This is a great time, right smack in the middle of winter; to sit down by the fire or somewhere warm, pick up a gardening book or seed catalog and start dreaming about what to plant this spring. If you go to www.catalogs.com you can pick out any number of catalogs where you can get more ideas than you can imagine! Line up your thoughts so you are ready when it is time to get moving in your yard.
But before you start your search consider what you did last year and years before. What? Don’t tell me you have no record! Here’s a suggestion for keeping some simple records of what you plant each year. This will help you recall what happened so you can make some educated changes by making some notes on what worked and what didn’t. Get a manila folder and put the year on the tab- 2018. If you do this every year and staple your empty seed packets or tags on the inside of the folder, this is quick and will help with your recall the following season. Leave a little room beneath the tag to make a few notes as the season progresses. See the photo for a way to do this without spending a lot of time recording and a simple way to file info for the next season. Take the folder with you when you shop the next year.
Every spring we have people come to the greenhouse and ask, “Last year I purchased this plant that had yellow flowers and the leaves were green and pointed, can you tell me what the name of it is?” The “Folder” method of keeping a single ID tag and a few notes will help us help you. This folder could also be used to file receipts for plants that have a guarantee like trees and shrubs.
Get ready to plant some of the early blooming plants. One that everyone should have is the Helleborus or the Lenten Rose for early spring color. This is a fantastic perennial that blooms in March. It is hardy to Maine, zone 4 (Ohio is zone 5/6), is deer proof, drought tolerant and grows/blooms in the shade. It will tolerate clay soils and prefers generous amounts of organic matter. Another early blooming, frost tolerant plant family is the pansy/viola and don’t forget the primrose. So get ready to start planting the end of March. There is no time to sit idly by, get your ideas solidified, your wish list ready and head out to your garden center and take a look at what is available in a few short weeks.
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34 years and growing Meadow View Growers www.meadowview.com
