I looked at the calendar and realized…Spring is only 25 days away!

 That means given the hours alloted  in a day (which  you can’t change trust me.. I have tried both to will them away and alternately, to frantically add them and neither works) X the number of them left before March 20th, I am already behind.

Usually by now I have lots of things pruned outside and the wood ready to be made into stakes, or mulched into chips, but this year the snow cover is keeping me from getting out there to do anything.

Usually by now I have a plan of attack for re-working gardens that need refreshing , or new plantings, but I am so focused on the return of the bunnies that I am in a state of garden inertia , unable to plan,plot or otherwise.

Usually by now I am at the ready, tools cleaned and sharpened , pots  for seeding and container plants scrubbed and sterilized, and new gloves purchased and waiting on my bench, but I had the real honest to goodness flu that had me down for the count for over two weeks already and I haven’t had the energy.(No, I did not get my flu shot and yes I will get it next year)

Usually by now I feel confident that my seed and plant orders are finalized, and well thought out perennial choices and new roses will arrive soon ,their locations pre-determined the beds prepared for their happy arrival. but instead I look at new catalogues as they show up in the mail with a knot in my stomach and  a feeling that I may have ordered about 200 things I did not need and have no place for and the one problem spot I  meant to remedy will remain empty  because nothing  out of the  perfectly photographed yet useless  plant stash those clever catalogue writers made me buy is appropriate for it.

Usually by now, I have at least planned how and when I will start seeds of sweet peas, followed by a myriad of other plants I want yet can’t readily get at the local nurseries, but knowing how they all became instant rabbit food of the most delicious kind last year I haven’t the heart to try again just yet.

So, that settles it , I am behind. Behind on the chores, behind on the plans, behind actually on the laundry and housework as well, just to add that extra special little bonus pile of work on top in case I felt like there was some way I could catch up.

But I am going to put on my bestest “little engine that could” face and at least make a to-do list and start hacking away at it. I cut some forsythia branches today to force inside, that was a good first step. I am going to go through my seed packets tomorrow, that will be a good second step. Then maybe I will pull all the plant invoices I printed from my winter ordering to see what will be arriving soon and start to assign plant to place.

Excuses for procrastination will not be tolerated; I will start to trudge through the huge disorganized pile of  notes I made  for a presentation I am working on, and I will make a list of the photographs I need to illustrate all of my innovative and genius points. I will finish finish (or at least start) the laundry.

ith I really am going to do it all, promise, right after I check out the Rhode Island Flower Show this week in Providence, then a quick stop at Tower Hill this weekend to help at the desk while they are so busy with  all the people coming to check out the new Limonia, then I just have a few days volunteering before and  at the Boston Flower Show  (which is spectacular and gobs of fun to work on and you better make sure you come check it out)and then  I will get right back to it all. Really, I  promise.

Here’s to New England weather and all it’s unpredictable  extra snowy bone chillingly fr-fr-frigid glory.

You can puch me if you wanna, but snow is my bestest friend these last few weeks.   SNOW+ Cheryl =BFF     

 Why ? you ask….why when you have spent morning commutes sitting on the highway for hours watching idiot drivers bend fenders and slip slide all over causing numerous traffic delays?

  Why  …when your days are spent walking around aimlessly with heavy shovelfulls of wet snow trying to find a new GD place to stack it up.

 Why…. when the children never ever go to school where they rightfully belong bugging the bejeezus out of paid professionals instead of whinning to you about how bored they are.

 Why…when just today you drove through a pothole the size of Manhattan that jarred your jaw in a way that is still making you wince.

 Why?…Why? Why? am I happy about the snow?.

Because it is winter , and winter is cold . So very cold lately that not one inch of the 50 or so we have recently aquired has even thought of melting…and therein lies my the root of my happiness. My garden is snuggled under the loveliest of winter blankets with no threat of someone stealing the covers so to speak and leaving it exposed to horrible wind chills and the notorious freeze thaw cycles that heave so many of my babies out of the ground and just plain kill others.

In Alaska they call a winter with no ( or very little)  snow a blue screamer. We have had them here ,although the only screamer was me when I saw the damage that January did to May.  The last one was 9  or so years ago and going out in the gardens that spring I  spent  day upon day slowly  realizing how many plants were just  not coming back. All of my fruit trees had a huge percentage of dead branches that needed  to be pruned out, some were not even worth trying to save. I lost anything marginally hardy, which meant that almost every plant in the rock garden was gone as most of them were borderline zone 5 anyway. I can look back at photos taken before that winter nd actually feel a little weepy about the mass die-off.  No part of the garden was left unscathed and  I even lost extremely hardy perennials and 2 ‘New dawn” climbing roses that are super-de-duper hardy.

That terrible no good very bad January ,temperatures were frigid, often below 0, often with numbing winds accompanying them, and there was no snow.

 Snow to a gardener  is  mostly just a great insulator(to  heck with all the slippery qualities you skiers apprecaite)  and here in Jefferson it means that we can plant like we live in zone 5, even though I will insist we are and will always be zone 4. The snow makes all the difference, take it away and we are screamin’blue.

While I am happily knitting away, in this very snow-stormy winter, eating lots of hibernation foods and also enjoying a beverage or two since I can’t go out and drive anywhere , the garden is calling my name (well not really silly else I would be on medication locked up somewhere). What I am “hearing”  sounds suspiciously like  cries for NEW PLANTS!  Well, happy to oblidge.

Lest you think I can supress my gardening compulsion for any legnth of time, let me asure you it never really goes away. While my hands are occupied, my mind is busy busy busy planning and dreaming.

And what am I dreaming of….well, in a happy way a couple of new climbing roses from my favorite rose breeder, David Austin Roses  www.davidaustinroses.com  and the two clematis I ordered that are overwintering in the cutting garden . I got them from my favorite vine nursery , Brushwood www.gardenvines.com. I also have my usual crazy order in at Bluestone www.bluestoneperennials.com  and just a few things from Khlem’s song sparrow  www.songsparrow.com

What I am dreaming about in a dreadful thrash about the covers kind of way is the fact that the new fence installation left me a huge chunk of lawn that needs to be removed then the area tilled and soil amendments added…then several bushes and one tree need to be shifted… and a pathway added ..and perennials divided to continue the pattern that is already started abutting the sidewalk.  This will be a huge chore that is already taxing my brain as to how I can most effectively rearrange the plants without spending days on the couch eating advil and wearing ice packs. I may even hire help….we will see how it goes. Anyway, while I avoid thinking about that , here are some photos of  a few plants I have on order.I must love them now because when they arrive and I can’t remember where I meant to plant them, I will not be so enamored.

When I really sit to think about it, which I shouldn’t at all because it makes me seem obsessed, I spend a heck of alot of time in my yard. From spring clean-up through fall clean-up , I average more hours a week than I care to admit. So then, what happens in November when there is no garden?  Bill would love it if a job mysteriously appeared making me a useful asset to the household blah blah blah. The house would love it if I would spend some time organizing and cleaning:  not happening. The children would probably appreciate some fun field trips, or creative and delicious suppers. Keep wishing kids, mama will never be much of a cook, and I’m not great at planning the outings either.

What actually happens is I subsitute in another obsession hobby to suck up the time vacuum left behind by the garden; knitting.  Since November I have made 6 pairs of woolly socks, 2 warm hats to send to my nephew and his wife in Colorado, a vest and mittens for me, a baby sweater, and presently have another pair of socks and a sweater on my needles. Then add to that the huge stash of yarn and stack of patterns hidden here and there to keep normal people from commenting on my over zealousness. Must I mention the books, pattern websites,blog reading  and magazine subscriptions? I think I will keep those to myself TYVM.

 It is actually easier to hide all the gardening stuff. Once the plants arrive ( the trickiest time to keep them hidden because of the pots and boxes) I just have to get them in the ground super quick and no one is the wiser. No living being ( except maybe my friend Christina who knows  the garden and  my personality as well as I do) could possibly cast doubt on my insistence that

“no, that’s not new,that plant has always been there. It must not have been in bloom when you were here before”

and

 What do you mean that new tree in the way of the mower Bill? It has been there for years, it must have had a growth spurt.”

Then a lot of them die anyway , and now with the bunnies ravaging everything as well, it is hard to tell that I have gone a little overboard in the plant purchasing.

Not so much with the yarn and stuff. I cram it in a lot places, but  to no avail. Plus I get VERY frustrated  and loud and compulsive borderline frenzied when projects don’t go well, which is surprisingly often given that I have been a knitter waaayyy longer than I have been a gardener(.  I think the frustration  is due to the fact that there is no “thing ” like weather, or soil, or rabbits to blame ,just me and my crappy attention span).

I truly believe if I had a less weird interest, like reality TV shows, or skiing, I would be more inclined to share it with the world. Everyone can “water cooler talk” about The Bachelor or snow conditions . Who wants to hear me go on and on about soft squishy yarn and delightfully warm woolly socks? I know, no one.  But there it is anyway, my garden surrogate , my sanity for winter, by substitute obsession.  WANT TO SEE SOME PICTURES?????????

thanks to my sock models: Erin and Faith!

No chatter today, just pictures taken this morning after night of heavy snow here in The Burrow. It is t a perfect winter scene out there, and even nicer to view from the windows while sitting near the fire. … I luv ya though, so booted up and braved the wind and snow to take these photos for you 🙂

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After a very nice holiday, with Dave home from the Airforce (he is at the Defense Language Institute in Monteray,tough gig!)  and CJ home from college,and Bill on vacation for 2 weeks, it is time to focus more of my energy on chores and less on overeating and wine .

 Over the break we had what was declared a “blizzard” and although we had up to 70 mph winds, we only recieved a few inches of snow. A few days ago I finally got around to a yard inspection to look for limbs and damage and it was not too bad. A climbimg rose came unanchored because the ground is frozen I can not upright it’s trellis and the canes are scratching a window so they have to go. This is not, I repeat NOT the time to prune roses of any kind, that is for very late winter/early spring, but I did it anyway. Crossed fingers we have no more 60 degree winter days and it is ok come spring.

Being outside reminded me, or kind of jolted me out of my gardening lull, that it is time to prune lots of other stuff. Winter is optimal pruning time because deciduous trees are free of leaves so you can really see the structure as well as  what needs cutting and le’ts face it, no other garden chores are stealing your attention at the moment . It will also keep you away from the avalanche of catalogues arriving in the mail threatening your third borns education fund. (Sorry Erin, I will try to practice restraint this year)

This month I plan to prune a few pear trees and maybe the apple out front. They all constantly have water sprouts (those wierd branches that grow straight up to the sky) and every year need lots of pruning. while I am out there I will scan the other trees and bushes for any crossed branches that will cause damage and easy entry for bugs/diseases and take those out as well.

Two FYI s  1.) If you have spirea bushes, in the fall (or now) use your hedge trimmmer and just lop them off to about a foot high.They grow more like perennials and will shoot right back up into bush form very quickly in the spring, it saves  deadheading and thinning too.

2. )While you have your clippers in hand, bushes that flower in the spring that you can force into bloom in your house( like forsythia and cherries), only need 6 weeks of dormancy before you can cut branches and bring them inside to bloom. We are rapidly approaching that window so don’t wait until late Feb or March.  If your forsythias are like mine( unruly overgrown messes )then you can cut till your hearts delight for a couple of months.

…….and by the way …pruning is not scary. If you have never dared to hack at your bushes and trees, take a class, it will empower you. If you just need to re-fresh your knowledge check out the great how to videos on finegardening.com, or take out a book from the library. Better safe than being sorry after you re-create Dr. suess’ who-ville in your backyard!

Really? because I hate the mall, stress out when forced to do any cooking that requires measuring spoons and mentions using your food processor ( one of which I REFUSE to own lest someone expect me to whip up a salsa or something), and hate being cooped up inside. Lately, although the temperatures have been pretty reasonable the wind has been ferocious and I find being outside highly uncomfortable.

Being stuck inside, I spent some time re-arranging the family room to accommodate the( as yet un-bought )christmas tree. This is always a perilous time for my houseplants. Most of my indoor plants come from florists , sent by well meaning people after a tragedy or some other nonsense like anniversaries that  people equate with house plants and cut flowers. For me, plants belong outside, but out of the guilt that my parents worked so very hard to instill in me via church and their own financial worries growing up, I am forced to nurture these sorry looking specimens that have shown up on my doorstep through the years. It is a half-hearted effort at best, and when the furniture gets moved, there are always casualties.

 Last Christmas it was moving the bookshelves that cause the 90 foot long  philodendron to get tossed. Watching it forever stretching it’s ugly legginess all over my books was more than I could bear anymore. To the trash it went.

Over the summer I parted with a large palm- looking monstrosity that had been lurking in the corner of my daughters room trying to hide it’s yellowing leaves from the over- watering ministrations of my 13 year old.

And in an move I am not overly proud of, I left an 8 foot ficus tree out on the deck, promising it that if it overwintered I would   let it come live in the living room again. It didn’t make it, which is not shocking since it is only hardy to zone 8 or something and certainly can not survive a zone 4  New England winter. The ficus had been my dad’s, lovingly groomed and grown from a small 2 ft plant to  a beautiful  8 ft tree while in his care. When he died my brother declared that he refused to spend his time raking the hallway at the house, so either I took the tree or else. My mom thought that was a great idea and so to Bill’s dismay it came to live here. We have short ceilings so immediately it had to be trimmed. It was sited next to the couch in the living room , where you would go to enjoy a book, or a fire, or a good poke in the eye from a wayward ficus branch. We all hated it. It dropped leaves constantly, had to be trimmed  often and given the resentment we all felt toward the space it took up the pruning was done in such a manner as to make it look about as hideous as any tree could. When we switched the dinning room and living room last year, and finally fit all the rsepective furniture back into each room , the ficus was left standing in the kitchen. I realized that to fit it in the “new” living room would mess up everything I had accomplished trying to arrange things well. So out to the deck it went. This spring we cut it up and composted it and I do not miss it at all.

Even though I am not enthtralled with houseplants, I have a few I am proud of. Some are cuttings of the many plants I grow outside and by propagating them I feel like a true gardener and a frugal yankee , although neither description  is true . Another is the christmas cactus that blooms like clockwork in December like it should and if it ever doesn’t- it is compost city baby. The biggest is a poinsettia that not only has been   kept alive, but has grown huge and is now in the process of turning it’s green bracts red just in time for the holidays. I hope it neighbors have warned him that to live here you must never do anything to upset me, like stay green or drop all your leaves or other post-christmas poinsettia behavior.

a bract turning red