Berry bushes

Berry bushes are doing good in our yard. Gooseberries and red currants alike. Black currants not so much. And the bumble bees are buzzing around. Funny I haven't really seen them too much until recently, but most apparently they have done their job with the bushes and the apple trees.

Around the longest day of the year

The longest day of the year was a couple days ago. Not that the days are too short plus/minus a month or two from it either. Summer is a bit of a fickle thing in June. Sometimes the weather is great, sometimes the rain is great and sometimes the thunderstorms are great. 

Last weekend I was in mid-Finland at my ex-inlaws' summer place with a bunch of teens. The evening there was absolutely beautiful. Sun had already vanished behind the trees when we got there around nine but it was light outside for three more hours. The darkest point of the night here now is between one and three am. 

It's Midsummer's Eve here today. Our apple trees are growing a lot of apples, we have started a little box garden after my husband built a couple of boxes - we have tomatoes in one and basil, chives, parsley and dill in the other one - and I made some "vihdat" a while ago for the sauna in the evening. Summer is summer even when it's rainy.

First week of summer

Come summer (according to the calendar) and the weather turns cold again. Our first week of summer saw strong winds, even a storm in central and northern parts of Finland and day temperatures of 8 and 10 degrees C. Still, due to the warm May a whole lot of plants are ahead of their schedule. Like the strawberries in our yard. I picked the first ones already last weekend. 

For a while I was a bit worried about our apple crop this year, since I myself didn't really notice too many bees buzzing around, but to me it looks like most of the flowers are turning into apples after all. Today I planted a new black currant bush to our yard but otherwise our garden stuff is hopelessly late. My husband is planning on building some garden boxes that stand high enough that the rabbits don't get to our plants. 

Anyway, our yard looks nice with the roses and yellow lilies and daisies etc. beautifully blooming. And we have a regular guest in our yard: a pheasant that thinks it's a rooster.

Lilacs

In bloom right now!

All sorts of flowers

Spring is turning to summer. Apple trees were at their best last week and now have dropped their petals. Lilies of the valley have filled the forest behind our house. Lilacs are in full bloom. Daisies are already in second generation, first one having sent it's seeds flying. Nature is at its best.

Still just about to bloom, a week ago

Friends' crab apple tree, still looking good

Primroses

Last year there was one primrose plant right next to our fence. This spring I noticed several more in the flowerbed at the edge of our backyard. Maybe they were there already last year too, covered by all them tall weeds, and I just didn't notice them. Now I pulled out the weeds around them, and the roses I planted last summer, to give them a chance to grow and prosper (and be seen).

Of course, the apple trees also are looking more and more brilliant as more flowers open their petals. Yesterday evening they were already looking so nice, especially as the evening sun rays hit them diagonally.

From blossoms to blooming

Apple trees, naturally, I still don't have that cherry tree I've been dreaming of since I was 12 and visited Japan. Apple trees in our yard are the next best thing, though. Extremely pretty when blooming. Those little pink blossoms have not all opened yet, but they're getting there. 

Wilds strawberries are im flower too. And butterflies and bees are buzzing around in the dandelions and other flowers.

Apple blossoms

I was away on a business trip for a few days and when I came back home, our apple trees were full of green little leaves and pink little blossoms. The red currant and ghostberry bushes have leaves and little flowers too. This morning I saw a lonely bumblebee doing his job pollinating the red currant.

Tulips and leaf buds

Spring has advances in leaps and bounds now that the temperature went from a couple degrees to 20C in one night or so. Tulips in our yard are happily blooming, birches have a faint green about them, apple trees have buds and cherry trees in the neighboring yards are blooming. Our bushes have little leaves and the butterbur a few flowers. Rhubarb is growing nicely. Wood anemonies are at their best.