Grow my pretties, grow!

 The yarrow seedlings have graduated to plants; they're looking quite adult at this point.

The Blue Fescue grass is amazing...even my mother is drawn to it, just to brush it lightly with her hand.  I don't know that it would be so alluring at ground level, but at eye level it just begs to be admired and touched.

The Baptisia are still going strong.

The petunias, impatiens, and pansies I started a month ago now are doing well enough.  I've only lost one petunia and one of the impatiens.  

There wasn't even a whisper of snow left on my side of the property at the beginning of the week, and only a small mound on Mom's side, where the plow pushed it up into a huge snow bank.  Although the end of February and beginning of March were blissfully mild, this week has dropped back to average temperatures, near or below 32F.  Winds have been kicking up, making it feel even colder.  Yesterday was the first day of spring, but it feels like winter is lingering.  We're expecting a storm this weekend with snow, sleet, and rain, which isn't unusual for March.  Heck, that's not unusual for April around here.

I'm beginning to toy with ideas for the sloped area off the leach field.  Last year I had hoped to get it cleared of weeds and grass, top it off with 50/50 soil, and plant corn and various squash into it.  I have a good amount of corn seeds, so I may try it this year.  I'm debating covering it with weed blocking fabric and cutting holes for plants throughout, much like folks do in row gardens.  I'm not a huge fan of the fabric and may just invest in heavy doses of bark mulch over cardboard, instead.  At any rate, it's going to be tough to get rid of all that natural grass.

I also need to consider my wildflower meadow and path that is on top of the leach field.  The very nature of the beast means quite a bit of thawing and refreezing, and this has played havoc on my landscape pins, not to mention any late planted perennials.  They tend to heave out of the ground.

I'm debating pulling the pins and plastic edging and trying to acquire some bricks as cheaply as possible and using that as edging.  Alternatively, I could just cover the pea gravel with bark mulch and let the edges blur into the meadow area.  Whatever I choose, I'll probably do the same through the lower half of the garden, around the lower patio, pond, and gardens.  Of course, this is all just a pipe dream at the moment...because here comes Mother Nature to remind us that March is full of surprises, and giving us a preview of what's still to come.