delicate

Azalea in pale pink create a delicate beauty.

crazy windy

On this windy day I headed to Maudslay State Park to check the flowers. While there were a few azalea in bloom when I visited a week ago, today I found azalea, rhododendron, and dogwood decorating the landscape with bright flowers.

I could feel the wind, I could hear it, and I could see it in the movement of the flowers.

Don't you love the look of white dogwood against a clear blue sky?

first iris

I was delighted to see my first iris of the season this morning.

It was a beautiful bearded iris in deep purple.

heart-shaped

Bleeding hearts decorate the garden.

The shape of the flower matches the name perfectly.

photos! Bedrock Gardens

Tuesday was the first open day of the season at Bedrock Gardens. It was a good day to visit, to wander through the gardens and the sculptures.

I plan to return to visit flowers as they change through the seasons.

You can enjoy more photos in the gallery Bedrock Gardens :: 2022.

ocean afternoon

The northern end of Plum Island was my destination today.

A walk by the ocean satisfied my need for beauty. The sky wore wispy clouds; in the distance I could see fog hovering over the water.

magic light

The light this afternoon was wonderful, a perfect time for a walk in the woods.

These trees live on Field Pond in Harold Parker State Forest.

unexpected

As I wandered through Bedrock Gardens this afternoon I saw two tulips standing in front of a barrier made of unearthed tree roots.

The unexpected location enhances their beauty.

emerging leaves

Leaves are starting to emerge.

They are wearing a spring green color.

early azalea

Pink is the color of today's azalea.

ripples

The wind creates ripples in the sand dunes at the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge.

While the beach is currently closed for the piping plover nesting season it is still possible to look over the sand for a view of the ocean.

mixed colors

Tulips wearing mixed colors bring beauty to the landscape.

critter walk baby

Today turned out to be a good day to do the critter walk.

We were lucky to be invited to visit the sheep and lambs. This beautiful creature is about 10 days old.

looking inland

Today was a good day for a walk at the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge. This photo looking inland was taken from the observation tower near the start of the Hellcat trail.

posed

Pink tulips stand tall in the garden, posed.

tidal river

It was close to low tide when I strolled along the Merrimack River this afternoon.

simple beauty

A flower's open petals create a simple beauty.

in the wind

It was a day of constant wind, perhaps an odd choice of a day to visit flowers with my camera.

A daffodil dances in the wind.

tulips

Tiny flowers started sharing their color early. Larger flowers are now starting to emerge.

Look, tulips!

a pop of green

A bit of grass growing near the Shawsheen River provides a pop of green.

flowering trees

Trees wearing flowers decorate the landscape.

I think they are dressed to dance.

periwinkle posed

Tiny flowers close to the ground remind me to look down as I walk through the woods.

I was happy that this periwinkle agreed to pose for my camera.

outbound tide

The tide was flowing out as I stood on the southern edge of Odiorne Point State Park.

Pooling calm water exposed rocks and reflections.

looking east

Today I walked at Odiorne Point State Park, a good destination for a warmish day. At the end of my walk I looked to the east from the southern-most point in the park.

While it was an overcast day luck was with me. Light rain started after I returned to the car.

two yellows

A daffodil wears two shades of yellow, popping from a blue undergrowth of scilla.

afternoon butterflies

There are two butterfly conservatories within driving distance from home. One is a larger space, a two hour drive to the west. The other is closer - only a half hour away - but quite a bit smaller. Of the two I prefer Magic Wings; unfortunately the length of the drive doesn't lend itself to a quick visit.

This afternoon I felt a need for butterflies so I headed to the closer of the two, The Butterfly Place in Westford.

pink

A hellebore in pink decorates the early spring garden.

on the critter walk

There is a wonderful 3-mile loop in Topsfield (MA) that we have been calling the critter walk. It goes by an animal rescue and there are sometimes animals who share some time with us.

This horse started a quick walk when he saw us petting and talking to one of his goat friends. While we didn't have any food to share, he was happy to stand with us as we reached out to pet him.

early daffodil

Daffodils are starting to decorate the landscape.

I welcome the pop of yellow.

dwarf iris

I've always loved the intricacy of iris. The dwarf variety of this flower emerges early in the spring.

ripples

Water standing on the beach as the tide moves out wears ripples.

The wind was amazingly strong!

windy & cold

Brr! It was windy & cold today, not an ideal day for a walk on the beach. But yes, I did walk at the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge.

It's nearing the end of March so the days for walking on the beach in the refuge are nearing an end for the season. The beach in the refuge closes on April 1st each year for the piping plover nesting season. While I am happy to cede the beach to these endangered birds it felt good to get in a last walk before the closure.

purple

A crocus in purple stands amid last year's fallen leaves.

mirrored

Clouds, blue sky, trees, and houses were mirrored in a calm Merrimack River this afternoon.

glory of the snow

This tiny flower wears the name glory of the snow.

While I have seen these flowers in previous years popping out of snow, this year they are surrounded by dried leaves. It brings a welcome pop of color.

sunshine

Crocus in bright yellow bring a splash of sunshine to the day.

snowdrops

Tiny snowdrops decorate the spring landscape.

a walk on the beach

Yesterday's warmth drew me to the coast for an afternoon walk on the beach.

photos! Smith College bulb show

Monday's trek across the state to visit the spring bulb show at Smith College was delightful. Part of the drive was on a new-to-me 2-lane road that was beautiful, and the colors that surrounded me at the bulb show were wonderful.

If you're interested in seeing more photos, click to the the gallery seeking flowers at Smith College :: 2022.

crocus

Today I was looking for crocus.

There's a hill at Maudslay State Park that provides an early spring home to both crocus and snowdrops. Even though it felt a little early in the season, I headed there this afternoon to look for the tiny flowers. When I first arrived I saw only last year's grass. I walked up the hill and started to see patches of snowdrops. After they finished posing for my camera I turned back, taking careful steps across the hill.

Oh! There's a tiny splash of purple! The crocus are just starting to bloom.

double daff

Yesterday's bulb show visit satisfied my early season need for flowers (for now).

I find it amazing how different double daffodils are from their single counterparts.

spring bulb show

It was a day of smiles, a day to visit flowers at the Smith College 2022 Bulb Show.

Advance registration was required to attend this year's show. A friend and I kept watching the web site and were lucky to be able to register for a visit today.

It was well worth the 2-hour drive. Two rooms of the greenhouse were full of colorful spring flowers!

fog

It was a foggy morning, a short respite from the rain.

first flowers

I headed to Maudslay State Park this afternoon looking for early spring flowers.

The trails were very muddy; I watched where I placed my feet. Sometimes I walked on the edge of the trail, sometimes I walked in the grass, always trying to avoid the messy mud.

My reward was a hillside of tiny flowers popping out of last year's dried leaves, a sea of what I believe are snowflake flowers.

blue & white

This morning I woke to find pure blue skies and more snow than I expected.

Warmer temperatures predicted for the next few days should melt the snow and allow me to resume my search for early spring flowers.

late season

Yesterday I saw green shoots that will soon emerge as daffodils.

Today there was a bit of snow.

sand, snow

When I visited Parker River on Sunday there was still a bit of snow in the dunes. An inch or so of the white stuff is forecast for tomorrow evening, hopefully that signals the end of winter precipitation for now.

warm & windy

It was a day of changing weather, from wet to dry, cool to warm, gray skies to blue.

It was a good afternoon for a walk on the beach even though it wasn't my preferred tide time. I arrived at the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge just after high tide, before the ocean created a hard surface for walking. While the soft sand slowed my pace a bit I enjoyed my time walking and listening to the waves.

waiting for color

I'm guessing that we are still a week or two away from seeing spring color. Last year's photos showed my first crocus of the season on March 12th, with some purple crocus captured on March 24th of 2021.

Looking back while waiting for this year's color to pop...

melt

This morning I looked out to see a fresh coat of white on the ground even though we are now in meterological spring. Less than an inch of snow fell overnight overnight. While the temperature is forecast to remain cold for the next couple of days, ice on ponds is starting to melt.

I am ready to welcome spring!