Rhododendron "Winter"

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Hiding deep within the foliage, I wouldn't have seen this first-ever truss if I hadn't been out looking for critters to photograph.

I'm very excited about this because I've had this Rhododendron bush, aptly named "Winter", for 10 years and this is the first time it's bloomed.

Multi-Hued Mystery Plant

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Encountered while taking a beach and town walk last weekend, it looks kind of like bamboo. A Google search did nothing to solve the mystery. Does anyone know what this is?

A Camelia To Brighten An Otherwise Gray Day

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A six-foot tall shrub, covered with these pink blooms, is framed by our breakfast room window. Quite a delight in this gray, cold and rainy weather we're having.

Web Perfection

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A mere 6-inches across, it doesn't get more perfect than this.

Tough to photograph at this angle. Click on the photo for greater detail.

Heart Of Stone? No Way...

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Mr CC loves to play with cement. He made this 25 years ago. Voluptuous, curvey (his words) and plump (my word), it speaks volumes about his then-vision of me which actually endures to this day, much to my delight.

Placed in a garden bed when we moved here 12 years ago, I came across it the other day and was immediately flooded with the sweetest memories. And even though I didn't get it posted on Valentine's Day as I had planned, it's still so very nice for this month of love.

Dwarf Iris

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I'm always surprised when I happen upon these dwarf iris, Iris reticulata, barely showing their heads above the pot they share with a large rose. They bloomed several days ago, Feb. 9th or 10th. Early, even for them. At roughly 4-inches tall, the blossoms are easily as big as the stems they grow on; a sweetly scented, lovely sign of the spring that's just around the corner.

'Tis The Lambing Season

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A few weeks old now, these sweeties live next door in the green pasture of our neighbors. The mama, a sweetheart herself, is human imprinted and will practically knock you down in her curiosity to see what you might have for her. Here she wants to know about the camera. As in, is it edible? At any rate, her exuberance successfully thwarted my attempts to get close enough to her babies to take the perfect photo. Although I think these are pretty good.

When Fruit Becomes A Home

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If you were wondering, this is a quince fruit. About the size of a large apple, it's been sitting on the ground all winter and has become home to some kind of critter. This is the front door (top photo).

This is the back.

Curious Calves

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Is there any cuter than a curious young animal?

These guys live in the pasture adjacent to the school where I work three days a week.

On seeing me about to get in my car this afternoon, they eagerly trotted over to the fence to see if I had something to feed them. Of course I had to get out my camera. Disgruntled, they moved on.

Winter Rose

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I love it that my roses bloom year round. Because of the summer fog, they actually do better in the winter months when most other gardeners are pruning theirs! This is a "Gertie" (Gertrude Jekyll) bloom, showing off its quartered petal shape quite nicely.

Fungi

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Growing on an old redwood stump, these fungi show up every winter.

These were rather strange. No more than 1/4-inch tall and about the size of a matchstick head, brown dust flew everywhere when I blew on them.