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.

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.

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

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Another tulip in my front yard.

Simple yellow tulip close up in the garden

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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

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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!

This pretty late-afternoon scene of peace roses in my front yard was taken last July. Summertime and its roses is only a few short months away.

Late on a July afternoon, a Peace rose blooms in my garden

Linking to Straight out of the Camera Sunday, Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Monday Mellow Yellows, Orange You Glad It’s Friday, 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. Thank you for visiting here!

Sometimes beauty appears in surprising places.

Sun sets over an empty tennis court in very early spring

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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!