Pink and White Dogwoods

As I sit at my computer typing tomorrow's post I hear the first whippoorwill of the season. The whippoorwill here is singing a three syllable song in a long and quick burst. The ones I heard in Florida sang a two syllable song much more slowly.



This morning I glanced out of the kitchen window and saw my dogwoods were blooming. I planted these trees last Spring and am amazed I have flowers so soon.

 The pink is so vibrant and beautiful; I'm sure to make something in clay with dogwoods.

 The white dogwood is just as vibrant when the sunlight reflects it's brightness.

So many blossoms all on one branch it amazes me such a small tree can produce so much beauty. As I type away I'm also serenaded with a chorus of tree frogs near and far with crickets as their backup.

Here's a dogwood blossom I made last year and finally got around to firing a while ago. This could be used as a chopstick rest or a paint brush rest. If I glued a little ring on the back it could also be a napkin holder. So many ideas so little time. Thanks for reading and for all your comments.

Dogwoods and a Leaf Tray

When we  moved here I planted a number of shrubs in our back yard. Many had leafed out, then we had a hard freeze. The evergreens seem to be doing fine but several of the deciduous trees are having a hard time. This week the pink and white dogwoods put on a couple of flowers and some leaves. Click over to Lori Buff's blog to see her pink dogwood teapot, it really captures the essence of the flower. Until I took the photo of the pink dogwood today I didn't realize the flower is only partially pink. It pays to observe nature closely.

One Japanese maple and a redbud tree have yet to put out leaves. I hope the frost didn't kill them. Both should be hardy but they had already put out leaves which were killed back. Please keep your fingers crossed for them.

While I was taking a walk in the yard I picked a few new leaves and brought them in to use as texture on this mixed leaf tray. The tray's about twelve inches square. I plan to brush oxides on the leaves, then put a clear glaze over. The tray could be used for cheese and crackers or set in the garden filled with water and mud so butterflies could puddle. Last night I fell asleep to the sound of a forest full of crickets chirping. Tomorrow is the first of May, a white rabbit day. Thanks for reading and for all your comments.