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Blooming Special

Oh… I do believe its time for a video with an upbeat tempo tonight! Yep… its Garden Blogger’s Bloom Day today and I have some ‘proper’ flowers in my garden! No easy listening tonight… let’s hear it for these long awaited flowers!

Oh yes… and I should mention the Blue tit pair who accompanied me as I filmed. I have slowed the action right down so you could see one squeeze out through the bars of the feeder – I don’t know why it didn’t go out the way it came in!

Seeing as I missed last month’s GBBD I have a special treat here with a snowdrop photo fest from a recent visit to see the Cambo Snowdrops (near St Andrews) on February 28th. Yep… I am bending the rules a little here but I’m sure Carol won’t mind. I have been talking the talk about this visit so let’s head on out there and walk the walk!

The Cambo Snowdrops…

Ahem… yes walking from the car park it was the pigs that caught our attention first! Potatoes were available to feed them too. Gosh I didn’t know they could dig such deep holes with their snouts! We headed away from the main house along a path that headed towards the driveway we came in.

Snowdrops draped the banks…


Snowdrops carpeted the driveway in their thousands …


Snowdrop clusters nestled together with ferns and ivy along the path edge…


Snowdrops made their way to tiny ivy clad island mounds in the stream running through the wood…


We crossed a small wooden bridge. This pathway was quiet, a little wet and muddy underfoot and we only met one person in this area. My… just look at these magnificent tree roots – snowdrops were growing beneath them too. I loved the wildness here.


Snowdrops were growing up and down the banks on the other side of the stream…


Snowdrops pushed their way through fallen branches…


Snowdrops enjoyed the company of ferns…


Snowdrops enjoyed the company of aconites…. Oops I do have an ammendment to make here. Thanks Layanne, my most favourite snowdrop of this visit (shown below and in other photos) was in fact the Spring snowflake Leucojum vernum. I plan to come back to this plant in a future posting.


Snowdrops weaved their way alongside ivy around logs of fallen trees on the ground…


Snowdrops looked great on their own…


Snowdrops looked great under planting Hellebores…


Snowdrops (Spring snowflakes) just asked you to take a closer look – even when they are shy…


Snowdrops looked great in drifts with white butterbur….


Snowdrops really were worth bending down to see…


Snowdrops hung over banks along the edge of the stream and were brave enough to mix with tougher plants…


Snowdrops tumbled towards the stream as we climbed the hill…


Snowdrops caught the evening sun beautifully…


Snowdrops were seen everywhere from the path summit…


Snowdrops were seen all the way to the Sea…


Snowdrops weren’t seen along the narrow strip of pebble beach. Fishing baskets were spotted and children played in the rocks. Stones were being skimmed across the surface of the water. Further along this narrow strip at the edge of a golf course Eider ducks were spotted feeding in a tiny cove – that was a surprise!


Back in the wood and we were on the other side of the stream heading back to the main house now. Snowdrops were mulched with leaves…


Some snowdrops just took my breath away (oops Spring Snowflakes again) …


Sunlit snowdrops (Sunlit Spring snowflakes) on tall stems looked like tiny lanterns blowing in the gentle breeze…


Looking back at the last Snowdrops (last Spring snowflakes) on the edge of the wood…


Looking to the right and looking to the left…


Our visit was almost over. A border along the house wall was stuffed with flowering goodies that you can see in the montage below. It was whetting the appetite for the plant sales around the corner. I wonder if you can guess what I bought. I was seriously restrained and only took away one plant and it was so very hard to choose. Mm… looking at my photos again I may just have to make a return visit for… some Spring Snowflakes!!


Today, we had lunch out at a favourite garden centre. The car park was almost full and as we went inside we found queues at the tills with trolleys and baskets full of plants too! Yep… this gardening season has officially kicked off!

I hope you’ve had a great weekend in your garden. Remember if you’d like to see lots of plants in flower in gardens across the world pop over to May Dreams Gardens and browse the Linkey listings. Thanks go to once again to Carol for hosting this.

The video above was taken in my garden on March 15th 2009. All other photos were taken on February 28th 2009.

34 thoughts on “Blooming Special

  1. What a lively post Shirl. I love the tree with those gnarled exposed roots. Of course the snowdrops are to die for and the Eiders are magnificent. Thanks for showing all…Happy GBBD.

  2. Wow – what a post Shirl and a gret read. I’ve never seen so many snowdrops – great sight.

    And as for seeing Eiders…. well…..

    *turns a funny shade of green*

  3. Loved the video – it made a cheerful, lively start to my morning. I haven’t seen so many snowdrops together for many years.

  4. I’ve never seen so many snowdrops, Shirl. They really do look like snow when they carpet the ground like that. Beautiful, and a funny post!

  5. What wonderful garden pictures.

    The one with the white flowers is heavenly.

    I would love to be laying in a hamock right there taking a nap!

  6. Hi again Lisa, Sweet Bay, Town Mouse, Karen, Tricia, John, Layanee, Pam and FW 🙂

    Lisa – Thank-you, that was the plan 😉 Oh yes, that tree was wonderful and some of theses snowdrops really were special. I had no idea what I had photographed with the Eiders until I got home and looked up my book. I am guessing I was lucky to see them and a Happy GBBD to you too 😀

    Sweet Bay – Thank-you, I am delighted to hear you have enjoyed seeing these pics 😀

    Town Mouse – You are very welcome – a sight like this just has to be shared 😀

    Karen – Thank-you! Yes, there were a few small piglets but I liked this larger one 😀

    Tricia – Thank-you! It is difficult to gauge if there are more at Cambo than at Dalmeny (my visit last year). For numbers I’d say probably say Cambo and for continuous carpeting I would probably say Dalmeny. Now as for the Eiders… I had no idea what they were at the time! They were very pretty birds and allowed me to get quite close too! Oops… I guess you’re going greener now 😉

    John – Thank-you, I have great fun with the videos. Excellent, I was going for the bright and cheery too! I am glad you popped by to see the snowdrops as they were really pretty special 😀

    Layanee – Oh my, no… not a snowflake in sight! These photos are fully 100% snowdrops 😀 Oh yes… it will take some doing to plant that many drifts. It would be great to start it off though wouldn’t it 😀

    Pam – It was wonderful to see so many wasn’t it? I agree they really did look like a carpet. I’m delighted you’d enjoyed them and this posting 😀

    ForestWander – Thank-you, I am delighted that you enjoyed seeing them. Yes, I loved the white butterbur one too. LOL… yes with the evening sun coming through the trees I could just picture you sleeping in a hammock over a carpet snowdrops 😀

  7. Oh my goodness…what a wonderful ‘display’ of snowdrops! You do have a few you could share photo-wise! I had a a delightful time visiting with you Shirl!

    gail

  8. Shirl, as always, it’s a treat to visit you! The sheer number of snowdrops is amazing! The video is another treat…thank you for this great post for GBBD:-) Happy Spring!

  9. Hi Shirl, thanks for that uptempo video. Your flowers were positively dancing to the music. Were you shaking them or was that the wind? HA This snowdrop heaven, or haven was divine. I loved seeming them in a more natural setting with the stream and trees. What a specimen with the roots exposed! A very special tree. I also loved seeing the little bird squeeze out of the wire rather than the hole, how funny! Thanks for your work putting this together Shirl, always a pleasure. 🙂
    Frances

  10. p.s. I meant to mention the bulbs strewn about…the squirrels do the same thing to me!! I have found so many it’s maddening. I suppose they taste like nuts;-) They obviously have no idea how important those flowers are to us!!

  11. Those snowdrops are just unbelievable! Seeing them massed like that I now truly understand how they got their common name. Thanks for the tour!

  12. Hi Shirl

    Noel Kingsbury recently posted about Cambo.

    The snowdrops are terrific.

    Apparently they’re designing a large prairie planting for this year. There will be a feature in September’s Gardens Illustrated.

    Rob

  13. What a lovely vibrant post Shirl. So much for us to see and share, the video was brilliant. Many more fat balls and that little Blue Tit won’t get out that way again!

    The Snowdrops were stunning and I loved the tree with the gnarled roots, Nature’s own living sculpture!
    The pig was great fun and what a surprise the Eider Ducks were.

    All good wishes to you and yours.

  14. Those white flurries of snowdrops are an impressive sight, and it’s great to see your detail photos showing the little green accents on the petals. Living in the drylands of Southern California I’ve never seen such a thing!

  15. the spring flowers were beautiful. And as for snowdrops as far as the eye could see – wonderful! (Loved the pig and the eiders too).

  16. A double treat Shirl. Loved the video and it was great to read your well beautifully illustrated report on the Cambo snowdrops. I must get there one of these days.
    Now what did you buy from the sales area ? Do tell as I just can’t guess. You were remarkably restrained just buying one plant 🙂

  17. I loved the video, Shirl–the flowers seemed to be dancing in perfect time to the beat:)

    What an amazing display of snowdrops; the naturalized setting is really the best display I’ve ever seen. Now if Vegplotting were here, she would have counted how many there were:)

  18. I really enjoyed the video, it brings new insight into your garden. I really like your combo of the Crocuses and the Sedge-thingy. You must have squirrels, I can’t imagine who else would dig up those Tulips. Thanks for again treating us to a visit to Snowdrop Heaven.

  19. I’ve never seen such a great amount of snowdrops before. That must be a breath-taken sight when coming along such a field. I also loved your Spring video.

  20. I just found your blog at blotancial and I can’t wait to follow you into the spring. WONDERFUL PHOTOGRAPHY…. I can’t believe I don’t have any of these snow drops!
    Happy Spring.

  21. Shirl, with my slow rate of blog reading these days I’ve only just realised that your daughter has been ill. So sorry to hear this, and all good wishes to your family.

  22. Hi again Gail, Jan, Frances, Liz and Jean 🙂

    Gail – They were great weren’t they 😀 Yep, please feel free to share anytime! Oh… your computer is still down 🙁 Mm… what would I do? I’d catch up on outstanding chores that the PC keeps me from 😉 Or perhaps I just get myself outside to potter around in the garden 😀

    Jan – Nice to see you too! I agree, drifts just went on and on. Glad you enjoyed the video too. My… that’s a lovely selection of snowbirds in your recent montage! Ah yes… perhaps it was the squirrels getting the bulbs but they were below a bird feeder so it could be birds too 😀

    Frances – Delighted you hear you enjoyed it – funnily enough I do spend a little time altering the length of clips to get the music to tie in with the movement – its great fun and I often laugh out loud doing it! Nope… no plants were harmed in the making of this film 😉 Yep… it really is quite an experience walking through so many snowdrops. Old trees always catch my eye but these roots were something else – I should have had my 6ft 3in OH stand beside them to show scale. Yep… that was strange to see the squeezing bird – they don’t usually do that. You are most welcome… believe it or not the videos take way less time than selecting and cropping the photos but I like to see the results from both. Have a great day 😀

    Liz – Oh… I couldn’t possibly guess but they have 250 varieties! Yep… I agree perhaps its fortunate we don’t all have woodland back gardens – think of the cost too 😉 Oh… I see you have a Sparrowhawk visiting again. I spotted one chasing a blackbird yesterday. It wasn’t successful 😀

    Jean – Yes, they really were and I agree their name suits them so well. Thank-you for joining me on the tour 😀

  23. Hi there Rob, Jan, ShySongbird, lostlandscape, HappyMouffetard and Anna 🙂

    Rob – Thanks a lot for the info, I had a look and have added links in my next posting with more on Cambo. I’ll look forward to Gardens Illustrated now to see the sumptuous pics then. Thanks for your comment 😀

    Jan – Mm… sorry please don’t use any of my images for your business.

    ShySongbird – Thank-you! It has been a while since I’ve done short postings. I love the mix of lots of stuff at once although appreciate that reading longer postings makes it tricky for the reader trying to buzz around their fav blogs. LOL… yes the blue tits won’t get in the Nestbox holes either! Glad you enjoyed the mix of pics it was a surprising visit indeed. Thanks for your good wishes. My daughter is feeling a little better now.

    lostlandscape – Yes, they were impressive. Glad you enjoyed the pics – you’ll see more detail in my next posting 😀

    HappyMouffetard – Glad you enjoyed them and I’m certain you’ll see wonderful Spring displays at Malvern. Have a great time! Yes, the snowdrops were great and as both the pigs and eiders were unexpected they just had to be included! Delighted to see you included a few of your Dad’s bird shots in one of your postings. Yes, he’d get lots of visitors with shots like these if he was to start a blog 😀

    Anna – Glad you enjoyed it – I love doing double postings every now and again. I’m struggling with short postings at the moment though 😉 Excellent, I am glad you enjoyed reading about my visit to Cambo. Yes, I would recommend a visit in person. Oh yes… I forgot to say which plant I came away with on my first visit. I took a photo to post on this posting too… I bought a hellebore. Oh yes… very restrained for me, fortunately I had a bit of time pressure 😀

  24. Hi there Rose, MMD, Barbara, Bren, Linda, Scattered and Rob 🙂

    Rose – Thank-you, so glad you enjoyed it. It is always fun using music in the videos. I love the editing. It was amazing and funnily enough I left a comment with VP challenging her to do a count 😉

    MMD – Thank-you, you’ll see more from my garden soon when I get a different lens for my camera. I must stress though my garden is small. Ah yes… I too like the crocus with the carex and I’ve planted my new snowflakes with some too. Yes… squirrels do pass by but I have seen the birds dig up bulbs too. You are most welcome – I loved your snowdrop pic (and all the other Spring shots) in your recent posting. Very nice 😀

    Barbara – They were wonderful weren’t they? They were breathtaking but oh…. so is your collection of hellebores. It was a hellebore that I bought that day. Glad you enjoyed the video – there is even more colour now 😀

    Bren – Ah great… Blotanical is a great place to discover new blogs isn’t it? Thank-you, let’s hope I’ve lots to share throughout the Spring and into the Summer too. Funnily enough I only planted some snowdrops last year after seeing another woodland of them then. Thank-you, and a Happy Spring to you too 😀

    Linda – No probs at all. Your last comment came in as I was answering the others and they crossed during posting. Yes, pre Uni she was fine but everyone there kept saying are you ever well. It has been a tough year from the meningitis virus scare back in Nov just two weeks after her 18th birthday to a bad case of tonsillitis six weeks ago. Now she has Glandular fever and we had another A&E dash with her. She is back up in halls and spoke to Uni last week and the decision is now that she has to repeat 1st year as she has too many gaps in her coursework now. This week she will say her goodbyes for now and pack up her stuff. It has been quite tough on her and she is trying to put a brave face on. Thanks for your good wishes 🙂

    Scattered – Thank-you, the videos are such fun to do and I do try to get nice photos to share – I am still learning there. Ah… I see your fav public garden is Beth Chatto’s! I would love to visit it again, I love that garden too 😀

    Rob – Thank-you, and I see you’ve been enjoying discovering rambling ponies on the Isle of Wight. I also see your blog is quite new too – all the best with it. I hope you enjoy the experience 😀

  25. Hi Shirl popping over to compare what a few miles of a difference has to our blooms – hey you are way ahead of me now! Daffodils growing in the ground have shoots about 2 -3 inches high and as for tulips – hopefully I will have a few for next month but so far I can hardly see any shoots still. I'm amazed at the primula denticulata with its blooms just sitting there in those lovely rosettes. – not even a green shoot on mine yet.

    Cambo is such a beautiful place – we have loads of snowdrops growing wild around here too – just shows how warm it is there when they have wild garlic in bloom too amongst the snowdrops.

    Happy Gardening Shirl – and I think I need one of those fatball feeders – we had a raid yesterday and the squirrel ended up with one of mine. Rosie 🙂

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