Definition of Frustration...

[05ModPod]

Hmmm is spring ever going to arrive? Taken this morning.

[05ModPod]

Still "Dreaming" of Streaming!

[Silvertwinkie]

I feel for ya man! It's just now starting to get above 32 here regularly.

[Pahaska]

Taken last Saturday at the Wildflower Center to be part of a slide show I'm giving to a senior group tomorrow. The yellow is a Huisache tree in full bloom.

[silver suz]

Visit Texas now! The daffodils are finished. Not a great year for wildflowers. The wild bird's babies are making a racket. Bumblebees everywhere. My roses, wisteria, irises, hedges of Lady Banks roses, purple clematis, coral honeysuckle, tangerine colored crossvine flowers, fruit trees, green growth , trees, grass, everywhere, bluebonnets etc etc are going full force. So's the pollen- a major year for it. Except for yesterday and today's rains, most of the days have been in the 70's for a while. We already have mosquitos, tornados and fireants! Now is a good time to visit Texas, later on it is just tooo HOT. Especially August. Your first picture is just beautiful, looks like a great Airstream poster to me! silver suz P.s. we actually got enough snow once this year to make snowmen- first time in 10 years!

[jcanavera]

I just got back from San Antonio after a beautiful 4 days at 80 degrees. Yes now is the time before the wrath of summer hits.

Now here in STL the weather man (at least one) is stating to look out for some frozen precipitation on Monday. We will wait and see, this weekend I dewinterize and Walbernize in preparation for a campout later in the week. Lord help us if I need to bring a bad of salt with me.

Jack

[05ModPod]

Pahaska & Silver Susie - you are making me real jealous!!!

What a beautiful tree - nice picture too - what is your slide show about?

SS your garden sounds magnificant would love to visit! We have a very short season where we live - but when the flowers bloom they come in in a flurry of colour one after the other - short but breathtaking.

Your winter storm you mentioned - would it happen to be this past February 13th-14th!!! That is the lovely storm we had to drive through - we could not get around it had to drive straight through it - terrible fog in top of Florida - torrential rains at the top and through to Louisiana then came the storm as we hooked up and ready to take our new A/S on it's 1500 mile trip home. We drove in pooring rain for hours about 14 our first day and needed a nap - as it was our first time trailering an A/S we thought it would be good for both to be alert - rather one sleep/drive etc. So we popped into the A/S with god only knows what other creatures and grabbed a power nap - turned into a 7 hour power nap - must have needed the sleep!!! So once you (Texas) got dumped with snow it headed straight for us at the Kentucky/Tenessee state line. We were hoping to beat it but were about 2 hours too slow. Although we are more than used to snow and driving in it - our roads are prepared much better than the bordering southern states are.

Great Canadian wilderness and yet 20 minutes from civilization...We just moved the A/S from her first spot on our acreage to get her out of the spring run off so we could work on her. Now we have to wait for the snow to melt - will hopefully be gone by tomorrow - but more is coming I here. She is now up by the road (closer to Peters workshop) now for everyone to see - we have a lock on her and intend on putting in a gate at the end of the driveway.

This pic was also taken this morning - gloomy day. Our main property is to the right and our waterfront property is down the next lane (nice 8 min walk for the girls). It is really pretty when all the wild flowers come out along the road side. This is not a main highway - just a mine road - but most of our roads up here are 2 laners except for the main highway 401/400/404.

[Pahaska]

What a beautiful tree - nice picture too - what is your slide show about?

I'm a docent at the lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center and I frequently give luncheon slide talks to ladies garden clubs and the like. I'm doing one tomorrow, in fact, at a retirement community on an island in Lake Travis. I was updating my PowerPoint slide show and took the opportunity of a spectacular day last Saturday to break in my new Sony F828 camera.

[Pahaska]

Here are some of our famous Texas Bluebonnets on the Wildflower Center grounds.

[silver suz]

Pahaska, I was a member of the LBJ wildflower center for 2 years- but never have been able to visit. Glad to see there are a lot of lupines somewhere! All the roads around here have been "widened." Which means any dirt left is subsoil. All our wildflowers are gone. Is there any program for getting wildflower seeds to plant in towns that have farm-to-markets (407), I 35w, highways-377. all in our township? There were so many more wild flowers 10 years ago. Even the freeway I35W which was widened, has no wildflowers. Are there any LBJ projects for re-seeding roads? It's nice for out-of- staters driving through to see miles of showy primrose or indian paintbrush or lupines as it was years ago. They are also mowing what's left too soon. silver suz

[silver suz]

Sharon- you are welcome to vist! Now is the best time. As they say in TX we have a week of spring and a week of autumn. The rest of the time is "too" : too hot, too cold, too wet, too dry ,too windy! But you are welcome any time. silver suz

[Edie]

Here are some of our famous Texas Bluebonnets on the Wildflower Center grounds.

Yes, talking to my sisters in the Dallas area, I have been recently informed that the Bluebonnet Plague is in full force. Makes my head hurt just looking at the photo.

[silver suz]

Did they say where the major bluebonnet forces are located around Dallas? I'm about 50 miles from there. Thanks, silver suz

[Pahaska]

The bluebonnets are fewer this year and late because of the drought that affected central Texas last fall. Bluebionnets sprout in the fall and grow root systems all winter; this year, they just didn't have the moisture. The good news is that bluebonnet seeds that don't sprout the first year can sprout next year or even the year after if there is moisture. The plants have developed this as a defense against drought. Indian Paintbrush is doing well this wet spring and Indian Blanket should have a good bloom.

They mow too soon because it is all weeds and not much bluebonnet.

Much of the decline of the bluebonnet (and other roadside wildflowers) is due to poor practices by the state of Texas. The seed mix that they are planting on new roadsides is invasive (bermuda) and is actually illegal by federal regulations. The Wildflower center has 4 test plots along Loop 1 in south Austin in an effort to get the state to use a better mix; the state is resisting the pressure to conform. Also, a lot of the seed that the state has used has "bastard cabbage" seeds in it and that plant is pushing out the wildflowers. I have spent a lot of hours along Loop 1 near the Wildflower Center pulling up bastard cabbage. The WFC is working on methods to overcome the bastard cabbage problem.

Don't know what do do about you, Edie! Plague??? I have lived here 23 years and I look forward to the bluebonnets each year.

[Pahaska]

Log on to Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center to see the current wildflower report sightings or post a report.

[BobbyW]

We came down 71 between Austin and Interstate 10 Sunday. The Bluebonnets were blanketing the highway.

As we past many, many cars pulled on the side of the road, I said to the wife..."Look at those poor men" She looked at me funny. I pointed and said "They should be home watching sports or fishing and instead are having to take pictures of the wife and kids in those stupid flowers." She promptly hit me.

[05ModPod]

Silver Suz

This is our garden - just at the beginning of the growing season. We have since put in flag stone for a patio and some of the paths are done too - have a lot more to go. Have 10 years to get it just right for retirement. We were away when the garden was in full bloom so I must remember this year to take a few shots. Have hundreds of close ups.

Thank God Peter just likes a bit of baseball and the Leafs - or we would get nothing done around here! - I have the visions and poor Peter has to make them come true - well at least get the trees and massive rocks out of the way, dig the holes, bring in the soil, the mulch and the horse poop - I do all the planting, feeding watering and fussing once their in - Peter does the weeding (but then we don't have that many weeds) and He is obsessed with raking - leaves, debri anything - he rakes our driveway all the time so that it is just perfect!

We should have a good "land Dock" ready for late June - so you are welcome here too anytime after that.

[Cruiser]

Spring is arriving, albeit slowly, here in Vermont.

"April showers,
Bring more hours...in the mud."

Wouldn't you know, the "perfect" site we picked out this winter for the A/S is a swamp!

Doug

[05ModPod]

Hi Cruiser....too funny I promise I won't give your secret away.

Looks like the lot has a lot of potential for a nice pond - need to get a backhoe though

[Edie]

Did they say where the major bluebonnet forces are located around Dallas?

My sisters live in Ellis Co.

Don't know what do do about you, Edie! Plague???

My family and in-laws suffer with terrible allergy problems caused by the bluebonnets.