• 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
  • Speaking
    • Upcoming Speaking Engagements
  • Social
    • YouTube
    • Instagram
  • Gardening Humor
  • Children’s
  • All Books

May Dreams Gardens

The Weight of Flowers and Springtime Activities

May 10, 2008 By Carol Michel 17 Comments

This giant shrub can barely hold up its branches under the weight of the ginormous flowers that are its lot to bear.

Just look at it, this Snowball Bush, Viburnum opulus ‘Sterile’. Look at those lower branches especially, how they bend down under the weight of the heavy, wet flowers.

And these flowers have no purpose other than to be pretty for a few weeks in the spring. They have no scent and don’t even produce seed.

Do you ever feel like this Snowball Bush, that you can hardly bear the weight of all the work you have to do in the garden, all the planting and weeding and pruning and mulching and mowing and deadheading that you have to do each spring?

If you do, I have good news for you. These branches never break under the weight of the flowers. Once the flowers fade, the branches return to normal and you would never know they bore such weight for a few weeks in the spring.

You’ll do the same once this initial spring rush is past, whether or not everything gets done in the garden. You’ll return to normal, too, and be no worse off for all the work you did.

But unlike these flowers which have nothing to show for all their efforts once they have bloomed, you will have something to show for your efforts… a beautiful garden.

So relax and enjoy the spring work in the garden. Remember, all winter we have been dreaming of these days of spring, when we can garden outside again.

All winter, we have been dreaming of flowers like these.
This spring, our dreams come true.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: gardening, shrubs

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Frances, says

    May 10, 2008 at 10:48 am

    Hi Carol, that is quite a snowball specimen. Several shrubs here have more flowers than usual and weigh down heavily when it rains, it is worrisome, especially the decidous azaleas and their huge blooms. So far no branches have broken, so it is like you so sagely say, they are strong. And like you say about the daunting work in the garden, it is what we wished for all winter. Not only a rock star, a wise woman!

    Reply
  2. Anonymous says

    May 10, 2008 at 2:20 pm

    Hi Carol – I will remind myself I’m a snowball bush when I am standing in the garden wondering what to do first. I am actually waiting for it to cool down abit before I venture out again

    Reply
  3. Dave says

    May 10, 2008 at 2:43 pm

    This comment has been removed by the author.

    Reply
  4. Cindy, MCOK says

    May 10, 2008 at 4:00 pm

    Having spent all week laboring to rework my back gardens, despairing of getting it all done to my satisfaction, and being overwhelmed by the prospect of all that still needs to be done in the front, I’ve been feeling very much like your gorgeous viburnum. I needed this reminder that I can and will get through the hard work to a place of beauty, even if it already feels like summer here on my corner of Katy!

    Reply
  5. The Diva says

    May 10, 2008 at 6:04 pm

    They make beautiful cut flowers for their short time. Yours is lovely this year.~~Dee

    Reply
  6. Whyite says

    May 10, 2008 at 9:29 pm

    HI Carol, What a inspiring post. We as gardeners do have quite a reward for all our hard work.

    Reply
  7. Unknown says

    May 11, 2008 at 1:31 am

    What a lovely snowball bush! Now I’m missing mine from my old garden. It held onto the dried flowers all summer though too. I left them there too, I think they add some interest to the garden.

    Reply
  8. Melanie Chopay says

    May 11, 2008 at 2:09 am

    Carol, what absolute perfect timing with this post. Your shrub looks exactly like I feel right now.

    Thanks for coming up with this idea, now I will think of your lovely viburnum when my arms are falling off.

    Reply
  9. Anonymous says

    May 11, 2008 at 3:00 am

    I’m sitting here with aching feet, knees, and a stiff back wondering how I’m going to muster the energy to get up and go to bed, nevermind get out there again tomorrow. I know I’ll feel better tomorrow, but man 8 hours of manual labor kicked my ass.

    Reply
  10. Gail says

    May 11, 2008 at 3:24 am

    Carol,

    That is a great metaphor…I love it!

    Gail

    Reply
  11. garden girl says

    May 11, 2008 at 3:27 am

    Carol, this is such a timely post!
    I can relate to your viburnum. It’s a busy time, but I haven’t forgotten to enjoy it.

    It’s such a pleasure working in other people’s gardens. Many of the gardens I’ve been working in these past several weeks have been so lovely, and so peaceful. It’s really neat to be able to enjoy such a variety of different gardens in such an up-close and personal way.

    Reply
  12. Aunt Debbi/kurts mom says

    May 11, 2008 at 4:41 am

    The bush is just lovely right now. Sometimes just being pretty is enough. Thanks for the great inspiration.

    Reply
  13. Anonymous says

    May 11, 2008 at 5:56 am

    It’s such a reliable old friend isn’t it? It’s beauty get’s better as the years go on. It’s wisdom continues to grow. Looks like it loves you just as much as you love it. I can relate to that.

    Reply
  14. vonlafin says

    May 11, 2008 at 10:55 pm

    This has been the best year for flowering shrubs and trees! I just wish that the rain would stop so that I could get in the garden! And now the weatherman is saying that there is still a possibility of frost! Didn’t anybody tell them that it is Spring and we don’t want anymore frost!

    Reply
  15. Lisa at Greenbow says

    May 12, 2008 at 2:29 am

    This bush is a dream come true. It makes me anxious for my little snowball bush to grow up so it can be as big and pretty.

    Reply
  16. Carol Michel says

    May 12, 2008 at 3:58 am

    All, thank you for all the kind comments… I hope you do draw some inspiration from the snowball push, bravely trying to hold up under the weight of all those flowers!

    Carol, May Dreams Gardens

    Reply
  17. Anonymous says

    May 14, 2008 at 12:21 am

    “Do you ever feel like this Snowball Bush, that you can hardly bear the weight of all the work you have to do in the garden?”

    Not at the moment, but I do feel that way about getting caught up on blog reading when I’ve been away for a few days, as I have been. Jeepers, I see you have 5 posts that I’ve missed, Carol. I’ll try to catch up! 🙂

    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 (3,048)
  • 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