It all started a long time ago at the age of five and the paths of life led the way. 

"They who Plant Gardens Reap Happiness"

I grew up next door to with a family of five children that became like siblings and their mom had been an avid gardener all her life. She would take me on tours of her collection of blooms and teach me about each one. One day I returned home and asked my mother for seeds and pots so that I could grow some flowers. That lead to future plantings, the planting of my first tree with my dad and a love of gardening and respect for horticulture that grew even more pronounced as I aged. You would find me digging in the dirt planting annuals, perennials and eventually shrubs and trees, and watching them grow as I nurtured them. In my adult years, I had been teaching high school science as a first career and in 1996, I decided to return to school for horticulture and then started up a landscape design business. After retiring from teaching, landscape design has became a second full time career.

"Plays in the Dirt!"

So, how did the blog and books come about? It was after a movie called Julie and Julia back in 2009 (boy that sounds long ago) about a woman who followed Julia Child's recipes and shared her experiences on what she referred to as a blog that blogging soon became popular. After watching the movie, I decided to create my own blog sharing a love of gardening and A Guide to Northeastern Gardening was born in February of 2010. My friends, family and clients would often ask me," How do you remember everything about each plant and how to grow it?" I would reply, "It is a passion, so I remember things." They all insisted that I write it down and kept encouraging me to perhaps write a book for others to learn and to pass along my knowledge. It was in 2015 that I started to write down thoughts as they came to me. 

It all Started a Long Time Ago

In February of 2016, my first book (with a name you will recognize) A Guide to Northeastern Gardening came to be, which expanded the information I had written about in my blog to teach new or experienced gardeners about the basics of garden planning, design and care. Once the first book came out, and with a second career as a landscape designer, I wanted to focus strictly on the concept of landscape design and my second book, Landscape Design Combinations was born. My love of gardening continued to grow, leading to four more books dealing with garden planning, plant selection and maintenance, including one with garden musings and folklore and one all about indoor gardening and houseplants. 

"A Garden Brings Hope"

Gardening both outdoors and in and helping others with their gardening endeavors has become a major portion of my life, is what defines me, and I hope to be able to garden for as long as I am able. I hope you enjoyed my story and I invite you to share your gardening adventures in the comments. As a lifetime gardener with a passion for all things green, there are words that I live by (and which I even named a book after), Dream, Garden, Grow!

I hope you enjoyed This Month in the Garden! Are you a gardener? If so, how did you get into gardening? Have you been a gardener all your life?  I would love to hear your story!

My Author Page & Books

A Guide to Northeastern Gardening: Journeys of a Garden Designer Zones 3-9

Landscape Design Combinations  

Dream, Garden, Grow!-Musings of a Lifetime Gardener

Gardening by Month: A Monthly Guide to Planning the Northeastern & Mid-Atlantic Garden

Shade Gardening for the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic

The Houseplant Guide: How to Easily Select & Maintain Indoor Plants

As Always...Happy Gardening!

Author: Lee @A Guide to Northeastern Gardening, © Copyright 2010-2025. All rights reserved.