On my way to an Amish market in late March I was surprised to see some color in somebody’s front yard. Late March is a time when we’re wanting the land to get green already.
After that long Winter these purple and white posies made a delightful sight! They made me pull over right away to stop and take a closer look.
White, light purple, light purple with white center, and dark purple flowers complemented each other with the brown lawn for a backdrop.
At first I didn’t know what kind of flowers they were, but I did realize they must be bulbs as they had come up so early. The hellebores and daffodils were also blooming at this time and the star magnolia flower buds were getting bigger but not yet opening up.
With a little help from a bulbs catalog I flipped through enough pictures to learn that these posies are known as Grecian Windflowers, Anemone blanda.
The foliage was low to the ground – barely taller than the curled blades of grass. Each leaf was divided into three leaflets having deeply notched edges and a central cleft. The dark green leaves die back in summer.
The daisy-like flowers are perennial and act like a Spring Ephemeral. They would look great planted with narcissus or tulip or just about anywhere you’d like a little color in very early Spring.
See a full-size version on my site at FineArtAmerica:
(Photos taken 24 March 2016.)