Crystal Coast Gardener: Spring Planning

I come from a city of over 1 million people. I was used to houses that were so close together, you could practically touch them both at once. I loved it. I never felt crowded, and I actually felt safe. Safe in the city, you say? Yes, because I felt if there was ever a problem, someone would hear me and come running immediately. Or at least phone 911 immediately :P

Mr A. is the opposite. He's like one of those men that were on the frontier, and kept moving West as people moved East. Just so he could be alone and not have to deal with neighbours. He built our house in the country, 'away' from everyone. But, as in most places, progress changes plans. A huge subdivision is springing up around us. I love it of course, and he's grumpy about it most of the time.

I have been here for four years, and I still am getting used to this lifestyle. However, I learned to love aspects of the country that I never experienced as a city-slicker.

Birds. I never thought I would become such an avid birdwatcher. A Bird Nerd, if you will.I call them my little buddies. :) I have never seen so many cool ones...we get painted buntings, cardinals, purple and gold finches, bluebirds, chickadees, cowbirds, three different types of woodpecker, kestrels...and the hawks.

The red-tailed and red-shouldered hawks. Amazing. One morning, I was in bed, and my husband started yelling for me from the kitchen in this weird, hoarse yell....I came stumbling into the kitchen, and I'm glad I did. This is what was sitting on our bird feeder.

Most days though, it's smaller birds. The cardinals have kind of taken to the trees more this winter, but I still see a lot of bluebirds. This one was sitting on the feeder crossbar yesterday morning :)

Unfortunately, I don't have a high-tech, zoom lens camera like many of the bloggers on here. But I do the best with what I have. You can see some of the blue on her back on the sunshine.

But gardening...oh how I love gardening. There isn't anything that I'd rather spend my money on than plants,trees, garden gadgets, or landscaping delights. And there's nothing better than getting them for presents either!

This is my 'Red Beauty' holly bush. Mr. A bought it as a Valentine's Day gift for me in 2008. It was a tiny thing then, but it's working it's way up. It's berries have just started turning bright red, as you can see. It's a very upright form...it will be 10ft x 3ft at most when it is mature. It is slow growing for a holly shrub.I saw a picture of one that was about 10 years old, and only was at 7ft tall.

This 'Governor Mouton' camellia japonica was a Valentine's present in 2009. It has already bloomed out two flowers for me, and the third is trying to open, but it's so cold that I don't know if it will. Those two flowers were very beautiful. A pinkish red, with a white striping. I hope they stay that way, and don't revert back to a solid colour for a while.

The area does look a little ratty. We were making a firepit out of those large garden edging castle-wall blocks, and had a few left over. Mr. A didn't know what to do with them, and left them 'temporarily' around my camellia. I'm not sure if I should finish the circle this spring, or take them away somewhere.

Ah, spring...hopefully by the end of this month, the daffodils will be blooming, and it won't seem that far away. Hard to believe I had to wait until the end of May to begin planting anything in Canada!

I took this picture on January 10th of last year, my daffodils were already trying to bloom.

I took this picture yesterday, January 6th. The difference is crazy! Last year the temps were in the 60's, this year, they've been in the 40's or worse for 3 weeks.