Getting Ready for Spring Gardening

Normally my spring garden would not be on my mind, but today the temperature was 70 degrees Fahrenheit and this spring-like day has got me thinking of my garden. Normally the weather is cold, with snow but this year the weather forecast is calling for warmer than usual.

Know that we do need a hard frost and bitterly cold temperatures to kill off the ticks and to enable the spring bulbs to sleep before awakening in late January – early February. But nature this year has a different idea because today when I removed a patch of leaves in the yard I saw the grassy foliage of my crocus had broken ground and the green stems were two inches above the soil.

The spring bulbs breaking ground has got me thinking about gardening and getting a head start on my preparations.   I went out to my greenhouse today and sterilized some pots for planting. Normally I start my annuals, herbs, and vegetables in mid to late January in the portable greenhouse that I bought at tractorsupply.com last year. But since we are having spring-like weather I thought I would get a head start with my gardening chores.

I am thinking that by the end of December, I will have my window boxes sterilized and painted also. This year I am thinking of planting the tulips and crocus that I have in cold storage,  I have had good results with forcing the spring bulbs to bloom and will probably force the bulbs to bloom indoors and give the containers away as gifts. 

Here is a video that will show you how to force spring bulbs to bloom in approximately five weeks indoors.

Getting ready for spring in December is an activity that I am not accustomed to but do like that I can get many tasks done now while the weather is warm.

Caring for Christmas Poinsettia

It's the season for the Christmas poinsettia plant for gift-giving and home decorating.  The poinsettia is a beautiful plant that comes in a variety of colors; crimson red, pink white, or bi-color leaves along with dark green leaves. It is one magnificent plant and is known as the plant of Christmas.

Know if you reside in a mild climate where the average temperate is 55 to 60 at night and the high is 70 degrees Fahrenheit then you can feature this plant outdoors on your porch or in your feature garden. However, if you reside in an area where the weather is cold then poinsettia must stay indoors.

Healthy red poinsettia gets plenty of light by the window

Red poinsettias are grown in an outdoor feature garden.

Shop for live poinsettias at Teleflora.com This quality plant is best for gift-giving. 

 Also, shop at Lowes.com or at their store. I saw gorgeous poinsettias there and they were reasonably priced. Target.com and Walmart.com also have poinsettias in their seasonal departments.

Buying Tips

When you go to buy a poinsettia I would recommend buying a healthy plant that does not have drooping leaves or brown spots as this would be an indication of not adequate water, which would cause the poinsettia to have stress.

Caring for Poinsettia 

Bring your poinsettia home in a covered bag so that it does not get too cold or suffer a cold draft. Remove your poinsettia from the foil holiday pot wrapper and set it on a plant-draining saucer. 

 The best location for your poinsettia is in a sunny room where the average temperature is 70 degrees Fahrenheit.  Your poinsettia needs an average of six hours of bright light so if you do not have a room that has a lot of sunlight then set in under a table light. (I do not recommend setting your poinsettia in direct sunlight) 

At night poinsettia prefers cooler temperatures so a room that is an average temperature of 60 to 70 degrees will keep your Christmas season poinsettia healthy.

Maintain your poinsettia plant by checking the soil daily. Know that poinsettias grow best in soil that is allowed to dry out some in-between watering. Test the soil daily to see if the soil is dry by inserting your index finger into the soil about one inch. If soil is dry then water the plant until it drains out the bottom. Let all the water drain from the plant container, but do not set the pot in the water in the saucer. Instead, dump the water out.  Poinsettias do not like wet soil.  

Other

Know that my friend resides in  Florida and she does grow her poinsettias outdoors. She told me she planted it in her yard after Christmas in an area where the soil was well-drained, plus the plant got six hours of sun daily with part sun in the heat of the day.   Her poinsettia grew into a shapely shrub in her  Florida outdoor garden.

Here is a video where you can learn how to make your plant rebloom again.

Gardening Season is Over

Last night the temperature dropped into the low 29s and it was very cold.  We had our first hard frost of the season and with that, the gardening season had ended.  

 

Today I went out to the garden and did cut back the remaining foliage to the soil line and then covered the gardens with mulch. The garden season is over and all that is left is my grass gardens. They will add interest to my yard for the next several weeks or until the spring flowers start to bloom.

  Photo of my end-of-season grass garden

I will miss my time in the garden as I am one who enjoys my garden very much. The only thing that is left is to plant some daffodils that my husband bought at Lowes today. He was able to get a bag of 40 bulbs for $6.98 

Know that as long as the ground is not completely frozen you can still plant the bulbs. I think I will cut back the chrysanthemum that is in the large containers and plant some daffodils. Then come spring these containers will look nice and add curb appeal to the front of the house.

Here are some articles on spring bulbs that you may like.

How to plant daffodils tulips and crocus

Manicuring Flower Gardens in Late Fall

We had a mild frost last week and many of my plants were affected so since it was warm today I spent the afternoon in the garden. Today the temperature was 64 degrees Fahrenheit, a perfect temperature for gardening in late fall.

My main objective today was to cut back the daylilies, the four O’clock s, and the zinnia flowers to the ground. I was also gathering any remaining seeds from the flower heads. In addition to manicuring of the gardens, I was hoping that I had time to prune the rose bushes.

When all the garden maintenance work was done I would apply the mulch my husband made for me with his wood chipper. He gathered fallen branches from our meadow and used the small chipper that we bought at lowes.com to create organic garden mulch.

So I started gardening in the back garden close to the woods entrance. My husband was relaxing on the patio, he was 46 feet from me. It was comforting he was in the yard, if I need him he was there. I was busy working when I heard my husband laugh and I thought he had read something funny. I smiled and waved, then turned to go back to work. There was a patch of stubborn grasses that needed to be dug out so I turned to grab my garden tool belt and found my hand shovel was missing.

I looked for it in the garden shed, in the greenhouse, and even in the mud room. My hand shovel was gone and my husband was laughing. So I asked him "did you take my shovel" and he shook his head no.

I swore I brought my garden hand tools out of the shed before I started my work. But since I could not find my hand tools I went to get the shovel. Before I went to search for my full-size garden shovel in the tool shed I took off my work gloves and laid them on top of the wheelbarrow. I got the shovel, went to put on my gloves and they were gone. My husband laughing so I assumed he had been sneaking up on me and taking my garden supplies. Right?

My husband says "it wasn't me" Then pointed up at the maple tree that is closest to me and there I see the garden tool thief. Up the tree is the raccoon Lucy that we rescued in the spring after her mom was poached by hunters. Lucy came out of the woods and was sneaking up on me, she took all of my garden supplies and was hiding them at the base of the oak tree.

I had a good laugh, and it is hard to be mad at a junior raccoon especially when these orphans don't know to stay out of sight during daylight hours. This little girl was sneaking up on me and taking my things and that was funny

 It is safe to say that I could care about raccoons in my yard, but if you find that they are a nuisance and want to keep them out of your yard, then read my article on how to get rid of raccoons without hurting the,

Perennial Grasses add Interest to Winter Garden

Today my neighbor came to see me, he had his lawn trimmer in his hand, and he asked me how far back he should cut his perennial grass garden. I replied that spring is the best time to cut the grass back and that I recommend that the grasses be left alone in the fall and winter because the dry grass will add interest to his yard and garden.

Here are photos of my grass garden in the spring, summer, and winter.

  

Spring when grasses are starting to grow

My grass garden early summer

Grass garden in winter

The winters are long and cold and I think the dried grasses look nice. The grass plumes are eye-appealing plus they add movement and provide wildlife with shelter, and windbreak for birds, rabbits, and cats. 

In the autumn season after I remove the leaves I trim the grasses so they are more manicured and off the garden path.  Then I will mulch around the garden fountain and perennial grasses. This mulch will add a more manicured look to the garden.

You can also highlight the grass garden with solar lights then when you look out at your yard at night during the winter months, you will view a grass garden that is eye appealing.  This is why I recommend leaving your ornamental grasses alone throughout the autumn and winter months.  

Here is a photograph of my grass garden next to my garden path.  The November photo was taken after I trimmed the grass as it had grown over the stepping stones.

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Grass garden in autumn, dried plumes look lovely

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Covered Tropical Plants with Frost Covers

Tonight is a cold night, and I took steps to cover my orchids and elephant ear tropical plants with frost covers.  The forecast does not call for a freeze and tomorrow it will be warm again but with temperatures dipping into the low 40's I thought it best to cover my tropical plants.

The weather that we are having is not normal for this time of the year.  It is a cold snap with back-to-normal temperatures in a few days.  By Monday the high is 88 degrees Fahrenheit and the forecast shows many days of warm weather.  For this reason, I decided to leave my tropical plants outdoors for now.  The frost cover will protect them and tomorrow I will uncover them and the orchids will look so pretty.

Eventually, I will have to take all tropical plants indoors and get the elephant ears ready for winter storage. At the moment  I am putting that off.  I want to prolong the garden season as long as I can.

Do you have orchids or other tropical plants?  When do you bring them indoors?

Here is a photo of tropical elephant ears in a container.  

Elephant ear container plant

 

Getting Gardens Ready for First Snow

I learned today that the weather forecast for the end of October is snow followed by bitter cold weather.  Know that this cold weather is coming very early in season and at a time that we usually enjoy our yard and garden.

Autumn season cut short due to snow forecast

Today and probably all of next week I will have to work harder on the gardens to get them ready for the frigid cold weather and snow.  Normally I do not cut back my lilies until after a hard frost, but plan on cutting them back so I can cover the flower bed with mulch.  I will also have to plant 120 daffodils next week, because this must be done before the ground freezes.

My yard and gardens with snow

I started working in the side yard, clearing  the brush that was growing next to the dog kennel.  I got 8 feet cut back and have another 9 feet to finish.  While working I noticed that my irises rhizomes are above the soil line and suspect that removing the leaves last week from the garden caused erosion.  I will probably add a layer of compost next week and maybe a light layer of natural mulch.  I am thinking that ice will not be good for them since their roots are just bellow the soil.

Then when all the manicuring and caring for flower gardens is completed I have to stake the gardens with poles with flags because if I do not my hubby will plow the snow through the gardens.  Yes it safe to say that I am going to be busy next week because I must get the yard and gardens ready for first snow of the season.

Is the weather changing where you live?  Will you have snow in October?