A gentle look at what I’ve been noticing and doing in the garden this April. My philosophy is slow gardening, in tune with nature and in love with the seasons.
1. The Spirea Japonica started unfurling its leaves.
Spirea japonica ‘Gold flame’ unfurled in all its beauty in April. This colorful shrub is what I affectionately call the “opposite shrub.” When it first leafs out in spring, it’s all decked out in fall colors – beautiful shades of amber, caramel and sunlight yellow. Then as the seasons progress, it turns green. At some point at the height of summer, it will be covered in clusters of fuchsia-pink flowers.
2. I witnessed the end of camellia season.
This camellia has been blooming all through the spring, including for the first couple of weeks in April, despite never getting enough sun in our suburban backyard. Imagine having it planted in full sun. It would be an absolute riot of flowers.
Speaking of camellias in bloom, last month I saw this mature flowering camellia was for sale at my local gardening center. It was either very old or very pumped full of fertilizer. Possibly both. If I tell you it was about 16 feet tall (about 5 meters), can you guess the price?
It was 1250 dollars! Absolute insanity!
3. The lasagna bulb container was in bloom for almost two months.
The lasagna-style spring bulbs container I planted last fall is working out splendidly. The daffodils were the first ones to bloom, followed by really juicy hyacinths. Now the tulips heads are starting to show up and last, but not least, the bluebells.
I was a bit nervous about cramming so many bulbs in one pot, but it worked out wonderfully. I wrote a lasagna planting tutorial for BloomingBackyard.com last November.
4. I made small posies from what the garden had to offer.
I don’t grow many flowers for cutting (I much prefer them alive in the garden). But every now and then I bring in a small posy of cut flowers indoors to brighten up our dining room table. This one has camellia (including foliage), muscari, magnolia and golden spirea foliage.
5. I mused (again) on how gardening is a good memory aide.
In an article for one of my clients, I actually used the phrase “three gardens later” to refer to gardens that I have planted over the past decade. In three different locations. In three different cities. And it dawned on me that I might be measuring my life in gardens. That while time blurs and expands and contracts, I may be able to tell you where I was and what I was doing and what I was planning and what I was daydreaming about based on which garden I was tending.
Its role as an aide-memoire is one of the many unexpected perks of gardening. I reflected some more about how gardening is helping me take care of my mental health in this post.
6. I have marveled at the beauty of the Gudoshnik double tulips.
The Gudoshnik double tulips have had a full month in the garden, like flaming lionesses ready to shine. I may or may not be squeaking in delight every morning when I’m doing the garden rounds.
7. We visited the largest tulip garden in Europe (in the Netherlands)
We visited Keukenhof Tulip Garden again this April, for the third time in five years. It was amazing, gorgeous, stunning and … a bit overwhelming. We went on a weekday, but it was still incredibly crowded. I think in the future I’ll stick to planting my own small tulip garden. And maybe expand it some more. I have a lot of tulips on my want-list. It’s still worth visiting Keukenhof, if you’ve never been.
I wrote an entire article about what you should know before you visit Keukenhof Tulip Garden, which I have updated this year. The most important change is the fact that Keukenhof does not accept cash anymore. You can only pay by credit card or debit card, including at the small concession stands.
Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means that if you make a purchase through one of the affiliate links, I will get a very small commission or referral fee at no additional cost to you. You can read more on my affiliate policy page.
If you want to read more about houseplants and gardening, hop on my once-a-month newsletter list. There’s no endless email sequence here. Just a monthly email to keep in touch and chat about plants.
