Iris Farm

These beautiful photographs were taken by my friend, Michael, who accompanied me on both my first and my most recent visits to Schreiner's Gardens just outside of Salem, Oregon.
We went on Mother's Day weekend this year and because it's been so cloudy and cool, most of the bearded irises were not yet in bloom. So most of the display iris in this area, were the dwarf irises, which I had never seen before. I wandered up and down the aisles smelling irises and found many new favorite fragrances.
There's also an area where you can buy plants. This photo shows me in the background in my "cat hat" (my daughter makes them) and a beautiful columbine in the foreground. I bought one like this for my garden.
Schreiners also has a beautiful iris garden where samples of every kind of iris are planted in rows and clearly labeled, so you can see how they grow. There's also a section (as shown in this photo) which was full of lilacs and rhododenrons in bloom. The last picture shows me in front of a magnificent yellow rhododendron.

Spring Equinox in the City: An Iris Blooms!

It's not a glamorous photo but it records a sighting that made my heart leap with joy! The first iris bud of the year. Spotted at the corner of Broadway and John in Seattle on the first day of spring.

When I went to write this into my phenological journal, I noted that the first iris bud appeared in the front yard of the apartment building across the street a week earlier (Mar 13) in 2005. I wonder if there is one over there right now? I will have to go check.