It's alive... it's ALIVE!!

[mallt]

I mean the garden of course!

The snowdrop was a snowdrop... although not quite like the ones I remember from the UK, it's still pretty!

Comments

[daisychain1957]

Very unlike the UK kind but still very pretty :D

[mallt]

I'll be on the look out for a more UK version to plant this fall so I can have both! :)

[sea_of_flame]

Don't think the first of your mystery plants is borage (which has big oval fuzzy leaves) - it /might/ be hyssop, but I'm not comvinced (I'm growing some from seed which is still at that baby-leaf initial stage that could be all sorts of things, but from memory it looks a bit like a less woody rosemary, but smaller, if that makes sense?)

[mallt]

My hyssop is still in baby seed stage too so I'll have to wait & see if they match up later! :)

[cat63]

Violas and pansies are (at least in UK type conditions) short-lived perennials - the garden centres and such sell them as annuals, because they want to make more money and, in fairness, they do tend to get a bit straggly after the first year.

Besides, plants like to defy being put in tidy little boxes - I've had antirrhinums last for a couple of years and they're supposed to be tender annuals here :)

[mallt]

There are many plants that are perenials elsewhere that are sold as annuals here because we have such a short growing season & harsh winters... usually! We had 1 or 2 weeks of really cold weather (-30C to -40C) this winter but for the most part it was very mild (-10C to -20C) & we had far less snow than usual. So of any year, I'm not surprised this was the winter the violas survived! :)

[cat63]

There are many plants that are perenials elsewhere that are sold as annuals here because we have such a short growing season & harsh winters... usually!

Yes - I have a friend in Canada who's always astonished at how early things start to flower here in the UK.

Pansies tend to be sold as annuals here too though, even though they can last much longer.

I'm glad your violas live on - they're some of my favourite flowers - I love their little "faces" ;)

[etoile444]

I'm happy for you. Those first few signs of life after winter are so hopeful.

[dark_phoenix54]

Mystery #1 is hyssop, I think. It should have woody or at least semi-woody stems near the base., #2 is the bee balm. Which reminds me that I haven't seen mine coming up. Must go look.

That is a really cool variety of snowdrop!

[mallt]

Cool, that means the one in between (not photographed) that's not coming back is probably the borage. :)

[dark_phoenix54]

Probably- borage usually doesn't come back. It's pretty cold hardy, but it's really only an annual. If you're lucky, though, it may have seeded itself. They do that if you don't cut the spent flowers off.

[mallt]

It was bergamot... I looked at my journal & never got round to planting borage seeds last year!