Icons of Aging: The Unfurling Botanicals of Spring
Hellebore is a delicate companion for a tulip, on the verge of opening.
One of my favorite things about the Pacific Northwest is that spring arrives in February. Right on the heels of the holiday season, Thundering Cloud Plum and Red Buds burst into bloom along city streets. In the forests, Oso Berries leaf out, on lake shores Weeping Willows show a mist of green. This is the time of year to cut branches from the garden and bring them indoors. Clip a budding branch, place it in water and wait… buds fatten and bloom… blossoms fade, petals fall… leaves emerge, bright green and glossy… roots appear under the water line… a full life cycle, right under my nose, over the course of days. I weep.
Butterfly Ranunculus ‘Magical Salmon’, coming into her own on day 6.
A remarkable thing about spring flowers is that many of them improve with time. On Day 1 they are lovely, perhaps a bit stiff and self conscious, but no complaints. By Day 5 they are fully realized versions of themselves: florid, open, unkempt. Their colors have become muted, their petals wrinkled. Tulips are voluminous, ranunculus shimmer, hellebores display otherworldly pods at their centers….better and better until they are done.
Tulip ‘Exotic Emperor’, showing off.
In preparation for an upcoming workshop I have been going through photos of past springtimes, looking for images that display the majesty of aging spring flowers. I have so many to share! Here are a few, and I’ll put others up on Instagram in coming days.
Spring botanicals are captivating, and watching them emerge from bulb or bud to full display, and then to their finish is magical. I hope that you’ll find a way to get close to the wonder this season.
A ranunculus of many colors…
Butterfly Ranunculus ‘Musa Red’ ages into a golden, spectral thing of beauty.