The Pansies are Planted

A big thank you to Susan at A Southern Day Dreamer for hosting Outdoor Wednesday. It is the first time I've participated for January and February on the prairie is so often brown. And brown in the outdoor world is not pretty unless it is loamy soil!

But it is warmer and the pansies are in the garden center. Three flats came home with me this weekend. Three flats of happy smiling faces.


Lined up on the concrete bench in front of the house with flower pots bare since the winter pines were removed. Leaves not raked in the fall will need to be raked but that is a chore for another day. It's time for pansy planting!

The violas go into the black planter in front. I love the daintiness of these flowers and the colors of yellow, white and violet . . . and an occasional orange one!

There's even enough pansies left to put in the basket that hangs on the front gate.

Not only will the pansies brighten the outdoor garden, but wee bouquets will adorn tabletops inside especially a wee Waterford vase that sits on my dressing table.

Pansies, too, will be added to salads for color AND flavor. Nothing like food that smiles back at you!

And when the blooms are prolific . . . I'll pick them and sugar them. Great for decorating cakes and cupcakes when pansies are no longer blooming in the garden.

Sometimes I feel that pansies are a splurge but in retrospect, we get a lot of mileage out of those three flats.