The vernal equinox has come

The Good Mr. Dr. was on Spring Break this week. We made time to prepare for the beginning of Spring by taking one day off in the middle of week to go to the garden centers and start choosing a few flowers to experiment with.

Remember how I mentioned that we had lots and lots and lots of rain last weekend. Well, it finally stopped on Tuesday. We were lucky. Our garden was waterlogged and the backyards of several of our neighbors were under quite a few inches of water. But it was nothing compared to what some folks outside the city faced. For example, on the way to one our favorite garden centers, one major roadway was flooded out. Here's what it looked like in Sudbury:

The water has risen over the banks. It's not easy to see in this picture, but what looks like a levy is actually a a train track that is almost completely overrun with water.

When we arrived at Russell's Garden Center in Wayland, they too were flooded out. They were still open but if you needed something that was in the back, they literally had to get out the canoes to get it for you.

Those little blue buildings are usually where you would pay for your purchases.

Water, water, every where water.

Despite the flooding, they were still operating. We bought some pansies and tangerine geraniums. We then headed to Home Depot to look for pots and other assorted garden stuff. We got grape hyacinths and daffodils, some pots and other stuff to repair the fence and hopefully keep out the skunks that have been digging up the garden.

We also bought some lilies and experimental seeds that we plan to just throw out and see what grows.

Yesterday, we went pot hunting. We managed to get one nice one from a woman in West Roxbury who also shared her gardening wisdom with us. Today we potted our new flowers and also found some new bulbs planted by previous owners poking through.

Not sure what they are are yet.

The lineup from left to right: pansies, tangerine geranium, mix of daffodils and graph hyacinth (two pots), pansies, daffodils with Asiatic lily buried within. In front of the daffodil/hyacinth pots is the lambs ear, which should only be potted because they can takeover a garden.

If you know us by now, you know that we like to plan things out in as much detail as possible. So, you must be asking yourself, "What is their plan?"

I wouldn't want to spoil the surprise, but I can tell you this: there will be pumpkins.

Somewhere in here. But not where the bulbs are.

In other news, we are very close to choosing a contractor to replace the one chimney that is falling down and the skylights. Once that is complete, we'll have a larger repair job to tackle in the 3rd floor southeast room. That will likely be a bit later, maybe even over winter. We want to experience some rain before we start rebuilding floors and ceilings, just to make sure.