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I Spy….

March 25th, 2015

I spy a spot of bare ground in my back yard! Of course this is a high spot in the yard and the snow blows off of it, there are still 20 or more inches of snowpack in the other areas of the garden. This is a start, the spot gets a little bigger each day. Bring on the spring thaw!
bare ground
One thing that I love to do in the spring is to watch the areas that lose snow first. These are perfect places to plant hellebores, hyacinths, crocuses, snowdrops, tulips, daffodils, and other spring bulbs. They can take any cold weather that is still to come and will add beautiful early spring color to the garden. In a few years I’ll be adding these plants to this area, perhaps this spot will become hellebore garden. If you’ve ever read The Layered Garden: Design Lessons for Year-Round Beauty from Brandywine Cottage, you will want to start a collection of snowdrops and hellebores.

Any snow left in your garden?

5 Comments to “I Spy….”
  1. Robin on March 25, 2015 at 6:33 am

    We’re 28-30″ now. I did find an almost bare spot yesterday! It’s in the woods, under a huge spruce. By the end of tomorrow’s rain it will be bare (but probably flooded). Isn’t it nice to see a little bare ground? It was a boost to my winter-will-never-end bad attitude.

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  2. Yolanda on March 25, 2015 at 7:31 am

    Our snow has been gone for a while now. It is so strange! We went from snow and 20 degree weather and then the next week one day got up to 70! I have cleaned up the vegetable garden from last year (taken down tomato cages, etc.) and am just waiting for the ground to get dry enough to till and then I can start planting. I will definitely see if I can get a copy of that book from the library. I hope your spring will spring quickly now!

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  3. Misti on March 25, 2015 at 9:16 am

    LOL, my coworker was just lamenting that “Summer’s here” because the humidity and heat was starting to creep back in. It’s not that bad, but yes, soon it will be! I can’t imagine snow still. ugh! Northern living sounds great until I realize how long snow lasts.

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  4. Nebraska Dave on March 25, 2015 at 10:02 am

    Susy, the snow here in Nebraska is long gone. The average temperatures for this time of the year is supposed to be about 50 during the day and lower 30s at night. However starting the first part of March they averaged in the middle 60s and 70s with a couple days in the 80s and one in the 90s. The snow and the frost in the ground left almost with a week. The soil temperatures are now above 50 degrees. It seems like it should be time to plant but I’m very skeptical about doing that just yet. Our last frost date is supposed to be May 15th.

    We haven’t really had much moisture at all for this year. We had about 12 inches of snow which equates to an inch of rain and yesterday about one third of an inch of rain. The rain yesterday put about 50 gallons of water in the garden irrigation water storage tank. It’s not much but it’s a start. If this year is going to be a dry year then every drop will count.

    My tulips and daffodils are up about six inches and growing strong. The Crocus didn’t make it through the subzero bare ground Winter. Usually they are the first to come up and flower but there wasn’t any snow cover this year and the temperatures were really cold so I’m guessing it killed them. I suppose I’ll have to replant them this fall.

    Have a great snow melting day.

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  5. Caroline on March 25, 2015 at 4:24 pm

    My garden was completely clear of snow before the first day of spring.
    Then it snowed two days ago. And half of the yard melted. Then it snowed again last night. *sighs* I’m really hoping this is the last of it and within a few days all will be clear again. I’m eager to get out there and start working!

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This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

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