Spring weather seems to have come and gone as quickly as Spring Break.
I hope all those teachers and students who were in town this week got to stay in bed Wednesday and roll over and hear the rain fall instead of having to get up at the crack of dawn. That rainfall Wednesday morning came just in time to brighten up the tulips, pansies and hyacinths ... and to wash away some of the Bradford pear blooms.
The Bradford pear blooms didn’t seem to last long, but seems the tulip trees continue to be the prettiest ever. We’re lucky that others have the foresight to plant these jewels to share.
I went out of town for spring break and was amused when I unpacked. As I put my shorts and short-sleeved tops back in the closet I noted the contrast between my winter boots and thick socks that had been lying on the floor. The shorts went right on top of my heavy walking sweats. Wonder which ones I’ll use the most this week?
Warm weather brings thoughts of plants and planting (and weeds and yard work) so my husband Tommy went with me as I scouted for herbs this week (he was looking for dogwood trees).
Many herbs are hearty and can be planted now, but it seems they are harder and harder to find every year so I try to scout early.
The biggest selection was at Home Depot. They had healthy looking early vegetables, some pansies and cold-tolerant flowering plants. They had a few glorious hanging baskets of geraniums (if one is willing to baby them until freezes are over) and a myriad of interesting ground covers. I bought some creeping thyme that will hopefully turn into a ground cover in my herb garden. My friend Mae Glover had a huge bed of this that served as my inspiration.
I know it’s still early in the season, but Martin’s didn’t begin to have the selection they have had in the past. Maybe they’re storing all their goodies in hothouses awaiting more appropriate weather, but they seemed to be low on even their cold-weather plants.
My buddy Pat usually makes her trek to Evans Plant Farms (about 9 miles east of downtown on Highway 41E, the old Manchester Highway) at this time of the year, but when she called Monday, they told her the geraniums were not ready to sell.
The Co-Op was bursting full of shrubs, seeds and everything imaginable. Their bedding plants were still in infant stages, but when they mature they’ll be knockout. The stars of the show at the Co-Op were ferns that must have been four feet tall and equally wide. I wanted to buy everything I saw.
They also have excellent seeds including Kirby McNabb’s favorite – State Fair. Kirby’s grow to about 3 feet tall with the help of Co-Op 13-13-13 fertilizer ... breathtaking!
Lowe’s had great varieties of vegetables, herbs, flowering plants, shrubs with everything, looking very healthy. They had unusual perennials and some beautiful $25 orchids.
Valley Growers Nursery on Lascassas Highway (about 8 miles out Highway 96 past MTSU) is always charming and didn’t disappoint.
They aren’t chock-full of bedding plants yet (most of their stock is exposed) but I wanted to buy one of each they had. They have excellent perennials, in my opinion, and it’s the only place I have ever been able to find hellebores. Their colorful accessories and planters make gardening look like fun!
Go check it out and snap ‘em up ... but leave a few for me!
‘Tll next week |
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