Home of the Practically Perfect Pink Phlox and other native plants for pollinators

Friday, April 3, 2009

Flowers On A Friday

Tulips and Kale flowers



When tulips come up they are all leg and arms...just a lot of green!

Then you notice more color


when they open you are glad you bought that large bag of shades of pink tulips from Costco

and the mixed species tulips


from the sweet nursery you visited with a friend


and the near black tulips whose name escapes me...


We are cleaning up after big storms
dropped more then 2 inches of rain in less then 2 hours.
To add insult to injury we have frost warnings this weekend.

It's like this every spring! The privileges of a zone 7 garden!

Thank you for stopping by~~
I hope you have a wonderful weekend
that's filled with delight in your garden.

Gail

I am joining Roses and Stuff for my first ever Blooming Friday.
Please stop by her blog link to other Blooming Friday posts.
Thank you, Katarina, for hosting this event!

61 comments:

  1. Beautiful tulips Gail! Ours are just now starting to show.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Lovely my frined. It looks like we need a costco near here! Lol...Brooke

    ReplyDelete
  3. I like how you let the kale flower. The dark red/ purple stems and the yellow flowers are nice. I will try to join Blooming Friday next week. Fun!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hi Gail, I love your mixed bags of tulips too, but those kale flowers are filling me with happiness. They just keep on giving, those kales. Edible, beautiful foliage, flowers and then seeds to start the circle all over again. Hope there was no damage from your storms.
    Frances

    ReplyDelete
  5. Frances, Aren't those kales something else! I am always glad I planted them...so I should try to collect seeds! I got the species tulips at the Country Mouse when I visited you last fall...they joined the others I have. I haven't been out yet, it is finally light enough to shoot a few photos, but maybe not...the skies are very gray! gail

    ReplyDelete
  6. Ah, tulips and kale... two things my groundhog eats! I also love the very dark, nearly black tulips and have some, but I never see those bloom! (see above). Happy Friday! (I think spring by nature is very, um, dynamic.)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Janet, I like them, too ...the kale came from a big box store and were beautiful all winter..then this sweet gift when they bloom...I hope you join Roses and Stuff for Blooming Friday! Katarina is a dear!

    gail

    ReplyDelete
  8. Brooke, Costco is a fun and dangerous place to have near! I mean who needs 36 rolls of toilet paper at once! Seriously, they have some interesting products and the flower collections are very nice. I am glad you stopped by! gail

    ReplyDelete
  9. Gail,

    Love the photos (and the description of "all legs and arms")! Hope you didn't suffer too much damage.

    Yes, we had a heavy rain and we're under a wind advisory all day today. Freeze warnings for next week.

    Cameron

    ReplyDelete
  10. Dave, Isn't it interesting that yours are just now starting...are you further north then us? I must look at the map! Gail

    ReplyDelete
  11. Monica...I read about you very badly behaved ground hog...too bad he/she doesn't sleep longer or better yet move away! I am so sorry you can't have kale and tulips! I've noticed that the squirrels are behaving quite badly right now. Seriously, they are climbing the window screens and wrecking havoc everywhere. Must be their version of courtship! gail

    ReplyDelete
  12. Cameron,

    I visited my favorite native plant nursery yesterday and noticed they had only rolled their plant blankets off the rows! They are planning for frost. Our early spring and late frosts are a marriage made in .....

    Hope the frost misses you and us!

    gail

    ReplyDelete
  13. I love when someone takes beautiful pictures of them, can´t have them myself due to allergy. Thank you :)

    ReplyDelete
  14. Good morning, Gail,
    So sorry to hear you might have a frost but like you said... not a total surprise during the transition of winter/spring. I guess it's good the rain has come now if your dry season is in the summer. Maybe the reservoirs will be full?

    Love all the tulips popping out everywhere. I SOOOOO wish tulips would grow here. They are such delightfully blooming bursts of color. Not to mention they are a symbol of the spring season.

    That dark black one is definitely my favorite. Isn't it nice when a big, (cheaper) package of bulbs works from Costco or Sam's? The art of the purchase.
    Meems @ Hoe and Shovel

    ReplyDelete
  15. I love tulips, I'm just not disciplined enough to dig them up and replant them.--Randy

    ReplyDelete
  16. Oh, Gail! The tulips and kale flowers are absolutely exquisite! what an unexpected gift! We had horrid hail the other day and are enduring heavy (but much-needed) rains today. Mercifully, our tulips are still leafing out so we don't have to worry about battered flowers. But the poor crocuses have reeally been taking a beating!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Well, at least you can grow tulips without some complicated maneuvers involving sticking them in the freezer for some amount of time. Here, only species tulips naturalize. I have to stick to Daffodils, don't have an extra freezer ;->

    Beautiful pictures! Happy Friday!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Your Tulips are so pretty. Tulips are rather ungainly things until they bloom. I grow more of them if they were more critter-resistant. It's hard to enjoy chewed down foliage.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Your tulips are so pretty. That first photo with the kale flowers is perfect. I'll have to remember to plant something airy with my tulips.
    Marnie

    ReplyDelete
  20. marnie, I'm glad you like it! The kale flowers and tulips are a happy accident...I thought the tulips would look nice with the deep purple kale leaf and forgot that they would go to seed! Gail

    ReplyDelete
  21. MMD, I can't believe how destructive the squirrels have gotten in the last week! It must be squirrel hormones...mating and nesting behavior. They have eaten flower buds, really just bitten them off, climbed onto screen windows and ripped holes in it and have raided the bird feeders ruthlessly. Do they bother the species tulips? gail

    ReplyDelete
  22. Gail the combination of kale flowers and tulips are beautiful.. All of the tulips are beautiful and are giving me a serious case of tulip envy. lol

    ReplyDelete
  23. I have tulips just starting to turn red and open up and I'm so excited. This is the second year that they have bloomed now. Lovely pictures. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  24. The tulips are beautiful. We got a lot of rain yesterday and I forgot to check the rain gauge to see how much. There is a chance for below freezing temperatures next week so I'm holding my breath.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Well, be glad you haven´t all the snow I´ve got. Lovely tulips.

    ReplyDelete
  26. Tulips are wonderful, aren't they. They bring such colour to a garden....and I love their long straight stems standing to attention....

    Oh dear frost......I do hope it stays away.....the rain is good though, all gardens need rain....

    Our weather is settled at the moment, always makes me a little nervous, I know Jack Frost could be just around the corner waiting......

    Have a lovely weekend Gail.....

    ReplyDelete
  27. Hallo Gail..
    Thank you for your visit.. nice to have guest from so far away.. =). You have som many beatiful tulips.. a couple of them I have to but I can't see them yet.. Have a nice weekend.. Monica

    ReplyDelete
  28. Great pictures, I wish I could grow tulips in my zone 10b area. They are without a question one of the most beautiful flowers around.

    ReplyDelete
  29. Hi Gail!
    I love that Golden Lotus Hellebore on your sidebar...it's a keeper. Your trillium is beautiful, as well.

    We have similar weather here in northern Va. We had huge rainstorm this morning, it was very dark out and the thunder & lightening was amazing. Now, the sun is out, and it's windy. Very cold weather is now expected...arghh. I guess I won't be putting any plants in the garden this wkend or early next week:-( My hubby is taking all of next wk. off, and my son's spring break is next wk, as well...we plant to be outside doing things in the yard...I just hope it isn't too darn chilly out there;-/ This is a Zone 7 area, as well.

    Hope you are having a Happy Spring;-)

    ReplyDelete
  30. Your tulips make me happy, Gail, especially since I'll have to wait for a while for mine to show. And I'm so glad you joined me today for Blooming Friday - thanks!
    I wish you a lovely weekend - without rain and storms.
    Katarina

    ReplyDelete
  31. I love the Tulips! Who doesn't? Your black ones look great. Whenever I see Tulips in others blogs, I remember my Tulipa 'Aladdin' that I killed :(. BTW, I'm curious - can these beauties grow well in tropics, where the temperatures can reach to about 90 deg. F? Right now it's 78 deg. F here. If they'd grow, I'm planning to ask my sis to get me another packet of the tulips... any suggestions?

    ReplyDelete
  32. Beautiful tulips!
    Hope the frost don't come!
    Have a nice weekend
    Birgitta

    ReplyDelete
  33. Your tulips are just beautiful! Mine won't bloom for yet another couple of weeks...

    ReplyDelete
  34. Hi gail~
    Ah, what a lovely collection of tulips! The tulip is such a happy looking flower. Hope the frost doesn't come your way and the garden blooms survive.
    Have a great weekend!
    Karrita

    ReplyDelete
  35. I love tulips. I have both the dark deep purple and yellow with red stripes right now. Here the weather is not cooperating as well either.
    Brenda

    ReplyDelete
  36. You must have sent your rain to us Gail .. it is pouring !
    I love all the flower pictures .. keeps me going till I have some : )

    ReplyDelete
  37. Love your colorful tulips Gail.

    Looks like lots of bloggers have gotten drenching the last day or two. Sorry Mr. Frosty is headed your way this weekend. He has a planned visit to us on Monday and Tuesday. Let's hope he doesn't stay too long!

    ReplyDelete
  38. What a topsy-turvy Spring we are having, aren't we? Seems it's the same all over. At least we are all in it together. And at least you have beautiful tulips to look at and cut for the kitchen before Jack Frost comes a'callin! I'll keep my fingers crossed for you ... we have 1/2 an inch of rain in 30 minutes yesterday -- but we so need it.

    ReplyDelete
  39. I enjoyed your blooms! You have lots of pretty colors. I hope we get spring weather soon. It's supposed to snow a couple inches tomorrow in m part of Nebraska.

    ReplyDelete
  40. Gail, those pink tulips with the Kale flowers are simply glorious! All your tulips are bright and cheerful, but pink tulips are my absolute favorites.
    I can't wait to see mine.
    I hope you have a lovely weekend with as little frost damage as possible!

    ReplyDelete
  41. Hi Gail, your tulips are so pretty. I didn't know that Kale had such pretty little blooms.

    I hope your storm damage amounts to a pile of small sticks and limbs that came down. I bet the new sod loved that rain.

    Here's to a light frost if any. Have a great weekend. Lisa

    ReplyDelete
  42. Gail, we have had our share of rain as well. Out of town for two days come home and the 6 inch rain gauge is overflowing....no telling how much we really got........some plants are waterlogged really bad. More rain coming tomorrow and a cold snap on Tuesday!!

    ReplyDelete
  43. Gail,

    Your photos are just exquisite! They make me feel happy... :)

    I think that storm blew through Texas before it hit you. We had a bunch of hail damage here earlier this week, and an early morning thunderstorm Thursday night. Lots of wild weather in the springtime in the US! Funny the stuff I've forgotten...

    ReplyDelete
  44. Yes, trying to remember that it is always like this every spring. So sorry about the too much rain, too fast. Your tulips are fantastic, and I love the little species ones.~~Dee

    ReplyDelete
  45. Gail, your tulips are just beautiful. I especially love the black beauty, but would have trouble choosing one favorite! We have had crazy Spring weather too. Covering up tender vegetation has become my number one pastime! LOL! Hope you don't get any hail.

    ReplyDelete
  46. Sounds like you've had some nasty weather, Gail. Your tulips look none the worse, though--they're beautiful! I'm hoping some of mine are in bloom by the time I get back.

    ReplyDelete
  47. Beautiful flowers and you've captured them well!

    I've just purchased this home and still trying to figure out what all has been planted here previously. I have several snatches of daffodils and a few tulips in front which are not quite ready to pop, so I don't even know what color they are.

    ReplyDelete
  48. I like the idea of Blooming Friday. I was noticing that a Snow Fountain Cherry blooms came and went during the GBBD 30 day period. If I did Blooming Friday, I could have showed her with some bragging rights!

    Lovely flowers!

    ReplyDelete
  49. Oh, wow! Spring is there -- it means that it'll get here too ... eventually. I love the kale flowers!

    ReplyDelete
  50. I'm lost of words. All I can say is beautiful! Ohhh ....

    ReplyDelete
  51. Love the Queen of Night tulip. I have one and the Flaming Parrot variety too.

    ReplyDelete
  52. Lovin' those pink tulips Gail. Wish I'd bought a bag! I'll have to look with a different eye this fall. 2" of rain is a LOT. Good moisture but maybe not all at once? Hope you can keep the frost at bay. Have a great weekend.

    ReplyDelete
  53. Beautiful combination of tulips and kale flowers, and the pink one was really elegant. Have a lovely Sunday!

    ReplyDelete
  54. Sounds a lot like the hazards of a zone 5 spring Gail, except we don't have nearly that much green or color around here yet.

    Beautiful tulips! I'm always amazed to see tulips actually blooming. I waged a decades-long battle with the bunnies who used to chew off the buds, just before they would have opened, leaving only shreds of color evidence around headless flower stalks.

    I grew roses just so I could use the prunings to scatter around the tulips, did that for a few years and actually got some blooms. But realizing how much a thorn stuck in a finger can hurt, and since bunnies don't own tweezers, I stopped that practice, and stopped growing headless tulips (and roses.)

    There's too much shade for them here anyway, so it's nice to enjoy them on the blogs! Yours are beautiful. Hope you're having a good weekend, and not too much damage from that storm.

    ReplyDelete
  55. you are having some beautiful tulips in your garden. i still have not planted any but i want to. hope you didn't get to much damage with our storms. we had a lot of flooding and plants washed away.

    ReplyDelete
  56. Marmee, I am worried about the winter winds that are lowing this way...how about you? Do, you must plant a river of tulips...I dotted mine here and there and I think they are more effective massed! Hope your week is a good one! Gail

    ReplyDelete
  57. Linda, Hi...it has been an interesting weekend...filled with garden activities...but no planting. I am concerned that the hothouse grown wildflowers aren't ready for a freeze! I hope that you have had a good time and had a little relaxation from planning our SF adventure!

    Since I began blogging and planted more bunny tempting flowers...the carnage has been worse! Now I remember why I never planted them before! They are lovely, but so are daffs!

    Yes, we all seem to be on this strange weather roller coaster! Right now it's in the low 70s and I see that it might be 36 degrees tomorrow at this time. Whoopee! What a ride! have a good week.

    Gail

    ReplyDelete
  58. Camellia...Thank you...I had a good weekend and I hope you did too. My computer is up and running so I can be, too! Gail

    ReplyDelete
  59. I think the dark tulip is Negrita. It would likely be too soon for Queen of the Night, which is even darker.

    ReplyDelete
  60. What lovely tulips! Someday we'll see fields of them....
    Thanks for a great post,
    Lisa

    ReplyDelete
  61. Those are all so grand! But this zone 7 splash of storms and cold is not nice. I've got to cover my babies with blankets tonight. I probably should have already done it. Drat!

    ReplyDelete

"Insects are the little things that run the world." Dr. E O Wilson