OUR SPRING HERE HAS BEEN SO SLOW TO GET COOKING that I let the tender bulbs I’d stashed in the basement, like cannas and dahlias, all sleep a little longer this year. But now I’m sounding reveille, and saying “be up, be doing” like my Grandma used to say to me. I won’t put them in the ground till month’s end, but meanwhile, here’s how to get them off to a good start.
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.”
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Margaret, I thought I was the only one still behind with my Spring bulb planting. Most years I have so much more done by now. It might be the weather, the fact that I like to run around (plant sales, etc), or DARE i say…We are all getting older, so things get done slower. NO, let’s blame it on the weather.
Looking at pictures from the past few seasons I see that spring here in Michigan is at least 3 weeks behind. Today is the annual flower and plant sale at my farmer’s market so I hope it starts warming up!