BEFORE THE APOCALYPSE BLEW IN SATURDAY, with its relentless 50-plus mile-per-hour winds, there was a brief moment of sanity. The snow was finally melting, revealing the first bulbs, and the very best part: I got my knees wet in the process of going to have a closer look. The outdoor garden season is officially upon us (once the broken branches stop swirling, that is). May we all ruin many pairs of pants during our upcoming gardening experiments.
THE LECTURE that he’s been giving for a number of years is not-so-subtly called “Kill Your Lawn.” Ecological horticulturist Dan Jaffe Wilder knows that starting over and creating an entire native habitat instead of a lawn isn’t for everyone. But Dan just wants to grab our attention and get us to start to make some changes at least in the way we care for the turfgrass we do want in our landscapes. And maybe give up a little square footage of it to some other kind of more diverse planting, too, like the wild strawberries (Fragaria virginiana, inset). Alternative, more eco-focused styles of lawn care, along with some lawn alternatives is what he and I talked about on the podcast. Dan is Director of Applied Ecology at Norcross Wildlife Foundation in Wales, Massachusetts, and its 8,000-acre sanctuary. He’s also co-author with Mark Richardson of the book “Native Plants for New England Gardens.”
(Stream it below, read the illustrated transcript or subscribe free.)
Oh, yeah…. :)
Just in from a foray myself. Loved having nose to dirt, contemplating the bulbs coming up, doing a little “exfoliating” of a bed. So happy.
More snow today, so I didn’t get my nose in the dirt. SIgh. However, I wear roofing gel knee pads now for this, so that my kneecaps are protected, after watching my mother have surgery for this after years of gardening.
Wet knees are wonderful … I’m jealous :)
I got my knee wet today when I took a photo of the first snowdrops blooming with a patch of snow in the background.
hurrah for spring! i’ve spent 10 hours for the second weekend in a row cleaning up and planting. oh, we california gardeners are spoiled since its been nice enough for a month between rains. but i’ll crawl back here whimpering for mercy from the heat come late june…
What great fun! I have yet to do that but it is coming and soon too!
Just cut flowering quince and forsythia to force inside; spring will be slightly delayed for me this year because of knee surgery, but I am happily watching for all signs. My heirloom crocus, the lovely dark purple “Negro Boy” (not my fault, it comes with that name, Old House Gardens) is blooming by the rock foundation, and the naturalized tomasinianus all over the yard. We have plenty of squirrels, but they don’t seem to like the c. tom.
Enjoying your blog.
Welcome, Liz. Sorry about the knee; best wishes for its full recovery. :) Glad you are enjoying the blog, and some crocus, too. Lucky you! See you soon again.
I know the feeling. I planted peonies (I dream of fields of them someday) and one can never have enough of those! We had flooding waters. The rising, racing waters take the farm soil and manure away downstream to the Chesapeake Bay and then farmers are blamed. But then there are flowers and foliage! Yay! I’m excited too for this year’s garden.
I’m always ruining nice pairs of jeans because I’ll notice a weed, bend to down to get it and then just start gardening. Hooray for spring (almost!).
Hooray for wet knees!!!
I’m sooooo envious. The latest series of storms left it much too wet to do anything outside here. I hesitate to even walk around the gardens because they are so soggy. Admiring my intrepid daffodils from afar. Ah well…. maybe by the weekend….
Your post has inspired me to go out today and ruin my first pair of pants! With the current thaw and springlike weather (I hope it’s more than that, but in the Northeast, you must err on the side of caution), I’m planning on scratching in some spinach, clearing out the beds I didn’t get to in fall and just breathing in that crisp, spring air that just smells like new life… Off I go!