Spring 2013

This year has been an especially 'late' spring, with cool temperatures and cloudy days well into late March. Buds are slow to open, grass still doesnt need mowing, thank goodness. And just to make a finishing statement, this Spring has given us........Snow!
Not quite enough for sleddding alas, but enought to make us smile if we are looking out the window and maybe wrinkle our brow if we are heading out to our car.
Enjoy, and look forward to the flowers soon.

Azalea buds, Oak Leaf Hydrangea buds, and pansies, snow-dressed

There are Flowers in Your Future

This is it! The perfect time for planting, when the sun is shining, the air is cool, the ground is still workable, and winter rains are on their way. Winter is when most deciduous shrubs and flowering perennials go dormant. That is, the plants are not creating new stem and leaf growth, they are at rest, most of their activity is in their root systems. A perfect time to put a new shrub or herbaceous perennial in the ground. Transplant shock is milder when the plant is ‘sleeping’. The owner   -that’s you-   doesn’t have to water as vigorously or worry about the brutal heat of summer.

Yes, you should water as soon as you plant, and water your plant several times in the first two weeks. Right now, November 2 in Nashville it’s very dry and no forecast for rain, so water for the next couple of weeks.

What about the cold you say? “It’s too cold for that sweet little tree.” Nope, the ground is an insulating ‘blanket’ for all the plants. Just keep it watered if we have dry weeks.  Now, your plants in pots…different story…you should bring them into the house or garage, especially if they are tropicals (e.g., ‘houseplants).

After you’ve planted your tree/shrub/flower…a little mulch won’t hurt, but a little goes a long way. Use no more than 3 inches of mulch on your flower beds and around trees. Repeat after me:  “Mulch Volcanoes Kill”  - see this link, sweet and simple:

http://www.maine.gov/agriculture/pesticides/library/ppt/Master_Gardener/mulch_volcano.pdf

A LOT of mulch is not a good thing. It’s bad. Don’t do it. Just because ‘they’ do it…doesn’t mean it’s good horticultural practice.

Back to planting:

Plant your spring-blooming bulbs now and into December: crocus, hyacinth, daffodils, tulips, frittallaria. Yes, the ones at the Homeowners Depot are just fine, and affordable. Follow the depth planting instructions. For most bulbs, dig a hole this deep: the diameter of the bulb times 3. Example: the crocus bulbs are about  ½ to 1 inch wide, plant them 2-3 inches below the surface. You don’t need to water these, they will be fine on their own.

You can still plant pansies, too, and ornamental cabbages if that’s your thing. Put on a light sweater and enjoy some of Tennessee’ best weather ever out in your own God’s Little Acre.

.....Spring....

Most of us are sighing with relief at the sunny warm days brought to us lately. We complain at even a day of rain now, having become so tired of the cold gray winter that's just fading.


Here are some beauties...

Daffodils

Star magnolia, Magnolia stellata, at the Green Hills Library

Saucer Magnolia, Magnolia soulangiana, in the Flat Rock neighborhood of Nashville

A red buckeye, Aesculus pavia, not quite blooming (look for pictures here soon)