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teachingmom
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Virginia Bluebells
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| Posted: April 15 2006 at 2:58pm | IP Logged
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I've been thinking of signs of Spring--those changes in nature, like certain trees or flowers blooming, that just seem to shout, "Spring is here!" As for me here in Virginia, it's the blooming of the Redbud trees. I love the freestanding ones, like the one we planted in my backyard a few years ago, because they have beautiful lavender/purple blooms on each and every branch. But almost even more, I love the ones that grow naturally in the woods around here. As I drove down country roads to get to the library this afternoon, I was awed by the beauty of the Redbuds peeking out from all the Spring green of the trees surrounding them in the woods along the edge of the roads.
So, what's your favorite sign of Spring in your region of the country?
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~Irene (Mom to 6 girls, ages 7-19)
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MacBeth
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Probably at the beach...
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Barnacle nauplii landing on rocks. 
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MacBeth in NY
Don's wife since '88; "Mom" to the Fab 4
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lilac hill
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The smell of dirt.
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Viv
Wife to Rick (7/83), Mom to dd#1(6/87), dd#2(1/90), and dd#3(6/94) in central PA.
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momwise
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Those afternoon thunderstorms that come swirling up over the Rocky mountains and make whole sky go dark around 3:30 or 4pm. They leave some rain (or once in a while hail) and off they go into Kansas while we're back in the sunshine by dinner. The best ones leave a rainbow too  .
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Gwen...wife for 30 years, mom of 7, grandma of 3.....
"If you want equal justice for all and true freedom and lasting peace, then America, defend life." JPII
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teachingmom
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| Posted: April 15 2006 at 4:26pm | IP Logged
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MacBeth wrote:
| Barnacle nauplii landing on rocks. |
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OK, oh scientific one  , even after a google (pro-life) search, I have no idea what you are talking about. Care to expound?
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~Irene (Mom to 6 girls, ages 7-19)
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lapazfarm
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The smell of fresh cut grass.
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Theresa
us-schooling in beautiful Fairbanks, Alaska.
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MacBeth
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Probably at the beach...
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teachingmom wrote:
MacBeth wrote:
| Barnacle nauplii landing on rocks. |
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OK, oh scientific one , even after a google (pro-life) search, I have no idea what you are talking about. Care to expound? |
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Hee. It really is my favorite thing...
View the whole barnacle life cycle.
So you go to the beach, and you see lots of tiny red spots on the rocks, and it's the barnacles landing as cyprid (they have recently stopped being nauplii) larvae, gluing their heads to the rocks...
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MacBeth in NY
Don's wife since '88; "Mom" to the Fab 4
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Jen L.
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teachingmom wrote:
I love the ones that grow naturally in the woods around here.
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I couldn't agree more, Irene Redbuds poking through the trees on the side of the road (even before the leaves are out) are WONDERFUL.
Also, we always keep our eyes out for the first robin sighting of the season.
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Jen
dh Klete,ds (8/95),dd (12/97), dd (11/00), and ^2^ in heaven
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Donna
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The bird songs.
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Donna
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JennGM
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Everything!!! I just love watching for all the signs of spring. I love Forsythia and daffodils as they herald the beginning of spring, and the red robin on my fence...the birds chirping away! I love all the flowering bulbs, particularly tulips. The redbuds and pear trees, lily magnolia (love those!), cherry trees are beautiful, but even the spring green of the new growth in the grass and leaves is just so gorgeous!
I love the showers and thunderstorms, too, Gwen! We had a gorgeous rainbow just last week, viewing right out our front door.
Dogwoods and azaleas have been high in the running as my favorite part, particularly when we lived in Louisiana. The azaleas in the South are just breathtaking (just watch the Masters every year). But these two blooming means spring is really here to stay. I am always disappointed in azaleas up in Northern VA, because they just are NOTHING like down there. 20 years and I'm still not used to them! And dogwoods have the religious legend and usually are blooming around Easter, so another reason why I like them!
Sorry to be so verbose (as usual)!
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Dawn
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I'm with Jenn! I'm not sure I can pick just *one* thing ... so here are my top five:
1. The morning air smells mild and fresh.
2. Magnolia trees start to blossom.
3. The Baltimore Orioles return for a few days to feast on our cherry trees.
4. My little chipmunk comes out of hibernation and reappears under our feeders.
5. Butterflies!
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ladybugs
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Morning glories opening at the beginning of every morning....
Sunflowers poking through the dirt...
Calla lillies and tulips and daffodils and stargazer lillies...
The anticipation of eating fresh tomatoes ripe off the vine....
Butterflies...
Birds chirping in the morning...
Walks...
I love barnacles, too, MacBeth...but I don't get the opportunity to enjoy them too much...  crying over barnacles...if that's my biggest problem today then I am a fortunate woman!
Best wishes for a Happy Easter! 
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Maria P
My etsy store - all proceeds go to help my fencing daughters!
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ladybugs
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Hey Mac"Barnacle,"
Do you have any recommendations for any living books with barnacles in them?
I started to write a book a couple of years ago with the barnacle being a super hero...yes, please don't laugh too terribly hard....
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Maria P
My etsy store - all proceeds go to help my fencing daughters!
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MaryM
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Dawn wrote:
| 3. The Baltimore Orioles return for a few days to feast on our cherry trees. |
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As I first read this, I thought the Major League Baseball team was returning to... then saw it was to feast on your cherry trees - okay guess it's not the baseball team. Shows you where my mind is. For us the first sign of spring is the crack of the baseball bat and piles of cletes, baseballs, and bat bags blocking the entry way. Oh this was supposed to be nature related - how about the dirt falling of the cletes in the entry way?
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Mary M. in Denver
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Karen E.
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Signs of spring I love:
1. the first flowers we see ... the tulips
2. our lilac bushes in bloom
3. The first day we open every window in the house
4. The first night we leave them open all night
5. Awakening to the sound of the birds
And, one sure sign that spring is here:
* Curriculum catalogs arriving in the mail
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Karen E.
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Visit my blog, with its shockingly clever title, "Karen Edmisten."
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alicegunther
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Rosy, sun-kissed cheeks on the children and winter coats dotting the lawn like discarded chrysalids!
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Kathryn UK
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Hawthorn blossom and daffodils
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Kathryn
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teachingmom
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Karen E. wrote:
| 2. our lilac bushes in bloom |
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Karen,
The one year that I lived in the mid-west, my favorite sign of Spring was the lilacs blooming. (Actually, are you considered mid-west? I'm not sure.) They are so wonderful in that region, it seems. I planted a few here last year, but they are still tiny with no blooms.  Do you know if it takes a few years for them to begin blooming?
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~Irene (Mom to 6 girls, ages 7-19)
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Karen E.
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teachingmom wrote:
The one year that I lived in the mid-west, my favorite sign of Spring was the lilacs blooming. (Actually, are you considered mid-west? I'm not sure.) They are so wonderful in that region, it seems. I planted a few here last year, but they are still tiny with no blooms. Do you know if it takes a few years for them to begin blooming? |
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Hi, Irene,
Yes, we're midwest! I'm afraid I don't know much about planting them -- we've been lucky to have established bushes in both of the houses we've owned. I know they need lots of sun, and also know that too much pruning on an established bush will limit blooms, but I'm afraid I can't help with getting them going ... Sorry!
Here's a page that might help. Good luck! I love having a house full of lilac blooms in the spring!
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Karen E.
mom to three on earth, and several souls in God's care
Visit my blog, with its shockingly clever title, "Karen Edmisten."
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lilac hill
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teachingmom wrote:
| [ I planted a few here last year, but they are still tiny with no blooms. Do you know if it takes a few years for them to begin blooming? |
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I have had lilacs that take a few years to bloom but once they started, they were wonderful.
I prune after bloom.( I usually prune any flowering plants after bloom)Once established, I try to prune out 1/3 of the branches at the base and trim for height to keep the plants yard appropriate. There are a few huge bushes at the edge of the property that I do not prune-wind, age and fort-making girls do the pruning there.
I also put woodashes from the fireplace around the base of as many plants as I can get to.
I noticed that my varigated leafed lilac has buds for the first time in 4 years. The French Blue has pushed new sprouts after 4 years as well--finally.
Seems the "fancies" Blue, varigated leaf, pink, and varigated flower just take a bit longer.
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Viv
Wife to Rick (7/83), Mom to dd#1(6/87), dd#2(1/90), and dd#3(6/94) in central PA.
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Topic: What's your favorite sign of Spring?
