Heather

Day 157: "Tenacious" is a good word. The blooms on my purple heather are not this spring's crop; they've held on all winter, despite temps in the teens and being buried under more than a foot of snow for a couple of weeks. New buds are not yet in evidence on these plants, although they've popped out on the white-flowered variety and will soon be in full bloom. Planted a few years ago, these and the junipers are starting to spread nicely along the north side of my driveway.

When I first moved in, the landscaping consisted of one unidentified flowering tree and a few persistent primroses which managed to poke through the compacted ground. The flower beds beneath the windows were entirely overgrown with grass and, with the help of a friend, were dug out to a depth of 18" and the soil was carefully sifted for anything which might have been salvageable. We found delphiniums, peonies, grape hyacinths and a few daffodils, as well as unwanted English wood hyacinths which still occasionally pop up from time to time. Since then, I've added a number of trees to the yard, and have laid in new flower beds bordering the driveway and carport, as well as to the main areas under the windows. Now my yard is leafy and colourful, but I still have the Urge. Where can I plant something new this year? And what do I want to grow? The spring geas is upon me, and I must dig!