My 2023 in Flowers

It seems to me that the year 2023 whooshed by in a hurry to 2024. The gardener in me is already plotting out what I’d like to see in my garden in the next growing season. I thought it might be fun to reflect upon some of that beauty of last year as I look forward to the growth and beauty in the year that lies ahead. Won’t you join me?

The months of January through March are rather quiet in my Wisconsin garden. Just as I need quiet times in my life, perennials and bulbs benefit from winter’s quiet and cold.

April Showers Welcomed Spring

April seems to be the month that Wisconsin’s winter gives way to the beauty of spring.

The Sweetness of May

Where we received almost an inch more than average rainfall in April, May was the 4th driest on record since 1895. It was noticeable in the quality of flowers in May’s garden, but as long as the gardener watered the flowerbeds, there was still beauty to be found.

Our flowering crab’s trunk has always leaned a little to the east, which gives it a distinctive look (and made it a little easier for grandkids to climb through the years).

Mid- to late May beauty included lots of pink and purple in the tree peonies, iris, lilacs and columbine. Poppies punctuated a few flowerbeds with a punch of its classic orange.

Warm (and Smoky) June

The month of June was warmer than most, but one couldn’t help but notice the constant presence of smoke in the air–a consequence of the unquenchable forest fires in neighboring Canada. Ignited by summer lightning storms, over the course of their fire season, an area the size of our state of North Dakota was burned and devastated. It is hoped that winter weather will be enough to suppress the devastating fires.

Smoky conditions or not, the garden’s beauty seemed to explode during the month of June. The glory of God’s handiwork in His creation was truly remarkable.

It would be hard to choose a favorite clematis in our garden. We have about a dozen vines at the moment and I have plans to plant at least two more in 2024.

Summer Lovin’ July!

August – Summer’s Final Stretch

Round about August 1st, Creeping Bellflower steps up her game in a sinister effort to overtake as many flowerbeds as she can. I continue to wage war with her in my personal goal of reclaiming the gardens.

Perhaps my thinking about bellflower is all wrong. Maybe A.A. Milne had it right.

“Weeds are flowers, too, once you get to know them.”

 A.A. Milne

With a blogger handle of “Barefoot Lily Lady,” you can know for certain that there was plenty of daylily beauty in my garden. It’s hard to rival their beauty, but the zinnias I planted this year gave it their best shot. Daylilies will always reign as queen in my garden, but 2023’s experience tells me there will now be plenty of zinnias in her royal court.

September Sunflower Power

Hydrangeas were their most magnificent self in August and September’s garden. But toward the end of August and throughout September, sunflowers, hibiscus and zinnias reigned supreme over 2023’s fall garden.

Crisp and Cozy October and November

The garden begins winding down in October and bids us a colorful goodbye round about the middle of November. I’m so very glad that I planted lots of zinnia seeds, as they provided much color all the way through until killing frost.

So long, farewell

A flock of dozens of robins stopped by yesterday morning to enjoy a feast of crabapples. I wanted to get a photo, but didn’t want to move a muscle and risk startling them and having them fly off prematurely. I felt honored that they chose my yard in which to convene for their breakfast. I presume they were getting ready to fly somewhere a little warmer. As they flew off in a southerly direction, I wondered if they knew something about the weather ahead of us.

Meanwhile, in these months of rest (for both the garden and the gardener), I enjoy flipping through the pages of the garden catalogs that are arriving in the mail. I’ve already ordered and received some of the seeds I plan to grow once the soil warms up sufficiently (usually after the 15th of May). Here are a few beauties I am looking forward to enjoying in 2024’s garden.