Red Maples.

4-12-21 VERMONT: I went to Brown’s Nursery for their grand opening on Saturday to look for red maples, specifically ‘Autumn Blaze’, Acer freemanii. The trees have brilliant red fall foliage, like the one we lost two years ago. That one was so big and red that people would stop on the road and ask for permission to take pictures. 

Brown’s have dozens. I wanted to have them plant two large ones here, but they’re already booked up until mid-summer.  So I got two not quite so big to plant myself, and borrowed neighbor Andy and his pickup to bring them home. We unloaded them in the yard near the new bridge.

My intention was to plant them on the far, east, side of the new brook, about where the big red maple that died had lived. After much discussion about tractors to move them over the bridge, Judy and I did it manually by rolling the root balls into position. It was hard but doable. Judy is very strong.

Yesterday I planted them after we ran a bunch of chores in the morning. There were a zillion dead roots to contend with, but I cut or sawed them out to create holes and rolled the trees in—job done, after back fill. Now we just need a rainy spring.

New blooms: crocus, primrose.  

Pretty sunrise very early in the morning. I let the dogs out and they scared a pair of duck, who were exploring the pond.

The ducks, American Black Ducks, I'm guessing. It was early and light was poor, this image was severly tweeked.

Mr. and Ms. Brown Cowbird working the grass yesterday before I started planting.

The trees after Judy and I rolled them across the bridge and up the hill.

Now planted. The trees behing them are other red maples, a beech and a catalpa.

Primrose that I planted by the new brook last summer.

Crocus provide early color in the garden.