Desperate times call for desperate measures. Thank goodness my “desperate measures” are already in place. I’ve been planting early blooming bulbs where the snow melts first for several years. And every time the snow starts to melt, I check all those places for signs of emerging sprouts. Do you want to see what I found during our most recent thaw? It's easier than you think to have flowers blooming sooner than your neighbors.
eranthis
Winter Aconites: Plant The Earliest Flowers Where The Snow Melts First
April 17, 2018 – Posted in: Mud Season, The Earliest Flowers, What's up/bloomingThis spring has tested the hardiness of my hardy soul. I bet it's tested yours, too, especially if you live in the Northern Plains and parts east that were bombarded by "Winter Storm Xanto". In light of what my fellow cold climate gardeners are enduring, I'm not going to complain about my weather, which seems [...]
Spring Is Buried Under A Blizzard: Garden Bloggers Bloom Day March 2017
March 15, 2017 – Posted in: Weather, What's up/bloomingI just knew a mild February would mean trouble later on. Spring in February doesn't happen here without some sort of counterbalance later on. But even I couldn't guess it would be the snowstorm of the century. I thought those sub-zero temperatures the week before were punishment enough. Read on to learn what was blooming before Snowmageddon and what is currently cheering me in the house.
Spring Has Sprung! Garden Bloggers Bloom Day March 2016
March 18, 2016 – Posted in: What's up/bloomingAs a child, I went to sleep on Christmas Eve with a sense of anticipation and excitement. What was I going to find under that tree in the morning? As a gardener, the first mild days of mud season bring that same excitement and anticipation, except now it goes on for weeks: What am I [...]
My First Day of Gardening–in February?
February 23, 2016 – Posted in: Garden chores, Mud SeasonI blame it on the sunshine. If the sun hadn't been shining, I wouldn't have had the overwhelming urge to get outside and DO something. Because, really? February is too early for garden cleanup. But of course, this hasn't been a normal February. A normal February looks like this: So, in a normal February, I [...]
The Very First Blooms: Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day April 2015
April 15, 2015 – Posted in: Cabin Fever Bed, Front of the House, What's up/bloomingIn other years, I've had the first blooms in March. Once, I managed snowdrops in February. But this year, I almost wondered if I'd have crocuses blooming for Bloom Day. Thankfully, this past week Spring finally arrived and I have a respectable showing. I've seen pictures of large patches of spring snowflakes, so I hope [...]
What’s That?: When A Gardener Neglects Her Garden Journal
April 11, 2015 – Posted in: Mud Season, What's up/bloomingI actually like keeping records. I can get obsessive about it, and that has gotten me into trouble in the past. So last fall, when I was frantically planting out the plants I had kept in containers--some of them for two years--I left the documenting of that planting for "later," applauding myself for not getting [...]
Springtide: Lilactree Farm Garden Notes, No. 3, 2014
May 6, 2014 – Posted in: Lilactree Farm, What's up/blooming…a large number of people over a certain age would insist that spring no longer exists… E. A. Bowles, My Garden in Spring(1914) This week (April 26-May1) has been perfect gardeners’ weather. Cool enough to hold in flower the earliest bulbs, warm enough to encourage new growth. Snowdrops linger throughout the South Jungle and in [...]
How I Defeat Cabin Fever: Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day March 2014
March 15, 2014 – Posted in: Mud Season, What's up/bloomingSnow still blanketed the lawn, despite the warmest temperatures of the calendar year thus far. As I reached down to pick up the pot of amaryllis for its photo shoot (see below), I noticed that the snow had melted down to the ground in a strip a foot wide bordering the house. And what to [...]
The Cabin Fever Bed: Part 2
November 2, 2013 – Posted in: Cabin Fever Bed, Mud Season, New House, New GardensIn my previous post, I described my idea of a cabin fever bed as a way to enjoy at least a part of the garden from indoors, when the weather is too miserable to be outside. One of the goals of such a bed is to grow plants that provide interest as far into winter [...]
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