Groundhog Sighting and Bulb Pot Update

The beautiful bulb pot, the last in a series of three, is slowly moving into its return phase.  The last of the flowers are beginning to loosen and droop,, and the foliage is turning thin and yellow.  In a few days this pot will join the other one on the back porch in order to complete the returning of energy to bulbs and begin the quiet dormant period.  

Meanwhile the amaryllis, which began its glacial development back in December, is now actually getting ready to bloom.  And there are two blooms coming out of the bulb! 

This afternoon P and I walked back to the meadow behind our house, and on our way we spotted some action around the three groundhog holes that are in our little woods near the fenceline.  P had seen a groundhog sitting in the back woods a week or so ago, and we had thought 'great! at least one groundhog didn't see its shadow!'  Further confirmation today:  all three holes had clay-colored prints leading from the holes to adjacent holes, and in one case, the tracks led under the fence and out to the meadow.  One hole is dug under a patch of English ivy, and the cast off clay has raised a mound of ivy-covered clay that is now ivy-covered snow.  We know how deeply we have been sunk into winter funk when we get excited about groundhog action.  And not only groundhogs, but the snowdrops are getting ready to bloom, and the lenten roses have made it through the hard freezes of the past weeks!