Most of the dogwoods seem to be in bloom, although it depends on the location. I expect this weekend and the next to be the best. The sarvis is now completely gone in most places. I haven’t seen any azalea in bloom yet, except for one the neighbors planted and fertilized.
We had some rain last night. I keep forgetting to get my rain gauge out, but they recorded about a half inch at Merciers weather station.
With the exception of the oaks, most of the trees are leafing out nicely.
We’ve had a lot of woodpecker pairs lately, especially on our mockernut hickory. The male and female Downy have been a frequent visitor. I’ve also seen male and female Hairy and Red-bellied. I’ve even seen a pair of Northern Flickers, a somewhat rare visitor here. I’m not great at identifying warblers, but I know I’ve seen the Black-and-white, Yellow-rumped, and Blue-green warblers.
I see that the Polk County Ramp Festival is scheduled for Saturday the 23 – it’s the third Saturday in April – but I haven’t heard definitely that it is a go for this year.