Springtime Blooms & New Growth

For most of my day, I sit on my rear-end in an office job looking at a computer.  Now that the days are getting longer, when I get home on our little family farm, I can actually go outside, breathe fresh air and live!  Sometimes I like to just walk around and take in sights that I might otherwise overlook.  In the posting yesterday, I showed you the dewberries that are in full bloom along the fence rows and ditches.

On my way out to feed the chickens, I had to set my feed buckets down and admire a navel orange tree that is absolutely covered in blooms.

Future oranges

Here is a close up of a few orange blossoms.  There was a strong east wind blowing and I stood on the west side of the tree and enjoyed the wonderful fragrance.  There are few fragrances on this earth that can compare to that of an orange blossom.  

If only this picture was a 'scratch and sniff'

This picture is blurry as my camera couldn't figure out what to focus on, but what I'm trying to highlight are the blueberry blossoms.  If all of the blooms hold, we'll be in for a record harvest on our little blueberry bushes this year.

I found my thrill, on Blueberry Hill...

A tree that we planted in the side yard that we call a Japanese Magnolia is beginning to bloom.  It puts on big striking, pinkish-colored blooms in early Spring prior to putting on foliage.


Japanese Magnolia or Magnolia liliiflora

Here is a close up of the Japanese Magnolia flower.  It smells pretty good, too.


Japanese Magnolia bloom

Although not quite as pretty to look at, the next picture is what excites me - White Dutch Clover.  I think it excites the cows, too.  Clover is a member of the pea family and is widely used as a pasture crop.  It is also a very beneficial thing to have for your soil as this plant has an ability to fix nitrogen in the soil, thus generating fertilizer.  I can remember being a kid searching for the elusive 'four leaf clover' amongst the leaves of this plant while trying not to get stung by the honeybees that are attracted to the white blooms.


White Dutch Clover

This moss growing under a live oak tree caught my eye.  I have no idea of what it is called, but the sun setting in the western sky made it light up. 

Mystery moss

 Here is another shot of it from ground level, catching the setting sun's rays:

Finally as I was heading back inside from enjoying the scenery, I noticed some new growth on one of our peach trees.


Peach tree growth

It's pretty neat how the seasons change.  Plants that have been dormant are now exhibiting new life with fresh growth and gets me itchin' to start the Spring Garden!