Duncan Kelbaugh: The wonderful sounds of spring have returned

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I love this time of year when warmth returns and brings life to the garden in a myriad of forms, from foliage to flowers, insects, mammals, and territorial songs from toads to cardinals.

Just last year I snuck down to the edge of our large goldfish pond one warm evening in early May to spy on what I assumed were frogs singing to claim their piece of the shoreline and seek a mate. I was quite surprised to see eight or 10 toads spaced fairly evenly around the entire perimeter of the pond, taking turns ballooning out huge bulging necks, then expelling that air as loud, shrill calls lasting several seconds.

I had heard that sound each spring for years not knowing it was issued by the relatively terrestrial toads, as opposed to more water-loving frogs, but of course, toads still must lay their eggs in water, go to elementary school as tadpoles, then graduate to the terrestrial world as adults.

That wonderful sound of spring returned again last week (last few days of April), starting after dark and going till almost midnight, on all but the coolest of evenings. I assume we are so blessed with frogs and toads on this property because of the large trout pond and gold fish ponds, both of which have tadpoles in them much of the year. The apex predator of that amphibian world is the bull frog, who eats almost anything he can catch, including other frogs and even those toad tadpoles I just mentioned.

The eye-catcher at home now is the pink magnolia I mentioned two weeks ago, when its flower buds were revealing only tiny tips of pink. Now it’s in full bloom, and the floppy, soft pink petals look surreal in their magnificent display. Beneath the magnolia is a drift of daffodils, now midway through their five weeks of glory. The close up is of another nearby drift of daffs, these are dwarfs, about 8” tall, with that lovely combination of sunshine yellow petals and orange coronas, downturned as if in modesty. I have long left tulips in favour of daffodils, firstly due to deer only liking the former, but also because tulips usually fade away over a few seasons, while daffs hold their own or increase over time.

The yellow of the daffodils is echoed in the 3 or 4 forsythias we have on the property, including this ‘Show Off’ variety. That group of forsythia varieties appeared on the market with the new millennium, sporting larger, brighter yellow flowers, and more compact size. Within the Show Off series, there are larger and smaller cultivars.

Although I encourage people to prune their shrubs whenever they get around to it, if you can do so just after blooming is complete, you will maximize the number of blooms you get the following season.

Forsythias are such obvious spring bloomers that it is easy to plan to prune them in late May or June each year. As fast growing shrubs, it’s a good idea to prune them each year to keep them open (branch structure thinned out), well-shaped and compact, as it doesn’t take long for them to get overgrown and shaggy. When pruning all shrubs, pay particular attention to the branches touching the ground. Generally, shrubs are better looking when they have a bit of open space or ground clearance, even just a few inches. I usually remove the lowest branches that touch the ground, right back at the trunk if possible. That creates a dark space under the canopy that helps define the shape of the plant, generally giving it a more well-defined and shapely appearance.

The next flower currently blooming on our property is the relatively small perennial pasqueflower. For its compact size, forming a mound of silvery, finely cut foliage about 15” in diameter, the flowers are relatively large, six-petalled purple stars with bright yellow centre stamens. Their adaptation to such an early spring bloom time, where temps are cool and rain might mix with snow, is to close their flowers on the cold wet days, tilted downward, only opening and tilting upward on the warmest sunny days.

The final floral display I just noticed two days ago when it caught me by surprise, and blew me away with its profusion of creamy bloom, is pieris, or Japanese andromeda. This exotic compact broadleaf evergreen has bright red new shoots in the spring that mature to glossy green leaves. The flowers resemble lily of the valley, in profuse clusters of creamy small bell-shaped blooms that droop downward. I love those pleasant surprises when you almost forget you have a plant, then suddenly you notice it in full bloom, which pays you time and a half as chief gardener!

Duncan Kelbaugh is the owner of Brunswick Nurseries Garden Centre in Quispamsis.