Azaleas- ‘Tis the Season!

 

They are dormant for maybe 46 weeks of the year. But come March the countdown begins for the lovely azaleas to put some real spring into the spring season. 

Ours have started to bloom in force over the past few days. And what a welcome sight they are! The glorious Azaleas are helping offset the awful dump of pollen and the accompanying pine tree pollen pods. 

Here you see in our front yard a couple days ago a mix of new blooms and almost-there buds. 

Here is a closeup of azalea buds just a day or so from opening up. The gorgeous flowers have an all too short lifetime. Just a few weeks sadly! 

To follow are other azalea shrubs in our front and backyards and that adjoin our property with our neighbors. 

It’s great that azaleas come in such a variety of colors. This azalea "fun facts" site lists the colors: red, white, yellow, pink, purple, orange and  mauve.

They are known as the "royalty of the garden." 

This red azaleas shrub near the golf course pond always blooms earlier than the others in our yard. 

I don’t know why. Maybe it’s because it receives lots of full sunshine. 

This white one is also an early bloomer. It is located just past the end of the driveway. 

Here’s a view of a large group of Azaleas in the backyard. Blooms are only 50- percent or so as of today. Unfortunately, some of these have died over the years. 

The Coosaw Creek Country Club Golf Course No. 15 fairway is beyond the azalea patch. 

This is a reverse view of the previous image. 

Hoot. Hoot. Ok, not a real owl. This big-eyed decoy has the job of scaring birds from landing...and pooping...on my son’s car that sits in our driveway and is rarely driven. This because he lives in Manhattan (NYC) where it is tough and very expensive to keep a car. 

These azaleas in the front yard are gorgeous year after year. Wish I can take credit for the green thumb or landscaping acumen but most of our azaleas were already here when we bought the house way back in 1995. 

Looking out an upstairs window. You can some of the neighbors’ azaleas as well. 

The front porch view. 

Alas, the azaleas flowers will be gone in just a few weeks. So we just have to enjoy and appreciate them during their annual moment in the sun. 

a not so fun fact about azaleas is that their nectar and leaves can be poisonous! pretty but pretty dangerous it seems! Well, I've never heard of anyone eating an azalea flower. But I sure wouldn't want my cats to chew on one. We have never cut them and brought in to put in a vase- never will know that I've learned of this threat. 

The "fun facts" site also says azaleas given someone is black vase is seen as a threat!  

I just finished a whitewash painting of the front porch. So I’ll close this post with a few shots showing that. 

For our Easter trip up to Virginia, I very carefully picked a mix of azaleas then also carefully transported them in our vehicle. I was fortunate to find a water bottle that fits snugly in the backseat drink holder.

The bouquet made a fine centerpiece on my parents’ dinner table.