Many people love pansies, and I am one of them.

Purple pansy with yellow center and dark lines

Other neat photos at Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, I Heart Macro Saturday, Macro Monday, Monday Mellow Yellows, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, Blooming Friday, and Saturday Show Off. Thank you very much for your visit here today.

In the break we had from rain a couple of days ago, I went out with my dry paintbrush and pollinated my two little fruit trees. (“Make like a bee!”) I am lucky enough to have a dwarf cherry tree with multiple grafts on it of different varieties. However, even though it is “self-fertile,” all that means is that it doesn’t need another variety to pollinate. It still needs some pollen to move around for the fruit to set. So out I go, on a sunny day, with my soft, dry paintbrush, and gently brush the blossoms. I have found it makes a big difference. Use this technique on tomato plants, too.

Fruiting cherry tree blooms in backyard orchard

Linking to Blue Monday, Skywatch Friday, Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, NF Catching the Light Monday,  Straight out of the Camera Sunday, I Heart Macro Saturday, Macro Monday, Monday Mellow Yellows, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, Blooming Friday, My Romantic Home, and Saturday Show Off. If you’re a macro fan, try clicking on the tag “close up” in the tag cloud at right.

A couple strolling through Seattle’s Volunteer park:

A couple walks in the late afternoon sun in springtime in Volunteer Park

Joining to Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, NF Catching the Light Monday, Scenic Weekends, and Saturday Show Off. If there is only one image here, please click on Sara’s Fave Photos Blog above to see several recent ones. Thanks!

At Seattle’s Volunteer Park the other day. This photo is one of my very top faves and I am calling it my weekly Top Shot.

Elm tree branch backlit by April sun in Seattle’s Volunteer Park.

Linking up with Skywatch Friday, Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, NF Catching the Light Monday, Scenic Weekends, and Saturday Show Off. Thanks for your visit here and please come back soon.

Seattle is glorious on a sunny April day:

Seattle seen from the soon-to-be-demolished viaduct

Visit Blue Monday, Skywatch Friday, Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, NF Catching the Light Monday, Scenic Weekends, Straight out of the Camera Sunday,  and Saturday Show Off. Thanks for your visit here and please come back soon.

Last week it was sunny, briefly (pouring right now), and the tulips in my front yard put on a show.

Macro of red and yellow tulip center lit by sunshine

Joining up with Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, NF Catching the Light Monday, Straight out of the Camera Sunday, I Heart Macro Saturday, Macro Monday, Monday Mellow Yellows, Ruby Tuesday 2, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, Blooming Friday, My Romantic Home, and Saturday Show Off. If you’re a macro fan, try clicking on the tag “close up” in the tag cloud at right.

From my recent visit to the Skagit tulips. The trunks of the trees were at least 6 or 8 feet (2-3 meters) in diameter. They were OLD.

Red and pink tulips under sunshine and clouds in Mt. Vernon, WA

Connecting with Skywatch Friday, Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, NF Catching the Light Monday, Scenic Weekends, Straight out of the Camera Sunday, Thursday Challenge (Tranquil), Pink Saturday, Ruby Tuesday 2, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, Blooming Friday, and Saturday Show Off. Thanks for your visit and try a search for tulips in the search field, why don’t you?

Friends drove me to Seattle and their car had VERY clean car windows.

Monochrome view of Seattle’s Great Wheel, from the Viaduct

Visit Skywatch Friday, Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Wordless Wednesday, NF Catching the Light Monday, Scenic Weekends, Straight out of the Camera Sunday, Thursday Challenge (Tranquil), and Saturday Show Off. Let’s try a new one, The Weekend in Black and White. Don’t forget to sign up for email notifications for new blog posts at upper right so you don’t miss any good ones.

This is a season of floral abundance, that’s for sure. This graceful, deep-pink-and-white Japanese magnolia is blooming in my backyard today. The flowers are about as big as my hand.

Pink and white Japanese magnolia bloom in Seattle in April

Connecting to I Heart Macro Saturday, Macro Monday, Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Pink Saturday, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, Blooming Friday, Scenic Weekends, Straight out of the Camera Sunday, My Romantic Home, and Saturday Show Off. If only one image is visible here, please click on Sara’s Fave Photos Blog. Hurry back soon.

As a brief break from tulips, I thought I’d show you a new tree (to me), a star magnolia. The pretty white flowers were very fragrant, and 2 or 3 inches wide (5-8 cm). It was growing in a sweet little arboretum in Everett, WA, the Evergreen Arboretum & Gardens.

Fragrant white Star Magnolia blooms in April in Everett, WA

They also had a lovely and fragrant viburnum tree of some kind. Looking on google images for the name of this plant, I find Viburnum carlesii ‘Aurora’, or Korean spice viburnum, which looks very similar, except that the plant I saw seemed to be a tree, or maybe it was just a very mature shrub. But I want one.

Fragrant viburnum blooms in April in Everett, WA

Check out I Heart Macro Saturday, Macro Monday, Monday Mellow Yellows, Blue Monday, Skywatch Friday, Ein Stück Himmel, Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Pink Saturday, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, Blooming Friday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, NF Catching the Light Monday, Scenic Weekends, Straight out of the Camera Sunday, and Saturday Show Off. If only two images are here, please click on Sara’s Fave Photos Blog above to see the rest. Come back soon, you hear?