A flurry of talks, programs, and garden visits

It's so interesting to be here in Western North Carolina as spring arrives.  The patterns of a Southeastern spring are familiar:  first, the early-flowering Asian species, then the first of our natives, Hepatica and bloodroot.  The rare Oconee Bells, transplanted to the Botanical Gardens at Asheville years ago, is now in flower.  It's time.

I've posted recently about my clustering of talks and other gardening activities during the two months that we knew we'd be in Asheville this spring;  perhaps it seems like a lot, but I enjoy sharing thoughts with fellow gardening enthusiasts and gardeners new to the area.  Several upcoming garden visits (as 2-hr consultations will be fun)  -- usually, they're folks new to the area who want to incorporate more natives into their landscapes.  Love that.

Hmm, with all of that, trying to reconnect with friends here, studying French, keeping up my fitness, and attending to my own garden -- well, that's all good, too.

A beautiful clear day foretells spring and summer ahead (regardless of where we'll be in the Northern Hemisphere!

A couple of pocket meadow talks are next on the agenda, this Saturday and next Wednesday.  They're always fun as I emphasize natives that are pollinator-friendly, in various small-scale guises.

Symphyotrichum oblongifolium, Aromatic Aster, with bumblebee