Time and Thyme again

Like most of us in the Northern hemisphere, I haven't done a garden post in a couple of months or more. My garden is sleeping. Shrubs and plants were hibernating until after Christmas when a sudden warm snap changed things. Here in the Southeast US, lack of snow cover and many days in the sunny 50's and 60's mean we do have a few plants strutting their stuff, trying to impress us.

I guess 'Thyme' waits for no man after all.............it's blooming in the sunshine and even the Sage in this same pot has a few fresh leaves...............I must create a Winter dish with fresh herbs.

Being vegetarian for more than thirty years, I have collected some great recipes including this Winter favorite, Bean & Winter Squash Stew with Chili, Mint and Cream.

Bluebell bulbs - behind the pansies - are already peeking through.

The pansies, ah the sweet pansies. How they love the chilly weather when the sun also shines. They add color to the layer of oak leaves used as mulch. Always deadhead your pansies to ensure many new blooms and spreading growth through late Spring ~ once the heat of Summer arrives, sadly, they leave us.

These bright Violas are happy in their large pot and will grow into a huge clump by Spring.

Unfortunately no hibernating hedgehogs in my garden, but I recall the real one in my childhood garden in England ~ he spent his Winter under the same hedge for years.

Interesting garden notes from the great UK Country Living magazine ~ I was happy to learn that ivy does NOT kill trees. I love the romantic look of it climbing skyward and have to admit I have some in my garden doing just that!
Yes, we must do more to protect our birds, especially in new housing developments where the land is often stripped of trees and shrubs.

All garden photos taken yesterday, January 12, 2009

What's happening in your Winter garden? Is your 'green acre' more white than green these days?