And The Cycle Starts Anew

The forecast is for Atlanta to get a couple of days of crazy cold weather, so I was at the Big House this morning making sure containers are wet and things that are borderline hardy were pulled into the glass house for the next couple of days.  While I was there, some of the very early blooming plants caught my eye.  These are some of the colorful things that make January in the south so much more bearable that winter in the north.  (Fortunately I am one of the few who delight in the summer heat, as well!)

Prunus mume "Peggy Clark" (flowering apricot) is one of the first trees to bloom in winter, and the blossoms are just incredible!  This particular cultivar has a dark rose flower before it leafs out in the early spring.

A closer shot of the blooms, which look like miniature roses against the winter sky.

Rhodea japonica (Nippon Lily) is really nothing special in summer, but the color just pops in the winter! 

A perfect white camellia blossom was wedged up against the base of  a tree in the shadows. 

Hellebores are rather promiscuous plants, so one never knows what the blooms will look like.  This shade is just beautiful peeking out from under the now-bare hydrangeas! 

Even the naturalized daffodils at the creek are braving the cold, seeming to say, "Bring it on, Mother Nature!  We're ready!" 

As always, click on the photos to make them larger, if you'd like.  I hope you're somewhere warm for these next couple of days.