I love Spring. I also love summer and fall and even winter. That narrows things down a little, doesn’t it? But I wouldn’t really want to live where there weren’t seasons. Where it was always warm. Where the sun shone all summer and only made cameo appearances in the winter. I love the spring sunshine and when the flowers burst into bloom and chase away the last of the winter blues. So here are some quotes to keep you springing through Spring.
The day the Lord created hope was probably the same day He created Spring. …Bern Williams
What sunshine is to flowers, smiles are to humanity. …Joseph Addison
Life is like riding a bicycle. You don’t fall off unless you stop pedaling. …Claude Pepper
While you’re pedaling, try to pedal past some lilac bushes and take a deep breath to get that great lilac scent all the way down to your toes. If any of you have read my Hollyhill books know, that’s Jocie’s favorite scent.
And then it won’t be long till you can roll your car window down and drive by some locust trees in bloom. Ahh! We had locust trees all over our yard where I grew up. You sometimes stepped on the locust thorns, but spring smelled good! The locust bloom scent was the favorite of Jocie’s dad, David, in the Scent of Lilacs. With that title, you have to know the scent of lilacs is going to play a part in the story.
I have a couple of lilac bushes in my yard. I started the first one from a piece of a lilac bush that my brother-in-law dug up from a bush in his yard years ago. I planted it in the yard of the old farmhouse where we lived at the time. The bush lived but hadn’t grown much by the time we built our new house and moved. That lilac bush came with me. Here it grew big enough that my husband dug up some of its roots and started several more bushes.
Now I only have two still living. One of them is that original lilac bush I moved to this house over 50 years ago. It’s getting old and not blooming the way it used to. You know that’s sort of how I feel sometime. Old and not blooming the way I used to. But the bush has lilac blooms this year. The frost didn’t get the buds. So I can go out and do some lilac sniffing. I’ve already brought in a few blooms.
Maybe no matter the age, whether we’re talking people or flower bushes, we can all still enjoy spring and do some blooming.
What do you enjoy seeing or smelling bloom in the spring?
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I have been enjoying our rose bush that my dad gave me over 24 years ago that is blooming once again after not doing so for about 5 years. We have people in our neighborhood who grow honeysuckle and I love the sweet smell of it as it was my favorite growing up. Our Rose of Sharon tree that was a gift from my Uncle Wayne’s yard about 25 years ago has leafed out and I cannot wait until it puts on its lovely purple double blooms. Spring and fall have always been my favorite seasons and like you I enjoy living where there are distinct seasons. We lived on Guam for 3 years and all the seasons were the same and the weather was the same nearly every day.
Author
I’ve never lived anywhere but Kentucky, Becky, so I don’t have that comparison that you have. But I still know I like seasons. Honeysuckle does have a sweet scent. My grandkids used to like to pull apart the bloom to get that sweet drop of nectar in it.
I like having plants that make me think of someone in my family. Hope your rosebush and Rose of Sharon look lovely for you.
I’ve been enjoying the fragrance of my fruit trees blooming. The lilacs will open soon. I love all the blooming plants and flowers.
Author
Isn’t it good how the Lord planned many of the trees to take turns blooming to keep the bees happy and make the beauty of spring last, Lucy? Each day in spring can bring us a new blooming joy.
My favorite flower is a daisy. But, unfortunately, spring is hard for me, even though I like the season, because of allergies. I really don’t know much about a lot of flowers, but I have never seen a flower that I didn’t like!!! lol
Author
As long as those flowers don’t share their pollen with you, right, Ann? And I’ve never heard of anyone allergic to daisies. Hope you enjoy the flowers of spring and they don’t make you sneeze.
Awww, lilacs are one of my favorites, along with roses. And I also love the fresh smell of sheets dried on the clothesline. I look forward to hanging things out every spring. Today is one of those beautiful, sunny days that’s perfect for washing the winter blankets and linens!
Author
You are right that today is a perfect clothesline day for sheets, Lavon. I gave up on my clothesline while I was sitting with Mom during her illness. I never knew when I’d have the chance to wash clothes. So I got out of the habit of hanging out clothes. Then a tree fell on my clothesline. But I’m imagining your sheets and blankets blowing in the wind today.
I have a small yard so I don’t have a lot of blooms but I do have daffodils and a few tulips that I plante years ago. I love watching them bloom. In the last few years I planted Calla lilies and daylilies; they are coming up now but haven’t started to bloom yet. When my Calla lilies are in bloom they are gorgeous! I have dark pink and a couple shades of purple as well as a deep red daylily. So pretty when they are in bloom!
Thank you for sharing your favorites Ann!
Author
My daughter gave me a calla lily bulb in a pot for Christmas the year before my bookm When the Meadow Blooms pubished. That was neat since she didn’t know I had named one of my characters Calla in that story. Trying to grow that plant was a total failure with it. The plant looked like something out of a Dr. Seuss book. It grew a really, really tall stem and had a strange little leaf and bloom. So the next spring I trying planting it out in my flower bed. Same thing. But my sister has some that are beautiful. And I love daffodils and tulips.
I had to leaves my lilacs and my beautiful redbud tree when we moved into our new condo two years ago. However, I dug up my start from my grandmother’s peony that she planted in the 1800s. It is full of buds right now. I can hardly wait for those big beautiful deep pink blooms that will be wishing me a “Happy 80th Birthday” on the 28th. We have lived in four states and there is a start from that peony in each of them. I hope they are loved as much as I loved them.
Author
Happy early birthday, Sharon. Hope you have a wonderful day celebrating the gift of another year. I’m glad you were able to take your grandmother’s peony to so many places with you. Sadly, the ones that were in my grandparents’ yard are gone because the people who bought the place didn’t like them and mowed them down until I assume they killed them. I had gotten a start out of them before the property was sold. But I’ve never understood why anyone wouldn’t keep loving flower plants that have to be way over a 100 years old and bringing beauty into the world.
My favorite of the early spring blooms are those of the flowering magnolias (the soft leaf variety) with their maroon and pink flowers! The one my husband gave me for one of our anniversaries died eventually in either a freeze or a drought. However, after we sold our house and moved into a retirement apartment, we bought one for our “back yard”. It was glorious in its blooms and then lush with its green leaves. It’s symbolizes our flourishing here.
Author
That sounds beautiful, Suzanne. I’m glad you were able to plant one where you live so that you can enjoy it.
Ahhhhh, lilacs. That was one thing I really missed while living in North Carolina. There were other beautiful flowering trees and bushes but none with fragrance like lilacs. Forsythia is the first thing I look for in the spring. That and daffodils. Lilacs don’t bloom here in Ohio until May. Will be on the lookout fot them. My favorite summer fragrance is white peonies. We’ll have to plant some here in our new place.
Author
Peonies do have unique spicy odor that is great, Lee. And lilacs do like a cooler area. My daughter who lives in SC misses have a lilac bush too, but she has some beautiful azaleas and more.