Saturday, March 15, 2014

It's Almost Spring!

I've been looking at past March posts to compare how far along we are toward spring, and to see at what point I have had the flower beds cleaned up.  Last year was behind the previous year, and this year seems to be a bit behind last year.  People are saying it is too soon to rake the leaves off of the beds, but  I just have to be outside working with the highs in the 50s and 60 we've been having.  I am getting at least the top layer of leaves off so that the plants that are growing can have some light.  I have also started taking off last year's dead growth on plants, putting it in piles across the street.  As I work, I am pleased to see a number of plants coming up. 

I just seem to have one clump of crocus, but am glad to see it blooming.


I'm glad to see the daffodils are growing.


I can't remember what kind of Mountain mint this is.  The foliage is closer to the Short toothed than Virginia.


 I like alliums.


I thinned the Drumstick alliums last year, but kept a few clumps.


 I spent some time looking at photos from last year trying to figure out what this plant is, but I didn't figure it out.  It sure looks big and ready to grow!


It's a good thing I cut back the sedges and some of the grasses, because they are ready to grow.


I'm glad to see a number of Penstemons have new growth.


I don't know what these are yet, but am hoping they are one of the early spring blooming native plants I put in the last year or two.


The Prairie smoke geum is looking good.


I am excited to be subbing as a para now, and plan to only work a day or two this week.  I'll pick the coolest days of the week to work.  I hope to tackle this part of the yard soon.


I will soon be pulling the old leaves off of the Hellebores.  Hopefully, they will be blooming soon.  They were already blooming last year at this time.


I started the clean up in the front, since it is south facing.  I figured spring comes a little sooner here.


The west side of the yard is not done yet.  I plan to do that, hopefully, Monday.


I am going to have to take the circle "steppers" from the tree we had cut down in 2011 because they are starting to fall apart.  I can find somewhere across the street to put them, since there are critters using them.


This may be my favorite part of the yard.


I now have some photos to look at for future spring comparisons, and soon, this will also be cleaned up, ready for new growth.


I'll finish up with a Purple milkweed pod.  For those of you who just planted milkweed last year, it is one of the last plants to come up in the spring, so don't give up on it when everything else is up.  Once up, it grows pretty quickly, and catches up.


For those of you with snow still on the ground, I hope it melts quickly, and your plants have benefited from all of that moisture.  It's dry here.  I hope we get some rain.

( I posted this last night, and this morning's paper's "Five Things to Do This Week" included cutting things back and planting radishes and lettuce.  That's good.  I forgot to mention that I got lettuce, spinach, carrots, radishes, and peas in last week.  It's the latest I've planted these things for a number of years.  I normally plant in February, but was able to get some in in January last year.  Each year, they come up when the soil warms enough, and can withstand cold and even being snowed on.  Now, we need some moisture.)

11 comments:

  1. Thanks for the tip on the Purple Milkweed. I planted some in a pot, so I don't know how it fared during this brutal winter. It was on the back sheltered porch, but it was still very cold out there. Your garden looks tidy and ready for new spring growth! Thanks for this encouraging tour!

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  2. Ah, signs of life! It must feel so exciting to see the green after so much snow! Congrats on your job. Enjoy the onset of spring!

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  3. It is always amazing to see your 'brown' gardens turning into colorful beauty. If you showed the brown pics against the color filled ones it would be astonishing. It's no wonder you eagerly await spring every year.

    Happy Spring and Happy Gardening ~ FlowerLady

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  4. Sue, it's always so thrilling to see plants come alive in the spring along with the insects and critters that make up the total garden environment. Spring is my favorite time of the year. Right now, of course, is pure torture for me as the weather temperatures are in the 60s and encourages me to be outside but the still cold and some places frozen ground prevents me from scratching in the dirt.

    We woke up this morning to a nice white blanket of snow on the ground, temperature of 23, and a tree pollen alert. Welcome to Spring in Nebraska. I expect the snow won't last long as the prediction is 43 degrees high today and 63 for tomorrow.

    My cabbages and onions hogged up some sunshine outside yesterday on their way to hardening off. I will put them outside again tomorrow and hopefully by week's end they will be in the garden on their way to maturity. I just thought I'd give growing onions from seed a try this year.

    It's a good thing I don't have to live or make a living at gardening. My joy comes mostly from growing the garden and some of the harvest goes in my Winter food storage room but most is given away to neighbors and friends.

    Have a great almost Spring day.

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  5. Glad I'm not the only one who forgets what they plant. Usually I find out once they come up and bloom, and then the light bulb goes on.

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  6. I love seeing your signs of spring coming up in your garden beds. I finally got my leaves cleaned off of my beds, well right before all this wind we had. LOL! I may have to clean a few more over again now but the plants can make it through now.

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  7. It always amazes me that you are farther along than we are, Sue--I keep thinking that we should have similar weather conditions. I'm always thrilled if I get anything planted in the vegetable garden before the end of April:) It certainly does look like spring is coming to your garden. We've had such up and down weather; I managed to cut back my grasses on one nice day, but I have so much clean-up to do. It's no wonder my crocuses aren't showing up--they're covered by a thick layer of leaves. Thanks for the tip on the milkweed--I planted some seeds this fall and winter, so I won't give up on them too soon.

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  8. Your garden is certainly showing signs of waking up Sue! Wish mine would catch up soon. We still have snow and frozen ground outside. It's been a late spring here as well. Those crocuses look so cheery, and I just love that giant seedpod in your header!

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  9. I don't have any yellow crocus, but maybe I should because yours are so bright and cheery! Exactly what is a "para"? I've got my winter cleanup about half done, and we hope to get to it next weekend when it warms back up. Next few days are supposed to be cold again. Boo!

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  10. Good to see things coming up in your garden Sue. I love your crocuses. I can't grow them here and I miss them - mum has them in her garden in England. Our garden is behind this year, because of the rough winter. I'm just now starting to see new green leaves on my tropical milkweed, and I saw in my blog that it started putting up new growth in February last year. I hope I have some ready in time for the arrival of the Monarch butterflies.

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  11. Looking good, Sue! Your area is ahead of ours. We have a little green but no crocus, squill, daffs, or snowdrops yet. Soon, I hope! Thanks for the reminder about planting cool season crops. I'll need to see if it is dry enough to do so yet.
    Beth

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