What to do while it's melting

Things are beginning to melt!  The snow pack right now in the pasture measures 12 inches, down from 17 inches last week.  I can just make out the shapes of my raised beds in the hill garden, and my water feature is marked by a divot in the snow.  Under the mulberry tree, daffodils are beginning to poke through the soil.

 

 

The second sowing of impatiens is going well with about 95% germination.  The chili plants are hanging in there, but one variety still has very puckered leaves.  I've been battling fungus gnats and white flies for a few months now, and it's making me crazy.  No more over-wintering herbs from the garden.

I've mentioned that I am fascinated by the practice of planting bulbs in pots and overwintering them.  I have two sets of pots planted - one stored in the shed that I cannot get to right now thanks to the snow, and one set stored in the basement.  The ones in the basement were tucked in a dark corner on the cement floor.  My basement is heated and I keep it at 48F through the winter, which may have worked against me.  The allium in the pots started sprouting about a month ago, which was much too soon to put the pots outside.  I had to bring them upstairs into the house and on warm days I do set them out.  I have a feeling the allium won't bloom because it's really thin and leggy and just doesn't seem robust enough, but time will tell.  The daffodils and tulips planted with them are just starting to poke through the soil.  I'm going to consider this set a mostly failed experiment as I think the basement is just too warm for overwintering bulbs.  I'm eager to see what's going on in the bigger pots out in my shed, which I should be able to get to soon.

Another plant I overwintered in the basement was my lemongrass.  I took it upstairs about a week ago when I noticed a thick white fungus growing near the base of it.  I think I may have over-watered the last time, which may have caused this.  I scraped the fungus/mold off the plant, set it in the sun for a few hours, then chopped the leaves back even more and brought it inside.  In the entire clump, there are about 3 leaves that have some green showing.  This may also be a failed experiment, but we'll see.

 The south-facing front of the house is well thawed, and the bulbs I planted last fall are already growing like crazy.  

My little Witch Hazel spent most of the winter plowed under a snow bank, but it's poked through now and is trying its level best to show off some spring blooms.

And my ginger plants are coming along. 

The little fox has been back quite a few times and did manage to catch a grey squirrel.

The lone Tom turkey has been joined by four comely hens.

And a single raven has been trying to steal the crow food.  There have been a few airborne battles, which are spectacular to watch, but I feel sorry for the big raven.  He does manage to get a few bits of kibble now and again.  He's heavier than the crows and keeps sinking into the snow, so he'll propel himself upward with a few flaps of his wings and settle back down.

 

Soon that ocean of white will be a sea of green...I'm looking forward to it.

Spring!

The vernal equinox is upon us, get out your shorts!

Or not...last I checked we still had 23 inches of snowpack, but the March sun is definitely melting it every day.  So...welcome, mud season.  

Somehow my plow guy managed to miss half of my driveway, so I've had to drive on what is essentially lawn, and it hasn't been fun.  My driveway is to the right, under that solid berm of snow.

I've had to close the driveway and only drive on it when it's frozen, first thing in the morning.  Yesterday I managed to attack it with my snowblower and opened up another two feet.  I only blew two shear pins, which was amazing.  Thankfully I learned quickly that with gravel driveways, you'd better have a big ol' bag of shear pins on hand.  

The red winged blackbirds are back, and it's so nice to hear their music.  I've actually seen two turkey vultures in the past few weeks, which is super early for them.  I wonder if they know something we don't.  Judging from the last storm we had, spring doesn't feel like it's nigh.

Five days later and that pile against the barn has melted enough that the hay room window is almost completely visible, and at the front of the house my little garden is nearly melted.  There are hyacinth and tulips poking up through the soil, despite the cold.

We've also been visited by a fox, which has been very exciting.  It's hunting the squirrels that congregate in the pasture, where I feed the crows.  Since part of the crow food is soaked cat kibble, the fox has helped itself to that, too.  

And as for the crows, they seem to have recruited a third member to their murder.

There's plenty to go around, so it's all good.

March-ing

 One more big storm, though not as big or as fierce as expected.  Officially, 10" of new snow fell.  Heavy, wet, sticky snowment.  Even the snowblower didn't like it, and I've been coating it with a special non-stick spray prior to each storm.  It's going to be a while yet before I get into my gardens.

At least it was a beautiful start to the morning, and the next week or so look like we'll have above average temperatures; high thirties to mid forties.  The snow will settle and the plowed areas will thaw again, and it'll be Mud City USA for a while. That's fine, because in the house things are beginning to happen.  The impatien, eryngium, and pepper seeds I sowed last weekend are sprouting.  Spring is coming, albeit slowly. 😊