Gardening for Pleasure: A Homeowner's Perspective

So it is early March, chilly in the daytime and frosty frozen at night. It is time to garden! Spring is waking and many things are growing in my yard. I check daily to see what is a-poppin. A month ago it was the snow drops, small ones and giant snow drops my friend Patricia gave me. They are sturdy, surviving snowfalls that cover them for days at a time and surviving the brutal winter winds of February.

Looking back a while ago...in January I actually saw a lavender petunia blooming on the south side of a concrete house foundation. Now that was amazing! I had to take some second looks to make sure it was not made of plastic. Still thinking about that petunia!

This week I am beginning to have snow crocus in bloom. They usually start to appear soon after the snow drops have fully opened, and as the sun warms the soil enough so they can pop out. I love them because the colors are so bright—almost 'Easter egg' in their lavenders and fiery yellows. They are, for me, a true harbinger of spring. The snowdrops are associated in my mind with February, which is just not spring—no matter how much we wish it.

I have a couple of regular crocus already blooming close to my house. They are taller, huskier and brighter in hue than the petite snow crocus. One moment that stimulated my desire to write this blog was a neighbor telling me there was no such thing as a snow crocus. She lumps them together with regular crocus, which are also called “giant crocus” in some bulb catalogs. She is a gardener and I was shocked when she implied that I was mistakenly called snow drops snow crocus. If someone who works as a florist and has lovely gardens surrounding her house does not know the difference, well then my task is clear! To educate those who do not know much about the very flowers they see every day.

So let me return to spring gardening…. I was out Saturday and Sunday clearing dead flower heads. I leave them there in the fall for the birds to eat the seeds—and because they look cool when the fallen snow makes them stand out in sharp relief to the white of winter. Now they are bedraggled and sad—seeds mostly gone—and I clip or yank them depending on the sturdiness of the stem. When I get them all out the beds will look smooth and ready for new growth. The birdies will have to look elsewhere for seedy snacks!

As the weeks go on I will tell you more about what is blooming each week, how to care for a garden, and information about what you might plant to beautify your property. Gardening can be very relaxing and stress relieving, as well as great exercise. If you haven’t tried it this could be the year! Start small and enjoy some sweet moments in your garden this spring and summer.