I've been watching Spring appear on blogs all over the northern hemisphere.
Watching and waiting.
Waiting and watching.
And now it's here.
It's HERE!
Wildflowers are coming up,
the early leaves showing the nipping effects of frost.
(And sometimes, hens.)
It's not always a smooth entry into Spring.
But the plants prevail!
There's green everywhere, but also purple.
Lots of purple.
And soon, unless we have more frost (or snow),
there will be tiny yellow lilies blooming here.
It's the madcap rush of Spring.
The view is changing by the hour.
~~~
With the little barn up,
I must now focus on the gardens.
And quickly.
Lots of prep work still to be done,
but I had to wait for the heavy equipment
to come (and tear things up) and go
before making final decisions about locations.
Meanwhile...
I think some of these little seedlings
are ready for the big world.
But...it's rainy today.
And rain is predicted for the next nine days.
NINE days.
(That's just how far the forecast goes.
For all I know, there's another 31 predicted.)
So, what should I do?
Should I be trying to get these fragile, housegrown plants
into the ground right away?
Or should I be glad I haven't planted them already,
just in time to be washed away?
I don't know the answer, but I hope you do!
These leggy seedlings seem to need more
than their tiny peat balls and a window,
and someone to turn the trays around every day.
Dear gardeners:
How can I help them through this phase and into
a bright and productive future?
Advice very welcome!
~~~
And one more picture,
of one of my very favorite trees:
Fagus grandifolia, American Beech.
Beautiful at every season.
~~~~~
I agree i'm not sure i would plant them in the ground just now...Do you have something larger you could transplant them in to wait out the rain??
ReplyDeleteI don't have, but maybe I could could get some larger peat pots...that's something to think about. Thanks!
DeleteSorry - can't help either.
ReplyDeleteBut very glad that spring has sprung in your part of the woods. :)
Me, too! Black fly hordes notwithstanding! It is such a joy to see color, color, everywhere :)
DeleteI'd leave them in their little peat shoes, but put them outside to harden up a bit, then in a few days plant them directly.
ReplyDeleteAre those little lilies trout lilies??? I heart them.
Maybe I could leave them on the screenporch? I've been setting them out there on nice afternoons to try to get them used to real world conditions, but with the range of temps we've been having, I think it may have just confused them.
DeleteFunny thing about those lilies...they "were" trout lilies (which I also love), but now the leaves aren't dappled! Have you seen any that switched to solid green? I'm looking forward to the flowers with great interest!
Glad to hear that spring has finally sprung. 9 days of rain. Wow! The forecast here every day says "relatively hot" -- I'm thinking over 100 degrees is more than "relatively". And they always say "gusting winds that could cause rising dust" -- that's it, every day, from now until the end of the year. Hot and dusty! My poor plants are already starting to suffer. Rain sure helps to cleanse and refresh everything. Not sure what to do about the plants. At some point they definitely need more room to do their thing but you don't want them washed away either. Have a great day. Tammy
ReplyDeleteJust thinking about 100 degree days makes me feel a bit lightheaded. I suppose dry and dusty is better than damp and muggy, but 100 degrees is awfully (not relatively) hot, in my experience!
DeleteOh dear, that's a lot of rainy days. We've had some rainy days here, but I stopped checking the weather because the reports aren't matching what we're getting. I'd be afraid for the little seedlings would be swamped with all the rain. I think trying to save them from water logged ground would be more difficult than trying to keep them going inside. I would think if you put them in bigger peat pots (can you get bigger peat pots? I don't know), then you could put the whole pot in the ground later and not disturb the larger roots. I'm no expert in this however. They look pretty healthy, and maybe they'd be ok in the current pots for a little longer. I'm often very slow about getting seedlings into the ground, and by then they suffer a little bit, but bounce back eventually. Good luck! Wendy x
ReplyDeleteThanks, Wendy - I'm glad to know your seedlings do well even if their planting is delayed a bit! I'm not sure about the larger peat pots, but I'm going to check today when I go out to do errands.
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