Hi, everyone!
It’s officially spring according to the calendar, but the weather around here doesn’t always agree! One week into spring, on March 29, we had snow squalls in the afternoon! The next morning, there was still snow on the ground! When that melted the next day, Grandma took me out to look for spring flowers! Usually, my gold crocus friend is the first to bloom, but I never saw it this year! I did see my first purple and striped crocus friends. The little yellow crocus that comes up outside the planting was even further away in the lawn this year! Grandma suspects the squirrels dig the bulb up, thinking it’s an acorn, then rebury it someplace else.
On April 1st, the temperature got up to 70 degrees F.! Then another cold front came through. The next morning, it was 26 degrees F. out when I got up! Then yesterday it was warm and dry enough for me to go visit my flower friends again. My first white crocus friend was blooming, and there was a striped crocus in bloom way out in the yard! Grandma definitely didn’t plant that one there, either! My first daffodil friends were almost ready to bloom, but there wasn’t much sun to coax them out.
We had more rain overnight, and I haven’t seen the sun all day! Grandma said it was time to look for spring flowers someplace else! She took me to Lamberton Conservatory in Highland Park. This time of year, there’s an Easter show of blooming plants there. I like to make friends with the turtles and button quail, too!
There were so many of my hibiscus friends in bloom! That made me feel like I was back in Hawaii!
In Hawaii, I was sad to see how neglected the cacti at Plantation Resort were. I was really happy to see the thriving cacti at Lamberton Conservatory, especially the barrel cacti!
In the last room, I made friends with another hibiscus and an amaryllis. I kept looking for the button quail, but I didn’t see them! Grandma said we could do another circuit through the conservatory to see if I could find them. They were hiding close to the walls!
Guess what? There was a tortoise out on the walkway just beyond the second door! I told him about my sea turtle friends and he followed me all the way around the circuit! There was a sign in the turtle room that told me his name and why he was allowed to wander. By then, I’d already seen him bothering a painted turtle! His lunch was waiting at the end of the circuit. The rest of the button quail were there, too, eating his leftovers!
The rain had stopped by the time we were done in the conservatory, so Grandma took me across the street to the Poets Garden. The witch hazel tree was in bloom! The magnolia blossom buds were fuzzy. Everything else looked beaten down from the cold weather and rain. I hope we get some sun so all the plants can stand up again!
When we got home, I visited my daffodil friends in the south-facing planting again. With a little sun, I think they’ll be in full bloom!
This is Holy Week! Last Sunday James and Thomas passed out palms at church and Grandma brought some home for me. Next Sunday will be Easter. I get to have dinner with Moose-san and Tilly and Goldstone then!
Love,
Lion-san