This Week in Wildflower Gardening

This happy dog is named Pete, and this is only one of the great photos we just received from Member Charles Kunz in Michigan showing Pete in their wildflower meadow last summer. The whole staff here at AmericanMeadows.com has nominated Pete as our No. 1 Wildflower Lover of the Year. Happy Valentine's Day, Pete! And thanks again Mr. Kunz. Send us your photos; we love to share them with the membership.

Did you know that azaleas are "wildflowers?" Many people don't realize that most of our azaleas come from a few species native to the Great Smokey Mts. in NC and TN. The true guru of this national treasure is Don Hyatt who has personally photographed all the major bloom sites of the native species in the East. These plants (the botanical name is "Rhododendron") cross hybridize in the wild, so there are endless color variations when they bloom. Plan a trip. Don's page will give you all the locations and blooming seasons. Spend some time on Don's photo pages for a spectacular photo treat. Start at this link: Native Azaleas at Gregory Bald. Once you get there, scroll down for the incredible photos. Enjoy.

Take a long look at the photo (left) now showing up on the lower large panel of our homepage. It's by Don Paulson, surely one of the best nature photographers around. This is just one of the photos I recently found from Don, and you'll be seeing more of them soon. To look at his great photos of wildflowers and other things, take a quick trip to his website, Don Paulson Photography.

This great photo is of the California coastal hills, a few miles north of Los Angeles, and no, it doesn't look quite like that this year--yet. This picture was shot in early April last year. But there is bloom right now in the Southwestern Deserts, where it all begins. To see what's blooming right now, use the links in the upper right-hand corner of this page. Enjoy!

Wildflower Wave Update: The flowers have begun in the west, and this website The Wildflower Hotsheet is a great place to follow it all. Operated by well-known wildflower photographer, Carol Leigh, the Hotsheet lists incoming photo op tips from photographers all over the west. Take a look, and while you're there, you can pick up Carol's "How-To" CDs and guidebooks on wildflower photograhy.

The excitement is building all over the west as wildflower enthusiasts begin anticipating the big bloom to come. Particularly, the wildflower photographers are restless. Take a look at this fantastic site, Nature Alley, where a complete photo essay on last year's flowers has just been posted--in anticipation of the blooming season that is about to begin. A great online source on Central California flowers, listing all the appropriate hotlines.

It all begins in the Southwest deserts. Even now, there is early bloom. Go to this fantastic website: Desert USA, Wildflower Watch and you'll see the first blooms this year. In California's Anza-Borrego State Park (a huge area near the Mexican border), the flowers have already begun. And this website tracks all the desert states. In a few weeks, California's hills will bloom, then the big bloom will move on to Texas, the plains, the upper midwest and the east. We'll follow it all right here.

To get our Early Bird months off to a bang, we've brought in a huge new shipment of our popular How-To video, and are now offering it free with any order of $25 or more. The video was shot at our Vermont Wildflower Farm, and shows you every step of the process of installing a successful wildflower planting. It's been reviewed glowingly by various garden editors, and used for countless garden club programs as well. Be sure and pick up a copy during this free gift period. And welcome to another year of wildgardening!