• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary navigation
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Carol J. Michel

Award winner author of gardening humor books

  • About
    • Contact
  • Blog
  • Books
    • Shop
    • Gardening Humor
    • Children’s Books
    • New – The Halloween Hare
  • Social
    • YouTube
    • Instagram
  • The Gardenangelists Podcast
  • Gardening Humor
  • Children’s
  • All Books

May Dreams Gardens

Stop and Look at the Crocuses

January 28, 2007 By Carol Michel 16 Comments

This has been one of those weekends where it seemed there was too much to do and not enough time to do it all. I’ve been rushing around, it seems, since getting home from work rather late, too late, on Friday.

But, I wasn’t too rushed to miss seeing the first crocus bud of the season. See – right there below.

Not quite as showy as some of those camellias that have been showing up on garden blogs, but for us northern gardeners, the first crocus is a milestone of sorts. It is a reminder that winter will actually end some day. I checked my garden records, and this is about the same week, more or less, when I see the first crocus every year. So even though expected, it is still a good day when I see the first crocus blooms.

And below is a close-up, because I knew you all would be excited with me. Spring is coming! Spring is coming!
I was also at Sam’s Club today and do you know what they have for sale? Summer bulbs… elephant ears, caladiums, glads, dahlias. I went by the display and first thought, “too early” and walked on by. Then a force that I can not explain made me go back by it. I looked at the bags of elephant ears bulbs. 10 for $12.67. They were kind of on the small side, but then again, 10 for $12.67. So I got them. I’m not sure where I will plant 10 elephant ears, even on the small side, but I’ll figure that out. A few of them might even end up in a niece or nephew’s Easter basket.

So I thought I was in the clear, ready to go with my bag of elephant ear bulbs. Then I found myself by that display again! This time I looked at a bag of caladiums. 60 for $12.67. I was thinking back to when I paid $2.49, even $3.49, for one caladium already started. These were just 21 cents each. I rationalized that even if only half of them sprouted, that was still a pretty good deal. Never mind that I don’t know where I will put up to 60 caladiums. Never mind that it is January and the temperature is in the teens. I got the caladiums, too.

Both bags are now hanging up in the garage, which stays fairly warm. Later this spring I’ll pot them up and see how they do.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: bulbs

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Kathy says

    January 29, 2007 at 3:36 am

    “This is about the same week, more or less, when I see the first crocus every year.” I won’t see one until March. I can’t believe you have crocuses already. I have snow! Don’t you have snow? Is this some kind of a joke?

    Incredulous in upstate NY

    Reply
  2. Gary says

    January 29, 2007 at 3:51 am

    Down here in Houston the first sign of winter winding down is probably the blossoms on the ornamental pear trees. I saw some blooming this week.

    Reply
  3. Nickie says

    January 29, 2007 at 4:09 am

    I know how you feel. Yesterday at the hardwere store I saw raspberries, straberries, rhubarb and blueberries for sale bare root in boxes. Some were sprouting already. It was hard but I walked past them. It was very hard.

    Reply
  4. Colleen Vanderlinden says

    January 29, 2007 at 12:54 pm

    Thank you for sharing your crocus! Spring is coming 🙂

    Thank goodness I didn’t go to Sam’s Club this weekend as I planned! As it was, I blew more than my fair share of the family budget on soil, seeds, and flats in the past couple of days 🙂

    Reply
  5. Anonymous says

    January 29, 2007 at 2:48 pm

    I’m glad your shopping experience was such a success. You’re going to need a larger yard. Maybe your neighbor Jill will let you spill over into her yard

    Reply
  6. Annie in Austin says

    January 29, 2007 at 4:59 pm

    Once the hot days of August arrive, you’ll be glad for every Caladium leaf.

    By my old Illinois records, we were lucky to see crocus the first week in March – these are really early!

    Annie at the Transplantable Rose

    Reply
  7. MrBrownThumb says

    January 30, 2007 at 2:26 am

    Wow the caladiums were a very good deal. I’ll have to go by the Sam’s club here and see if they have any in yet.

    I don’t even like them much but for that price I’m sure I could find somewhere to place them.

    Reply
  8. Carol Michel says

    January 30, 2007 at 3:37 am

    Most of my crocuses will show up closer to March. These few crocuses are really early because I think they get some radiant heat off the brick by being close to the edge of the porch and front step. Most of the snow from last week has melted, except on the north side of the house.

    Reply
  9. pmo3ws(Kathy) says

    January 30, 2007 at 8:39 pm

    OMG! What a deal! The closest Sams is 60 mi. from us but it is on the way to my daughters, so we just might pay her a visit this weekend! I don’t blame you. That deal is hard to pass up. Gosh, I want to go now! hahaha….

    Reply
  10. Jenn says

    January 30, 2007 at 9:40 pm

    Jealous.
    We are at least another month away. Sigh. Are you sure you’re in zone five? Dang.

    Reply
  11. Carol Michel says

    January 30, 2007 at 10:47 pm

    Yes, no joke, no fooling, these are real crocuses in my front garden bed, trying to bloom right now. The secret is the little microclimate where they are protected by the porch and step. They are probably sorry they tried to bloom now, though, since it is very, very cold this week. The rest will show up in March.

    Reply
  12. Rusty in Miami says

    January 31, 2007 at 3:39 am

    Spring is in the air, for me that means summer is around the corner, time to leave the garden to the weeds and go inside to the AC

    Reply
  13. Anonymous says

    January 31, 2007 at 11:33 am

    I know at least one niece who would like an elephant ear in her Easter basket, just because of the name of the plant. She wanted one last year, but they were about $10 each.
    Kathy, the older sister

    Reply
  14. Daniel Wachenheim says

    February 1, 2007 at 4:59 am

    It’s nice to see that Spring is on the way, even this early. The groundcover (sedum?) is nice and green too.

    Last fall we planted about 300 daffodils and 200 tulips, thinking that by the time Spring comes, they will be an extremely welcome sight. They are just starting to poke their top leaves out of the mulch. Your crocuses are way ahead of anything here.

    Reply
  15. Jessica Harwood says

    February 1, 2007 at 8:33 pm

    I saw our forsythia blooming this week and felt some hope for spring too. Then we had a snow storm today!

    Reply
  16. Carol Michel says

    February 2, 2007 at 4:21 am

    Daniel, yes that is sedum growing. I let it grow wherever it spreads too.
    Nelumbo, forysthia blooming, how spring-y. We have a while until that blooms here.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Updates from Carol Michel

* indicates required
Email Preferences

Categories

  • Blog (3,053)
  • Internal (2)

Blog Tags

annuals Blogging books bulbs dr. hortfreud embrace fairies fall family flowers fruits garden bloggers bloom day garden bloggers book club garden design gardeners gardening gardening geek gardens hoes holidays hortense hoelove houseplants humor indoor gardening insects lawn letters to gardening friends perennials rabbits reviews Secrets seeds shrubs spring tools trees vegetable garden vegetable gardening vegetables weather weeding weeds when a gardener wildflower wednesday winter

The Gardenangelists Podcast with Dee Nash

Gardenangelists Podcast

Footer

Gardenangelists Podcast with Dee Nash

Gardenangelists Podcast

Connect

  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • maydreams icon

Quick Links

  • Home
  • Contact
  • Books
  • May Dreams Gardens
  • Podcast

Updates from Carol Michel

* indicates required
Email Preferences

Newsletter Archive

Copyright © 2023 · CarolJMichel.com · Sitemap · Privacy Policy

Book purchase links are affiliate links and Carol earns a small commission if you make a purchase.

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Do not sell my personal information.
Cookie SettingsAccept
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT