"Six on Saturday," hosted by Jim at Garden Ruminations, is a great meme! One of its most helpful features is that we must narrow our observations down to six! This week I'm cheating and looking ahead.
The list of anticipated 2026 garden highlights is endless. So, here are my six: one for winter, two each for spring and sumer, and one for autumn.
1. Winter: seed-starting. It's cold outside! It's fun to be outdoors in this Midwestern U.S. climate...but only if you're moving and you're wearing warm gloves. I don't enjoy winter photography. With that said, I do enjoy starting seeds and caring for overwintered plants in the sunroom (more on that in a later post).
2. Spring: flowering bulbs and Hellebores. When these beauties make their appearances after a cold, dark winter...wowza! Pure joy!
3. Spring: native ephemerals. My philosophy in this garden is to nurture a variety of plants near the house, but to dedicate areas further out on the property to native plants. These include ephemerals like Spring Beauties (Claytonia virginica) shown here, along with many more.
4. Summer: Fresh-cut flowers. What a joy it is to arrange flowers using cuttings from one's own garden. The options are plentiful, particularly during the summer.
5. Summer: hummingbirds. These little buddies are magical visitors. They often return to the same location year after year: Banding research has shown they even show up on the same day, or near it, from year to year! I consider the hummers that return to be "old friends."
6. Autumn: Colorful leaves. It's a wistful season, with gardening ending and winter ahead. But it's also a gloriously colorful time. Nothing beats the beauty of autumn leaves—Oaks and many others.
That's my "six" for this week! For more garden observations from around the world, head on over to Garden Ruminations!
