Spring has Sprung!

It’s one of my favorite times of the year… when the grim chills of winter start to melt away with each day and the cycle of life begins yet again. Fast forward from our last excerpt and we are in the thick of one of the busier times of the year here where we have begun planning, seeding and planting. Given the mild temps seem to push up year over year, we are going to “test” how far we I push our annuals outdoors before our average first frost to get a jump on the season. We have started our annual seedlings about 4 weeks ahead of schedule and plan to plant out in the next week or so. We will use our cover cloth as needed in case of the emergent frosty nights. We will keep you informed of how this “test” goes.

Our colorful narcissus (daffodil) have also awakened which is our first spring flower every season, briskly followed by our hyacinths, double and parrot tulips, grape hyacinths, lilacs, peonies and anemones. I’m not going to lie, I was never the biggest fan of some of the spring crops until I began growing. I don’t like pastel colors as I’m more into moodier tones that summer seems to throw but the varieties our wholesalers have been able to provide are amazing. Listing below some of my favorites per category to share with you all and showing a few pictures.

Narcissus- Delnashaugh, Replete, Tahiti, Sir Winston Churchill

Double and Parrot Tulips- Icoon, Angelique, Foxtrot, Gudoshnik, Pink Parrot, Amazing Grace

It has also been so interesting watching every year, how we can work to successfully succession this symphony of perennials so that we can have the “perfect bunch”. You can do so by purchasing early-mid-late bloomers of tulips and narcissus, or sometimes I even spring plant my bulbs. Generally, as long as they have 15-17 weeks of cold climate, you can plant out in the spring and still be rewarded with a beautiful blossom. Just don’t forget…. tulips as a cut flower do not grow up year over year, as the bulb needs the energy from the flower to bloom the following seasons. Narcissus (daffodil) on the other hand can be cut and will come back year after year.

This year will be our first year for having a flower stand at the bottom of our barn. We are trying to go away from our deliveries considering the time and personnel allotment it requires and going back to more of a simplistic approach so we hope you come visit us. Speaking of new additions, we did add a new little girl to our 4-legged tribe— her name is Stevie and she is a beautiful Australian Shepard Doodle. We are hoping it will keep our other lab Nash “busy”. Stay tuned for more additions and visit our shop for CSA and Spring Floral classes!