Looking for Rain.

5-3-21 SHORT HILLS: We’re now up to 14 hours of daylight, and VT has about 15 minutes more than that. The plants are even more aware, which is why they’re exploding with flowers and leaves.

There’s always more trimming and pruning to do, and I’ve been busy doing it. I’ve also been watering the new plantings and transplants. 

The ailing beech tree has put out leaves on some of the branches, maybe half of them, so it’s trying. The arborists have treated it this spring and will be back for a deep in-ground fertilizing. Although, I fear and suspect that next year we’ll be taking it down.

We’ve had rain predicted, but not much delivered. Speaking of rain, I need a new rain gauge, eat last one rusted out, and the glass cylinder has vanished.

We did our usual dog walk with R & B and the pack Sunday. That night we had dinner at Lynn and Bill’s. Tomorrow we’re back in NYC for dinner with Leesa and Roger. Next Sunday Judy and I are hosting Mother’s Day for the family. Judy cleaned all the outdoor furniture today. I have to go buy booze. Our masks are off most of the time, but we did have them on in the supermarket this morning.

New blooms: chestnut, Siebold viburnum, double-file viburnum, tea viburnum, red-twig dogwood, leucothoe, wood hyacinth, gill-over-the-ground.  

Wood hyacinth is the next spring surprise. It also comes in pink.

Chestnut. We've had this tree about 5-6 years, lots of flowers, but few chestnuts.

Siebold viburnum makes another snowball. The leaves are large and smell like burning rubber if you crush one.

Dopuble-file viburnum has outer white flowers with no reproductive function except for attracting pollinators. The small, inner flowers do the actual work of making seeds.

Leucothoe is a drooping mound of a broad leaf evergreen that has another little, white bell-like flower.

Clematis makes bunches of flowers.