Post your spring 2011 photos here!

[BrassMan]

Most of us Kindle Boarders in the northern hemisphere are thoroughly sick of winter and more than ready for spring. As a Kindle Boarder in the southern part of the northern hemisphere, I might be one of the first to sight harbingers--and I did, on March 1st. Be of good cheer! Spring has begun!

(To those Kindle Boarders in the southern hemisphere, may your winter be less horrible than ours was.)

Here are some signs of early spring in my yard as of yesterday. If only you could have been there and heard the bees buzzing....

Huisache daisies:



The first bluebonnet (state flower of Texas):


An eager monarch (I think)

[John Hamilton]

Nice shots!  I'm afraid up here in MN we have a few more weeks of winter to endure before we can post anything warm-looking. 

[◄ Jess ►]

I am so jealous. EVERY night (I'm serious - every single night) I dream about spring coming and running outside with my camera. It's currently 13F here and snowing. I want it to warm up sooo badly. I feel like it's never going to come.

[BrassMan]

I know, I know. I feel your chillblains. Daughter #2 flew down from Detroit last weekened. The plane had to be de-iced before it could leave. But waiting on the curb at the San Antonio airport, she had to strip off her heavy socks so as not to swelter. It was 80º the day she headed back, and it snowed the next day. Our "hard" winter was short and mild by comparison; I should be embarrassed to complain.

We did this spring photo thing at Kindle Boards last year too. Once it got rolling you could see the flowers and thaws moving north day by day. We should end up carpeted with wildflowers which will dry up and go to seed by the time spring really sets in up north. Kinda neat!

Hang in there, guys.

[BrassMan]

Here's one of our first Indian paintbrushes (or Indian pinks, as some call them). They were thick last spring, but I'm not sure we've had enough rain over the winter to bring up a thick carpet of them. Stay tuned. A friend 120 miles north has reported sighting a few wildflowers. It could happen!

[Cindy416]

This is a cross-post, but it embodies the end of winter and approach of spring where I live.

A friend's daughter took this photo of geese taking off from water near our wildlife refuge. I've lived here almost 40 years, and have never seen as many geese in one place as I have in the past couple of weeks. (I apologize in advance for the size of the photos, but wanted you to see both the distant view and an enlarged photo.) Check this out:





Here it is large enough that you can actually see the geese:

[BrassMan]

Yikes! Each one weighs what, 20 pounds? That's like a herd of elephants flying through the air! Stunning!

[Cindy416]

Yikes! Each one weighs what, 20 pounds? That's like a herd of elephants flying through the air! Stunning!

That was my thinking, too. You'd think I'd be used to geese after living here all these years, but I have never seen anything like this. (Our little town used to have the nickname "Home of the Honkers." As thrilled as I am that no one calls it that any longer, I can certainly see where the nickname got its start.)

[BrassMan]

That was my thinking, too. You'd think I'd be used to geese after living here all these years, but I have never seen anything like this. (Our little town used to have the nickname "Home of the Honkers." As thrilled as I am that no one calls it that any longer, I can certainly see where the nickname got its start.)

I just had lunch with an ornithologist friend. He said geese are mostly feathers, and might weigh four pounds or so. Still, that's an elephant or two up there.

[Cindy416]

I just had lunch with an ornithologist friend. He said geese are mostly feathers, and might weigh four pounds or so. Still, that's an elephant or two up there.

I didn't actually think they weighed 20 lbs., as my husband has shot a few over the years, and I remember that goose breasts don't weigh a lot, but with all of those birds up there at once, there surely had to be the equivalent of a couple of pachyderms up there.

[williammeikle]

Nope - no spring here. Still a foot of snow in the yard, and it's snowing again now.

Willie, in Newfoundland

[Amy Corwin]

Spring has sprung here and the first wave of daffodils is already over!
I'm just waiting, now, for the crabapples and other trees to bloom!

[◄ Jess ►]

WOW, that geese photo is amazing! I've never seen anything like that.

[Cindy416]

WOW, that geese photo is amazing! I've never seen anything like that.

My husband has been out of town, and I showed him the photo as soon as he unpacked. He looked at it, shrugged, and said that we see that many geese often and can't understand why I am so impressed with it. That got me to thinking, and I realized that I probably have seen that many at once, but it's always been in relationship to a wide-open sky above the geese. This photo, having nothing but thousands of geese, makes the scene much more dramatic than it is in "the wild." Even with that said, I still love the photo, and am glad that my friend chose to share it.

[BrassMan]

Here's a mountain laurel, a small, hardy native tree. The blooms smell like grape bubble gum, though the moth might think differently. The yuccas are slow to bloom--not enough winter rain--but they'll come out fast.


 
 

[Cindy416]

I've heard of mountain laurel, but have never seen it. It's beautiful and looks very much like spring.

[◄ Jess ►]

Cute moth! It's still snowing here. 27 degrees, oh joy. I just hope I can move somewhere warm in a couple months when I'm done with school!

[BrassMan]

Spring is thoroughly sprung in south Texas. Here's the wisteria over the patio coming on strong, and then some huisache daisies, which are plentiful this year if not thick. Someone send rain!

[◄ Jess ►]

So beautiful! Still snowing here. It's not even supposed to get out of the teens today. I heard about an amazing meadow for taking insect pictures, so I'm really really hoping spring hits before I have to leave here!

[Cindy416]

Beautiful photos, Al! The close-up of the wisteria is gorgeous, and I'm amazed at the size of that wisteria growing over the archway. It's lovely! (The daisies are very "springy," too.) 

[BrassMan]

Beautiful photos, Al! The close-up of the wisteria is gorgeous, and I'm amazed at the size of that wisteria growing over the archway. It's lovely! (The daisies are very "springy," too.) 

That's actually 8 or 10 wisterias, in two rows, to cover the patio and shade the front of the house. We had acres of daisies last spring, but only patches this spring. Here's another patch.

Our DD in Michigan had a spring snowstorm yesterday. She said it was 25º this morning. Brrr!

[BrassMan]

Well, spring has pretty much sprung here, I'm sorry to say. It didn't last long (no rain). Re the wisteria in post #17 above, this is what we had Tuesday:



On the other hand, DD#1 reported driving home through snow the same day (in PA). The good news is that most of you in the rest of the U.S. still have spring to look forward to, or at least I hope so. Some pictures would be nice!

[BlueEyedMum]

Still waiting for Spring here...I can see the grass is starting to turn green though so hopefully soon.

[◄ Jess ►]

Well, it's been in the 40s and sunny the past few days, so I thought spring was finally here, but the weather decided to pull one last trick on me and dump a bunch of snow today. Unfortunately, it looks like I wasn't the only one that got caught unaware!



I just hope they don't freeze overnight!

[Amy Corwin]

Our daffodils have come and gone and now it's azalea time!

Wisteria, too!