May has gone by much to fast for me. Perhaps my favorite month, I can hardly believe it is already over. I've made time to take lots of photos, there are so many pretty little things happening in the garden now. This is part of the rock garden by the pond. This area is so enjoyable, I'm working on making a larger part of the garden more like it. The new garden will replace what is now mostly grass. Rocks and drought tolerant, sun loving plants will do much better than grass in this spot, and be much more attractive throughout the year.

By the time it finally started warming up everything grew like crazy, and I got so busy I neglected to turn on my computer, or to keep much record of what's been happening. This year I started more seeds indoors than ever, or what is wise. Finally they are all outdoors, and nearly all are settled in the garden. The earliest starts, broccoli, lettuce, spinach, onions and cilantro are already coming to the table. Wild volunteer miner's lettuce is a plentiful and welcome addition to our daily salads. It is mild, tasty, and crisp; worth a try if you find it in your garden, or seed is available in several catalogs.

It seems to be taking forever to warm up this year. Lots of things are growing, but slowly. Trees and shrubs that were in full bloom by this time last year, just starting to open. This currant is about two weeks behind where it was last year. We had lots more greens by this time last year too. We have already enjoyed a few fresh spring salads. As soon as we get a few warmer days there will be plenty.

There are all kinds of things to do in the garden now. Lots of planting and transplanting, weeding and feeding. Its also a great time to look for what's too crowded, and where new things could move in. These sedums have self seeded and spread nicely in the rock garden by the pond. They have also become more colorful, possibly due to exposure the elements in their unprotected . They came from the nursery pale yellow green.

The past month has been colder than usual, but we were still surprised to see snow the past two days. Yesterday was the first chipmunk sighting this year. It didn't take him long to find the bird feeder had been filled, and that it makes a nice little sheltered place to have a snack. He came back so many times he must have a good stash going...

These lovely, early blooming native shrubs add a delicte, lacey curtain to the understory at our forest edge. A bundle of seedlings from the 2002 Kitsap Conservation District plant sale have grown up nicely, adding their magic to our surrondings.

Easter is early this year and flowers are late. There are still crocuses, primroses and cyclamen, now joined by daffodils and grape hyacinth.
Hummingbirds are coming to the feeder every day now, and to the currants that are just beginning to bloom. Meanwhile, a variety of summer flowers are still indoors underlights, waiting for warmer days. Dahlia seeds started today promise surprises yet to come.

Song sparrows are common around the garden all year, visiting the feeders, bathing at the edge of the pond, and singing of course. Now that spring is here, the songs are more varied, intricate, and full of fun. This one was happy to share a song and didn't seem to mind being photographed, posing nicely in an elderberry at the edge of the woods.

As the garden grows each year, it shows me how much more there is to learn. Many plants that were once only seeds or little starts have grown beyond their expected size and are spreading into the space of their neighbors. A few, like Vinca are on the verge of becoming a nuisance. It has pretty flowers in spring, and is useful as an evergreen ground cover for shady areas, but left alone for too long, it gets into everything. Once established, it takes a firm hold, and is not easy to take out. Its blooming now so not hard to forgive, but will surely need some cutting back and more careful watching from now on.

Anenome was among the first of the earliest flowers, blooming several weeks before the first day of spring. The pretty little Cylamen coum was first again, now surrounded by dozens of crocus. Sprouts and buds are appearing every day, getting ready for spring.
Peas transplanted out to the garden a couple of weeks ago will be slow growing until we get some warmer days, but so far they are unmolested by mice. Deeper planting seems to have worked. Today broccoli starts were ready to be taken out to the garden, and I made a big raised bed for onions with lots of compost and all purpose orgainic fertilizer. The broccoli went into last years potato row, where the soil is soft and deep. This row was double dug, trenched , and filled with mulch as the potatoes grew last season. Broccoli should love it!