Mason Bees

I saw two mason bees nesting in the new bee boxes today. It was so fun to watch them work!

Happy Mother's Day

It was a beautiful day for a bike ride, so we rode our Xtracycles to the farmers market for a nice lunch with the family. We found some apples, pears, radishes, and asparagus at the market, as well as a ginger mint plant that I'll find room for in the garden soon. Of course, Don and Ben found a lovely bouquet of flowers for me as well. They're good to me.

Yesterday I took a few more garden photos while thinking about my own mom and grandma. These are for us. Happy day.

Red rhododendrons for my mom...
These are blooming so beautifully right now by the front door in the front yard. As a girl, I used to watch bees buzz in and out of them. I still do now. Thanks for planting them, Mom. And yes, I promise to deadhead them later this spring.

Forget-me-nots for my Grandma Lena...
She had lots of perennials in her back yard gardens in Quincy, so these remind me of her. I loved playing in her yard and picking flowers when I stayed with her during the summers.

Apple blossoms for me...

These are from the Queen Cox semi-dwarf apple tree that we planted in our front yard seven years ago. The blossoms are so big and beautiful this year. Let's hope they bring us lots of delicious fruit this fall.

Bees and Blossoms

I built three bee boxes today with a little help from Don and Ben. The mason bees have been pretty active lately, and we hope they've been pollinating our fruit trees! When they're ready to nest, they can enjoy these new boxes near our apple trees.

Aren't they cute?

Golden Sentinel Apple Blossoms

Golden Sentinel Columnar Apple Tree