Ramblings: Is It Spring Yet?

By Mark Springer
Chief Lavaletteer

As I write this, there are three inches of snow on the ground, it's in the low 20s, and the TV weatherman says it won't get warm for quite some time.

It's all relative. Over the last few weeks, a 40-degree day with a hint of sunshine has been a great reason to get out and walk around the park or work in the yard. This winter has been long and cold and it's not over yet, but it won't last forever.

In the meantime, learn to embrace the season and appreciate its beauty. This last snow was picturesque. It was just the right weight and moisture to stick on tree and shrub branches in thick layers.

Some plants can take a heavy snow and bounce right back. The yellow groove bamboo in back of the garden center is at least 20 feet tall and has bent clear down to the ground, yet it's flexible enough to stand right back up. The pyramidal Arborvitae, on the other hand, with its multiple upright trunks, flops open and never seems to get back to where it was. Over the years, I've seen people do all kinds of things to make them right. They will take rope, cable, wire, etc., whatever is handy, and tie the trunks back up into their original position. When the next heavy snow comes, the whole plant flops over and they resort to a complex system of stakes and guy wires that make the plant look like it's under construction.

There is always something you can be doing in the garden or yard even when the weather is this cold. Now is a good time to survey the basic structure of your landscape when it's down to the bare bones. You can make notes about what needs to be added, removed, pruned or moved to a different spot.

Observe where your tracks are in the snow. This may be an indication of where you need a walkway or stepping stones. Maybe the alignment or size of an existing bed should be changed. Make your proposed lines in the snow with a stick. Prune and thin out old flowering shrubs now when you can see the shape.

Remove old weak and dead wood to let the new vigorous branches develop. The general rule of thumb is to remove no more than one-third of the plant at one time.

I know you've been receiving all kinds of seed and plant catalogs and magazines in the mail. These are great fun to browse through. Remember to do your homework before you buy seeds and start them inside. You need to make sure you time it right so that your seedlings are the right size at the right time to set outside. You don't want an 8-inch tomato plant in mid-March when the soil and air temperature is way too cold for them.

Even with all the problems of seed propagation, it's very satisfying to start plants from seed and nurture them all the way to maturity. Seeds enable you to get unique varieties that aren't grown by commercial greenhouses. You can grow something that nobody else has. Be the first one on your block to harvest an "Applegreen Eggplant" or "Dragon Tongue Bush Beans." Seeds are fairly inexpensive and a great value when you consider what you can get for a dollar or so.

Enjoy the season. Stop by and visit the garden center, even if it's just to browse and dream.