first bloom and widlife

Hello all,

In spite of the foot of snow we got earlier in the week, the ground is bare
now and most of the daylilies look fine.  The dormants did not appear to
mind being covered for 2 days with snow and most of the evergreens are only
hurt a little.  Most of the tallbeardeds shrugged off the snow as well but a
few didn't like it.  ORANGE CELEBRITY hated it and the leaves turned to
mush.  JESSE'S SONG also is not singing very loudly at the moment.  Someone
asked about BREAKERS.  This looks spendid here.  From one rhizome last
August I now have the plump mother bulb and 5 offshoots which are very
large.  It looks like it gets the prize for overwintering best so far.

The first bloom appeared yesterday and, yes, it was daffodils but that's a
sure sign that spring is here.  We still have ice on the lake but about 40
ft of open water so that, too, will go.  The fishermen are probably pretty
unhappy because tomorrow is the opening day of fishing season and there is
still ice everywhere.  This is the lake district of Wis and we have about
100 or so lakes within a ten mile area.  More than 50% of the county is
lakes mostly less than 600 acres in size.

Yesterday two bald eagles flew over my house, quite low.  They are nesting
here on the lake.  Big birds.  Today I heard my first loon call of the
season.  And last night I saw my first rabbit.  Drat!  It wasn't even very
wild.  David, my son, said if I would let him have a gun he would blast it.
I had to be contented with him chasing it into the neighbor's yard.

We also have black bear near here but they are very shy.  We seldom see them
but last year a moose swam across the lake and gave everyone a thrill.
Quite rare to see them this far south.

Raccoons we have.  They are cute but vicious.  I have never had them attack
my plants but I have had them destroy bird feeders to get the seeds.  They
will rip the feeder apart.  They also destroy garbage cans.  I do not like them.

I mapped out my new beds for all the hems that will be coming in three
weeks.  soon.  soon.  soon.

In July and August the iris will come, 100's of them.

Lee DeJongh in sunny, balmy Rhinelander, WI  zone 3  region 8
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