I miss spring. I miss summer.
The northeast is still in the grip of winter and it’s far from pleasant. This past weekend we had such lovely highs as -5 degrees Fahrenheit (with the wind chill). My husband and I are convinced humans were not meant to live in this type of weather. We are warm weather creatures, especially as we age. The photo below is a view of what I was greeted with when I stepped outside over the weekend. Very pretty, yes, but wretchedly cold. Especially when the wind was whipping snow all over the place throughout the day.
Hubby and I are looking forward to spring when we can once again set up our back porch and deck. When I think spring, I imagine robins, Easter, bunny rabbits, and . . . flowers. Who doesn’t like the bright and colorful blooms that transform gardens and homes into a vibrant tapestry of color? But flowers are much more than just a gardener’s delight. They can be used for pressing, in aromatherapy, and in recipes, to name a few applications.
I’m delighted to announce that my friend and sister author Sandra Cox is offering FLOWER GARDENS AND MORE for just $.99 on Amazon through February 21st. Check out the blurb for this book that will have you thinking spring:
BLURB:
FLOWER GARDENS AND MORE gives basic information on flowers, different gardens, planting instructions and composting. This book also details uses for flowers after they bloom that include: aromatherapy, pressing, and recipes for edibles. In addition there’s information on carnivorous plants, floriography and a quick reference chart. Wondering about zones? Which flowers are poisonous to your pets? Find the answers in this handy little book. There’s even a florascope personality test.
If you’re thinking spring like I am, go grab a bouquet of flowers and download FLOWER GARDENS AND MORE. It’s the perfect way to embrace a bit of spring during these blustery cold days of winter.
Purchase from Amazon for $.99 through February 21st
Connect with Sandra at the following haunts:
Blog
Twitter
Facebook
From the Pen of Mae Clair 
I’m done with winter too. As of this writing it’s -20. Crazy! We’re going through so much wood, it feels like a full-time job to keep the wood stove burning. I think Phil lied about an early Spring. 🙂
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Minus 20? Ugh! You’re worse than us, although we’re getting more of the white stuff today. Yeah, Phil needs to get his act together and deliver that spring he promised. I’m in dire need!
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A beautiful postcard winter image! Just that. I no longer enjoy freezing cold and mountains of snow. However, this winter has been milder, up to now, here. It’s spring weather in the middle of February ( unusual).
I will send some of the warm weather your way.
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Carmen, I envy your warm weather. Please do send some of those mild temperatures my way. As I type this, it’s snowing yet again and is supposed to continue through most of the day. Brrrr!
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My sister watched an all day QVC flower show, and she swore she wouldn’t buy one thing–just look. But who can resist flowers when it’s snowy and cold outside? Lol. Her plants will arrive at the proper planting time:)
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And it sounds like she will have a lovely garden when they bloom!. I think flowers are a siren call in winter. I’m sure I would have been buying up the goods too, LOL!
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That picture is beautiful. I’m with you though. I spent most of my years in the Midwest and have no desire to go back. I like the warm weather in NC:)
Thanks so much for helping me spread the word on Gardens. You’re the woman!
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LOL! I do what I can 😀
Hubby and I keep talking about moving south when we retire (well,he already is retired, he just has to wait on me). North Carolina is on our list of places to explore.
Hope you have a blooming bouquet of sales 🙂
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Ooh! Ooh! Pick North Carolina. Can’t think of anyone I’d rather visit with:)
Thanks for all your help getting the word out. Much appreciated.
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I think bitter winters are the only thing about Pennsylvania that I don’t miss. We’ll be in the 70s by the end of the week. You’re welcome to come visit!
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I am so jealous! Yes, PA winters are nasty. Woke up to ice this morning, but it’s switching over to rain. We might actually see 50 by the end of the day or tomorrow. Woohoo!
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I need spring! So I also need Flower Gardens and More. May be a grand project somewhere in those pages for H this summer when he retires. He needs a project for the sake of my well-being… 😉 ~Elle
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LOL. Projects are good, Elle. My H did a year of retirement, but decided he didn’t have enough to keep him busy. Now he’s got a part time job. And Sandra will love hearing you’re going to pick up Flower Gardens and More. Spring projects are the best! 🙂
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I have enough around here to keep him busy. Just not the stuff he really wants to do! I feel he will find some part time work.
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Thanks for the interest, Elle. I hear ya on the projects:)
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What a helpful sounding book! And just the ticket to curtail the winter blues. My husband was really good with flowers, as was my mother. My thumb is not so green, but I always have good intentions. Your snow scenery is breathtaking, but I can see how it would be wretched day after day after day.
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That’s it exactly. Day after day, it gets very old. I like winter, but only during December. And the first snow of the year is magical. After that, I’m ready for spring.
When it comes to flowers, I’m somewhere in the middle of the road. I usually do better with house plants, although right now I have one that is proving a problem child. No matter what I do, it just isn’t happy and keeps dropping leaves. I think it needs spring, too!
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Thanks for the kind words, Flossie. I bet you do great with flowers.
You’re right. Mae’s picture is absolutely gorgeous.
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I’m so ready for spring! We had a few snows, but none of it really stuck around. I hate cold weather UNLESS it snows. I love snow, but I prefer it when the temps are just at the freezing point. That below zero stuff? Brrrrr! Bring on the flowers!
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The below zero stuff is just nasty. Even single digits, teens and twenties are too cold for me. Snow is pretty, but when it keeps piling up I’ve had enough. I’m ready for flowers, too! 🙂
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Huh, 57 degrees right now in Boise, Idaho. I’m sure there is more winter to come, but the little breather is nice.
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57 sounds heavenly. We’re going to get a small breather later this week and into the weekend. Nothing as high as your temp, but we might see 50. YAY!
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Fingers crossed for you.
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It would take a lot for me to move out of the south, but my eldest son is in Michigan and I’m an old lady…so it could happen. I love to see the snow…but only from a warm place.
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LOL! I envy you living in the south (although I just saw a lot of tornado damage in the panhandle). I have a feeling Michigan winters may be harsher than PA. I like snow to a degree, too. And I love autumn. My hubby always says “let’s move south and then you can visit for autumn and winter.” 😀
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Yeah, we have a house we share with another Florida couple in North Carolina. I like to go there in spring and fall, but not much in the winter. It’s on the Blue Ridge Parkway and the gravel drive is straight up the side of a mountain. In the ice and snow, that’s scary.
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I live in the UK, in the middle bit and this year we have had no snow at all, only lots of rain. My spring bulbs are already showing but there is a heavy frost today making them wilt. I hope they survive the cold.
This looks like a fabulous book and just the kind of thing I am interested in, I am sure it will do well.
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Daisy, I know how much yo love gardening, flowers and flower lore. Sandra’s book does seem like a good fit for you.
I do hope your bulbs survive the frost. It would be lovely to see pictures of them come spring.
I follow another author who lives in England (I forget what part) and he had a post not that long ago commenting about the excessive amount of rain they’ve been getting. It’s pouring (mixed with sleet) right now as I type this. Lots of rain predicted today, but it could be worse. It could be snow, LOL!.
Stay dry! 🙂
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Ahh, another flower person. Fingers and toes crossed the bulbs survive, Daisy.
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Beautiful pic, Mae! Every time I hear the national weather geeks talk about the cold hitting the East Coast, I can’t help shaking my head. Only -5 windchill? Of course, living in MN gives me a bit of an edge 😉 We’re gonna hit 47ish today, and above freezing for the next week. Woo-hoo! This year we’ve been spoiled: only about 4 days all season with windchills below -10. Not much snow either, and temps haven’t tanked below -20.
Heh.
Love flowers, but I can’t justify a separate garden just for flowers–if I’m gonna weed it, I’d better be able to eat it. 🙂 I do like to toss assorted flower seeds in the regular garden. It’s fun to see the bees and butterflies, and the colors spice up the green of the veggies. I might have to check out Sandra’s book 🙂
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When we hit cold temps in PA (anything below freezing) my husband and I immediately wonder how people in your neck of the woods can deal with those bitterly cold temps in the single digits and below zero. *shiver*
I’m like a tropical fish or a cat. I need heat, LOL. Tomorrow we are going to be in the 50s so we’re going to enjoy a short warming trend. YAY!
I’ve got a few flowers here and there around the house, but my green thumb is better indoors. I think there’s a lot of cool stuff in Sandra’s book for that, too!
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Sounds like you’re a serious gardener, Julie. I bet meals are delicious at your house!
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We went through Pennsylvania in February last year on a return trip from New York to Nevada. We got about as far as the sign that says “welcome to the wilds of Pennsylvania” when it became a white out snow storm. I think we were, ironically, just outside Snowshoe.
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How ironic, LOL! And that must have been some drive, Ionia. I’ve flown to Nevada but never driven it. Sounds like you braved it in winter….and met PA’s lovely chilly months in the process. Thanks for popping in commenting! 🙂
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Snow is great as long as you can stay comfy at home curled up on the couch with a hot cup of tea and have no place to go. That is a pretty view.
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I do love winter views, and there is something to be said for being snug indoors when it’s dumping snow outside. It’s just the clean up afterward that is far from fun. On the plus side, I think we’ve had the last bad snow of the winter *fingers crossed*
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Hope your day has been pleasant and productive;)
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Thanks, my friend. Back at you! 🙂
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