I’m always eager for SPRING to arrive in my garden.
But then I get out there and . . . well. It’s generally NOT a pretty sight! While I see the promise of buds and a few things pushing up through the detritus of winter, mostly . . . I see the detritus of winter. Dead leaves, broken stems, weeds, tree branches, dried up seed heads, old mulch, and mud (lots of mud).
I’m always itching to get out there and get to work again, cleaning and pruning and (maybe) even raking.
But.
Now is actually the time for RESTRAINT in the garden!
This little graphic illustration from the Regenerative Farmers of America highlights just why we shouldn’t be TOO eager to get our gardens cleaned up in the spring. Just because it’s a nice, warm day . . . and we’re eager to get-out-there-and-garden again . . . it’s actually time to use some restraint and hold ourselves back.
Some plants and insects are triggered to emerge by temperature, others are triggered by length of daylight – and if we clean up too early, well . . . we lose all those benefits for the rest of the season.
So I will leave my rake and clippers in the garage for now. I’ll just let those dead seed heads and stems lay there for the moment. Those leaves are fine as is. My “mess” is harboring critters and insects I want in my garden!
While I’m busy being patient and practicing restraint, I’ll “work” in my garden by . . . observing and assessing, planning, making lists, organizing my tools and seeds, weeding (that’s always okay), and picking up all the sticks and branches – and the hundreds of pine cones – that fall in my garden over the winter.
Soon (although probably not until mid- to late-April) (sigh), I’ll be able to clean up my garden for the season.
In the meantime, I think I’ll head to my favorite local nursery for some ideas and inspiration!
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How about you? How does your garden grow?
We’ll have to see how things grow this year. The snow and possibly squirrels seemed to quash my snowdrops. Hyacinths and daffodils are just starting to emerge, but now it’s cold again and we’re going to have snow today. We won’t start things in the vegetable garden until the soil is much warmer and can be worked, so right now we’re just practicing restraint like you.
They’re predicting a mind boggling 17″ of snow here on Sunday (+ some on Saturday & Monday for a total of almost 2 feet)… so there will be no temptation to get out & do anything in the garden for a while. Lordy.
Funny you should mention it because yesterday I noticed the calendar (along with the unusually warm weather) and decided to put up our spring door decoration with the idea of sliding on the spring garden flag as soon as the wind died down. One must show our neighbors that we do in fact, Care, mustn’t one? But also here the air has gotten cold with tornado warnings not that far away. The flag will have to wait! Happy Almost-Spring, Kym!