Grape hyacinths, or muscari, are stars of the early spring garden, to my mind. I think they spread nicely and their blast of brilliant blue color is so welcome! This fall I really must plant more daffodils so the display next spring will be even more exciting.

Grape hyacinths, or muscari, bloom in the early spring garden

Participating in Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Blue Monday, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, Blooming Friday, Straight out of the Camera Sunday, My Romantic Home, and Saturday Show Off. If there is only one photo here, please click on the curly letters above for Sara’s Fave Photos Blog to see a few more. Thanks!

Here’s another image from the same Connecticut park as the scene below. Early spring is the sweetest season.

Forsythia and a beckoning bench in the spring sunshine

Take a look at Scenic Weekends, Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Water World Wednesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Monday Mellow Yellows, Weekend Reflections, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, Blooming Friday, Straight out of the Camera Sunday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, NF Catching the Light Monday, and Saturday Show Off. Thanks so much for visiting here, and have a great day.

It was exactly at this time of year when I took this spring scene at a park in Connecticut. Isn’t it just the picture of spring?

Forsythia blooms and pink trees reflect in a Connecticut pond scene

Linking up with Scenic Weekends, Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Water World Wednesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Blue Monday, Pink Saturday, Monday Mellow Yellows, Skywatch Friday, Ein Stück Himmel, Weekend Reflections, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, Blooming Friday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, NF Catching the Light Monday, and Saturday Show Off. Please try a new tag or category, at the right sidebar, while you are here. thanks!

The weather has been so amazingly wet this month, breaking records in Seattle, but I want to do garden things. I started some seeds by soaking them overnight first, then put them in produce-type clamshells, the kind with holes already in them, and they sprouted in only 4 days! Here is a sunflower seedling showing its first baby leaves, not the true leaves soon to emerge. I love this image and am calling it my weekly Top Shot.

First leaves (cotyledon) of giant sunflower emerge on my windowsill

Linking up to I Heart Macro Saturday, Macro Monday, Straight out of the Camera Sunday, Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Today’s Flowers, My Romantic Home, and Saturday Show Off. Thanks for your visit here, and stay dry.

At Seattle’s Volunteer Park Conservatory  the other evening, they had pink-and-white florist azaleas on display. Aren’t they scrumptious?

Today is my sixth Blogoversary. I have made almost 1,500 blog posts and have had the pleasure of almost 18,000 comments! And do you believe, in all that time and all those comments, NOT ONE was ever less than kind and appreciative. What a great group of people enjoy pretty photos.

Here’s to many more years. I’m just getting the hang of this.

Ruffled pink petals with white edges florist azaleas at Seattle’s Volunteer Park Conservatory

Linking to I Heart Macro Saturday, Macro Monday, Straight out of the Camera Sunday, Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Pink Saturday, Ruby Tuesday 2, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, Blooming Friday, and Saturday Show Off. Thank you for visiting here!

The supermarket near me had a special on primroses, ten for $10, and I went for it. Multi-colored, long blooming, and sometimes they even return the following year—what’s not to like about primroses?

Red, yellow, pink and white primroses with crinkly leaves wait to be planted

Joining Straight out of the Camera Sunday, Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Monday Mellow Yellows, Pink Saturday, Ruby Tuesday 2, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, Blooming Friday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, NF Catching the Light Monday, My Romantic Home, and Saturday Show Off. For more pretty pictures here, please click a new tag (see tag cloud in sidebar) or category. Thank you for visiting here!

Saw these pink African daisies, or Osteospermum, at a nursery recently. Pretty, pretty, pretty!

Pink African daisies, or Osteospermum

Linking up with I Heart Macro Saturday, Macro Monday, Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Monday Mellow Yellows, Orange You Glad It’s Friday, Pink Saturday, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, Blooming Friday, and Saturday Show Off. If you’d like to see more pretty pictures here, click on the Sara’s Fave Photos lettering above. Thanks for your visit!

As many of you know, I am in love with the Volunteer Park Conservatory in Seattle, and even did a book about it not that long ago. I am so proud to say I’ve been invited to serve on its Board of Directors. The photo below was taken today in the Conservatory at the Annual Meeting of its support organization, the Friends of the Conservatory, where my new status was made official. I’m so excited! What a wonderful place, enjoyed by so many people.

Colorful spring flowers, inside and out, at the Volunteer Park Conservatory in Seattle

Joining Scenic Weekends, Pink Saturday, Skywatch Friday, Ein Stück Himmel, Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, Blooming Friday, and Saturday Show Off. To see the other photos here, click on the Sara’s Fave Photos lettering above. Thanks for visiting.

Plants have fashions like anything else, at least garden plants do. I don’t see too many people planting old-fashioned forsythia, but I don’t know why not. It blazes in such a flame of welcome color in the early spring.

Bright yellow forsythia blooms in early spring

Connecting to I Heart Macro Saturday, Macro Monday, Wordless Wednesday, Nature Notes Wednesday, NF Catching the Light Monday, My Romantic Home, Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Monday Mellow Yellows, Straight out of the Camera Sunday, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, Blooming Friday, and Saturday Show Off. Don’t forget to click on the Sara’s Fave Photos lettering above to see the most recent photos here. Thanks for your visit!

Had to go to the archives for some tulips. They bloom around here (Western Washington) in April. Be sure to visit the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival at least once in your life, if you can. They really do look like this:

A rainbow of tulips stripe a field in the scenic Skagit Valley in April

Connecting with Scenic Weekends, Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Thursday Challenge (Large), Pink Saturday, Orange You Glad It’s Friday, Ruby Tuesday 2, Monday Mellow Yellows, Skywatch Friday, Ein Stück Himmel, Straight out of the Camera Sunday, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, Blooming Friday, and Saturday Show Off. While you are here, you might try a new tag or category, at the right sidebar.