Welcome, Spring of 2025

Published on by Catherine

Six on Saturday

Today, it’s all about the little giant of color – the crocus. I was starting to wonder when the flowers would make their grand entrance, and now, amidst this week of unpredictable weather with rain, sleet, wind, frost, and sunshine, the crocuses have bravely pushed through, their rain-soaked petals shining in the otherwise barren garden borders.

The tiny crocuses below are in a container of mixed-planting and have returned each February over the past few years. The three shots below were taken over four days. To my huge surprise our temperatures reached 12C on Wednesday and coaxed the flowers to unfurl. In the last shot, I caught them just before they closed the following day.

  • Tiny crocuses in a container
  • 12C and they have unfurled
  • 7C, but the sun made an appearance

Narcissi in a mixed-planting container are starting to open up, and their bright yellow blooms really perk up the garden. It’s great to see some life in the pots and borders!

  • Narcissus in container
  • Narcissus – unknown variety

Crocus ‘Romance’. In a pot and preparing to display their sunshine yellow blooms. The first shot was Monday, the second was on Thursday.

  • Crocus ‘Romance’
  • Buttery-yellow

Crocuses in the borders. The following three photos show the same clump of crocuses growing below a rugosa rose. The first, like those above, was shot on Monday. After a considerable amount of rain, the crocuses looked dark, wet and gloomy. The second photo was taken on Wednesday when the sun came and went rapidly. The final shot was just after the sun left the garden on Thursday.

While I was photographing the third photo in this little slideshow, I spotted my first bee of the year. It didn’t linger on any of the blooms in that shot but buzzed around for a few minutes on other clumps of crocus in this area before vanishing from view. It was a very welcome sighting.

  • Dark, wet and cold
  • A brighter afternoon
  • The sun has been shining

Newbies: It’s always nice to take delivery of new plants, and having plants such as these Salvias delivered to my door cheers me up every single time! All six pots are Salvia nemerosa, three ‘Caradonna’ and three ‘Rose Sensation’. The borders have several Caradonnas that have been returning reliably each year, so I wanted to add just a few more. Salvia ‘Sensation Rose’ is new, and I hope it performs as well as its nearby neighbours.

  • Salvia nemerosa ‘Caradonna’
  • Salvia nemerosa ‘Sensation Rose’

The little clump of crocuses in this final shot is in a different area from those above, and I love how the light has brought out the satin texture of the petals.

Crocus in a border

I hope you have a happy weekend in your gardens. It’s the first day of the meteorological spring and although it might not feel very springlike, the plants in the ground are waking up and that has to be a good thing.

Six on Saturday is hosted by Jim. Follow the link if you want to join in, or see what others are growing in their gardens.

Catherine x

29 thoughts on “Welcome, Spring of 2025”

    1. Thank you Gill. Sunshine – ’tis pouring rain. ☔️ Even head-to-toe rainwear won’t tempt me outdoors today. Fortunately I have other plans and that just might involve seed-sowing after lunch! 😁 Enjoy your weekend!

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  8. Beautiful photos of the crocuses, I find it difficult to get a good shot of mine in the borders, so much other stuff gets in the way! I must try some of the pale yellow ones again in containers. I had ‘Cream Beauty’ once which is very delicate, along with ‘Blue Pearl’ which is a pale lilac with a silvery sheen. Sadly neither came back the following year. Crocuses definitely require sun though to look their best.

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    1. Thank you, Jude. The camera I use has a flip-out screen so I can just support the camera down low (or sit it on top of a small upturned pot). Then I can move things around to get a better view. It makes a difference. I had Crocus ‘Cream Beauty’ once too, but it’s long gone now. I’ll have to look at ‘Blue Pearl’ that one is new to me.

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    1. Thank you March. I think you must do way more forward planning in your garden, as it’s a much larger space than mine. It’s all part of the fun of gardening, planning, dreaming, planting and in time, hopefully enjoying. 😊

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    1. I haven’t planted crocuses in the borders for several years, purely because the heavy winter rains crushed them. But they seem to be a bit more resilient recently so I’m aiming to plant many more in autumn.

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  13. Exquisite photos as always Catherine. I don’t grow many crocuses as they seem to get so sadly battered by the elements but they are beautiful flowers. I also saw my first bumble bee of the year on Saturday afternoon having spotted a honey bee the previous Saturday. Joyous sightings 😍

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    1. I’ve avoided them for years Anna, but planted these a few years ago and so far they seem to be holding on fairly well. It was dry, and calm here today – and 10C, but I didn’t spot any more bees. I think that was probably more to do with having too little in bloom.

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  14. Love your photos of the first signs of Spring Catherine! They lift my spirits while I wait (im)patiently for my bulbs to emerge. Only a couple of crocuses in the garden beds so far. Wishing you more sunshine this week!

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    1. Much the same here. My Iris reticulata have been a disaster, and there’s not much else in bloom other than what’s above. Happy to report this has been a dry, wind-free day. No real sunshine, but it was pleasant to work in.

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