To step into a humid, perfumed greenhouse in the middle of winter is to step from one season into another.
For a moment, it was summer.
The City of Kingston has free entry into their greenhouses on Sunday afternoons for a few weeks. It was an opportunity I could not resist.
A bouquet of fall flowers from my husband brightens our dining room table. This single sunflower is its centrepiece, a splash of yellow among reds and greens.
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Of all the flowers in the garden centres, these are my favourite: African daisies (osteospermum). Yesterday I bought the last two baskets I could find and now they add quiet colour to my front porch.
The first thing I did was plant and water them.
The second thing I did was photograph them. 🙂
If I can’t have spring colours outside, then I’ll make sure I can have them inside.
Pretty pink tulips brighten up my table.
An afternoon movie with the girls (with popcorn and chocolate!) is made sweeter by returning home to a dozen red roses from my husband (with chocolate!).
You may remember that this lily began at its end; when I opened it to plant, it had already grown and died.
It bloomed again shortly after being planted and watered.
Now, it falls over its pot, lifeless but still beautiful.
A little while ago, I posted a picture of my amaryllis that had bloomed in its box, before it was every planted.
Now, it blooms from its pot, a pretty little piece of summer in this long, cold winter.
I received a flower bulb in a box for Christmas, and finally found the time to take it out and plant it. I was looking forward to a fresh spring amaryllis amid these dark winter days.
So imagine my surprise when I opened the box and it had already grown.
The bulb had sprouted a flower – which had subsequently died – without ever having been planted, watered, or given light.
It was a strange and beautiful (because even in death, the petals retained their lovely markings) surprise.
I had no idea this tree existed in my backyard.
It is full of these gorgeous flowers. They look like little wedding crowns propped up by the branches they grow on.
I don’t know what kind of tree it is, only that I am happy to have found it, and happier yet that I’ve found it in my own yard.
My daughter dances.
On the weekend, she had a recital that went beautifully. Sparkly green and purple dancers in a birthday party choreography, complete with party hats and wrapped gifts.
Now, we have flowers around the house that were given to her after the show.
They are her flowers, but my camera and I have been enjoying them as well.
