Yesterday Seattle had just incredibly gorgeous weather: delightfully warm, sunny, and calm. Did I mention warm and sunny? It has been so very cold and gray this year, so I treasure these rare bursts of heaven. The irises are gearing up.

My garden and part of my neighbor’s. Bluebells and forget-me-nots, plus irises to come.

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Simple flowers can be the best.

Bright, school-bus-yellow calendula in my garden, joyful in early spring

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Also called Japanese andromeda, pieris is a stellar shrub that thrives in the Pacific Northwest. And they are fragrant! Little bells of wonderfulness.

Pink pieris, backlit in the late winter sun

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The weather may still be wintry here in Seattle this year, but those daffodils never cease to thrill.

Sun and warmth are promised!

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This is what’s commonly called a Christmas cactus, but it’s really a Thanksgiving cactus, or schlumbergera truncata, not a regular cactus. This year, this one is acting more like a Valentine’s Day cactus! When growing them, treat them more like a regular houseplant and don’t let them get super dry, before you soak the soil.

Such showy, iridescent, magenta and white flowers, on this Thanksgiving cactus in bloom.

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Such a cute fish hook little cactus! Be careful, though. The white fluffy stuff is a kind of sunscreen and protects the cactus from wind and water evaporation, too.

Little pink flowers with yellow centers decorate this small fish hook cactus. Careful!

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I love flowers that bloom in wintertime. The weather is still very cold and gray in the Seattle area, but the hellebores are being beautiful for us, already.

Purple speckled hellebore with white center

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A summer photo for you, in winter mode.

Simple June peony blossom

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A new kind of decor bulb for me, an amaryllis in a wax jacket, all ready to go. No planting, no watering, all inside the bulb! How magical is that? We chose a large bulb and were rewarded with two flower stems.

White amaryllis flowers bloom from a waxed bulb

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No room this year for a regular Christmas tree, but it looks quite festive anyway, don’t you think?

Plants and presents around our ficus tree

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Rain in December isn’t so bad.

Christmas lights reflecting on my driveway in the rain.

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You can tell by the points on the leaves that it’s actually a Thanksgiving cactus, not a Christmas cactus. It actually bloomed right on time this year. Make sure you take care of them more like regular houseplants, don’t let them roast in the sun or get super dry like regular desert cacti.

Thanksgiving cactus blooms in the late fall sunlight. Magenta with white flowers are so showy.

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