The First Hollyhock of Spring

It must be official that it truly is Spring! You got that Easter bunny hangin' around and my first hollyhock bloomed! I've been anxiously waiting. What I love about hollyhocks is that I can't even remember the last time I actually "bought" a hollyhock to plant. Their seeds blow across my yard and each year, they pop up in places and surprise me! All these flowers in front of my picket fence just "popped" up this year. I didn't plant any of them except for some bulbs that haven't come up. I love how the cosmos and poppy's show up like magic. I'm waiting to see what else will pop-up. My little Mary Lou Heard rosebush is displaying red roses everywhere. Mary Lou was a local nursery owner that died way before her time, but gratefully there was a rosebush named in her honor. My little birdbath is there for all the birds that are building nests in my birdhouses this year. I love white roses, and it's hard to see in this picture but this rosebush is covered in lots of white little rosebuds waiting to open!! One of my good buddy's, Monica, gave me this awesome vintage mermaid. When Monica moved she wanted me to have her. Our mermaid gal has been "around the block" a few times and her age is beginning to show, but oh how I love her. I had planted sweetpeas in front of her, thought she might enjoy them. The snails ate the sweetpeas. Guess I'm going to have to pour my mermaid a Corona in a little dish and set it beside her. Why? She loves cold Corona's just like I do! Just kidding, it is a good way to get rid of snails. I HATE to kill any kind of bugs, but it's "so sad" to see my plants eaten. And hey, if you gotta go, why not say your last good-byes in a bowl of Corona. Seriously, a dish of beer will control your snail problem and they will die with a smile on their face!! As I mentioned earlier, these poppy's are coming up everywhere this year. And I'm totally in love with the color they add to my garden.
My nasturtiums, another favorite of mine, always appear year after year. And talk about a hearty plant with flowers. My next door neighbor has some in his flowerbed because of the seeds blowing in the wind. And actually, nasturtiums are edibile, really. They are supposed to be great in salads. I've seen them used to decorate cakes, and they are so pretty when displayed that way. Gardening is really pretty easy. I know so many people that think you have to "display" a garden like you would a room in your house. My feelings on that, it's your garden, go for it, plant what you like and you may be surprised what you get in return.