This Week in the Garden – Feb 8

Over the last two weeks, we’ve had snow and we’ve had temperatures going into the mid-60s. It’s yo-yo weather, and it wreaks havoc on my health. But then, any day when it’s under 50 degrees, I can tell a difference in how I breathe. Despite the snow, I’ve been able to get out a few times to take a quick look around the garden.

Backyard Covered in snow

We had a couple of light and fluffy inches which disappeared by the end of the day.

Snow on azalea leaves

Here you can see how light the snow was, resting on some azalea leaves.

Snow on a hibiscus bud

And on a hibiscus bud. Here’s the same type of bud against a gray background:

Dried Hibiscus Bud on gray background

And because I was playing around with it, against a black background:

Dried Hibiscus bud on black background

I think the gray works better in this case. But black looks good against the stinking Hellebore:

Stinking Hellebore

It’s neat how plants that are usually completely green in the warm months, take on colorful accents in the winter. Juniper and some ivy turn shades of purple, and the stinking Hellebore and Rainbow Leucothoe display some pink.

Needlepoint Ivy in winter

I think that’s Needlepoint ivy above- but I could be wrong. I’ve got several clumps of it, and I like how delicate the leaves look. I hope to do a post just on ivy later…

Discolored Camellia bloom

The pink Camellia has a few more blooms just ready to open, but it’s taking its own time. This flower became discolored after the weather turned colder- it’s a form of freeze burn. Shortly after, it turned completely brown and died.

Unknown bush

I’ve been eying this bush for a while- it’s across from the blooming Camellia and I’m not sure what it is. I have yet to see any kind of flower on it.

Aeonium growing

And lastly, a shot from inside. This aeonium is still growing from a cutting I took last summer. I think it’s most likely Aeonium arboreum ‘Atropurpureum’. At this point I’m just trying to keep all the succulents and other plants alive until it gets warm enough to move them outside. I barely have enough light in the house I think, as most of the windows face North.