Hey, Let's Take a Walk to See What's Blooming!

Yellow Jasmine our South Carolina State Flower.  It is very pretty and smells so good.  I saw this while taking a walk on a pretty morning last week.  I thought I'd share some of the naturally beautiful things in Spring.

When all is just beginning to wake up from Winter the Jasmine is blooming in all of it's glory.  I've been guilty of ignoring it because we have so much of it here in South Carolina.  I'll try to pay more attention to it because it is lovely.

I guess all we need to do sometimes is just take a closer look.

It does smell wonderful in fact it's flowers are strongly scented and produce nectar that attract a wide range of pollinators.

• Did you know that historically it was used to treat measles along with other medical problems?  

• All parts of this plant are toxic and should not be consumed.  The sap can cause skin irritation and should be avoided.

• Warning:  Children have been poisoned by sucking this flower's nectar mistaking it for Honeysuckle.  It is also toxic to honeybees

Who knew?  Not I.  This post took a different turn while posting I looked at Wikipedia here just to learn more about this prevalent plant in our state.

Do you like talking morning walks to see the beautiful sites?  I really like this young apple tree and those apple blossoms are just gorgeous.  This was a week or so ago.  They are now full of big blooms.  I sure hope we can get some of these apples.  The birds had a field day with the apples last year out here.

This Oakleaf Hydrangea beginning to put on a new life.  It is such a wonderful dependable plant.  It too is overlooked by me a lot but it is beautiful.

I really like this Keiffer Semi-Dwarf Pear.  This was taken last week.  It is still young but putting on blooms and fruit now as we speak.  I recommend this little tree.

 A walk this week shows little pears.  How quickly things grow in season.

Another pear that I have the Ayers Semi-Drawf Pear has not shown me much, of course I am not a pear grower by any means just trying to be. Maybe I need to thin the center out so it will bloom properly.  I welcome any suggestions.

I forgot the variety of this blueberry but it is in bloom now.  I have been meaning to transplant this to another spot in the orchard but it is growing beside the storage shed.  It seems to like it right where it is.

 I leave you today with one of my favorite new items for the kitchen

Berry Bowl/Colander

My new berry bowl!  Yes, I like it!  Chuck got this for me at a local antique store.  They thought it was a planter.  I the "Strawberry Lady" knew exactly what it was.  He got it for a great price too!

It is strawberry picking time around here!  Yes!

Our local Florence Pee Dee State Farmer's Market Spring Festival begins tomorrow!