We have set new records for rain and cold, so everything is about three weeks behind schedule. Here are a few of the things that have dared to show their faces regardless of the weather:

the anemones are doing fine, though there are fewer of them than usual.

Evergreen clematis did not die back as in previous cold years, but the blossoms and scent fall far short of the clouds that engulfed us in years when the winters were mild.

‘Ascot Rainbow’ is the only Euphorbia to hold its own. All of the others look like Holocaust survivors, though they do put out the occasional blossom:

as evidenced by this blossom on Euphorbia ‘Persian Velvet’. I won’t ruin your day by showing you the whole plant.

The natives, like this Ribes, which mostly show up voluntarily, remain undaunted other than deer damage.

As bold as they are, the deer refrain from coming this close to the house, so this one is achieving good size.

Out in the front hedgerow, the Viburnum tinus ‘Robustrum’ that has been in the tight bud stage for ever so long is finally beginning to open up to the occasional ray of sunshine.

I didn’t do a very good job of capturing the color of the emrging Dicentra spectabilis, but this is one of the few old fashioned flowers I could not do without. The flowers emerge before the foliage, but hold on long enough for it to catch up. I like the way the baby’s tears and sedums are filling in to form a dense mat, making a nice backdrop for the bleeding heart and the black mondo grass out of the frame.

Some things simply must come inside to be fully appreciated. The delicate foliage and subtle coloring on the checkered lily get a little lost in the landscape.

But Fritillaria meleagris will reward closer inspection. For closer inspection of blooms around the world, May Dreams Gardens is the place.