Saskatoon tree blossoms

Peter and Maree kindly planted a Saskatoon tree on their property so that it would be easily visible from my front study.  I have enjoyed watching it develop this April.  The sunshine of the last four chilly days finally brought out the flowers.

April 25, 2011

April 25, 2011

April 25, 2011

April 25, 2011

April 26, 2011 (hint of sunshine)

April 30, 2011 (sun just catching the blossoms but not our house)

April 30, 2011, 11:00 a.m. glorious sunshine (finally)

Late afternoon sun light, May 1st

 

More Late April Flowers in Vancouver (Janice's and Maree's Gardens)

Sadly, our lilies are late this year because so much of the garden is still deeply shaded.  But Holy Saturday was glorious with the best sunshine yet, and flowers are slowly awakening belatedly.  Here is what I saw in Janice's and Maree's front gardens.

Purple rockcress

Corydalis

Corydalis

Camellia

Candytufts

Hellebore

Golden tip marjoram (edible)

Raminsh hearing Vancouver Chamber Choir perform his latest work

The second half of the annual Good Friday's concert by the Vancouver Chamber Choir features a newly commissioned work by Imant Raminsh, a Canadian composer residing in Prince George.  During a dress rehearsal in the Orpheum, I took this photo in the darkened hall as the composer followed the orchestral score of his new work, The Mystical Bond, "a multi-language tribute to universal brotherhood".  I believe this was the first time he heard the work performed.

Hellebores in Vancouver

Our April temperatures are chilly today (4 Celsius) and the sky overcast, but the hellebores are now in full bloom.  In this weather, they seem to hang their heads for protection, so one has to get quite low to take their photos.

More spring buds from Vancouver

More shots from Janice's and Maree's front gardens:

Witch hazel leaf bud (the flowers come during our winter)

Witch hazel leaf buds

Saskatoon berry tree buds

Saskatoon berry tree buds

Periwinkle bud

Wooly thyme's new growth (back garden, growing between patio stones)

Moss on apple tree at dawn

Lilac buds

Lilacs in full bloom are spectacular, but even their unopened delicate buds have wonderfully light shades of green and the purple to come.

Early April buds and flowers in Maree's and Janice's front gardens in Vancouver

Before the promised rains returned, I spent some time shooting in Janice's and Maree's front gardens (both lawns have disappeared).  The light but persistent breezes repeatedly forced me to wait for minutes, but the youthfulness of the buds is amazing.

Magnolia bud

Pulmonaria (Lungwort) just starting to open

Primula Veris

Flowering currant

Moss--what grows best in our rain forest.

Hellebore

Pieris Japonica

Sempervivum (Hens and chicks)

Sempervivum

Primula Veris

English Daisy

Apple Tree Bud just appearing

Apple Tree Bud in first morning light

Hyacinth

Candytufts

An anemone blanda waiting to be opened by the warmth of the sun

Candytufts just starting to open