Almost spring

I have traveled so much this spring that I feel like it has been back and forth on spring for a month. I was in Washington for daffodil time, and now it is crocus and daffodil time in Waterloo, where I am visiting to help with my new niece, Darwyn.  Put my travel to places that start with 'W' and the weird weather (more 'W') together, and I have already had a month of spring, sort of.

It is snowing in Waterloo today and it got me thinking about the great transplanting I did right before I left. I usually transplant in early April, moving my tomatoes and squashes into the pots they will stay in until I put them in the ground on the May long weekend. I always use that transplanting to tide me over until I can start handling real dirt when the ground becomes workable in about the third week of April.

 Last year on the 10th, my yard was in a fairly similar state to this year - almost ready to burst. I can see buds on things and variety of my perennials are starting to green up. My favorite of my early bloomers is my yellow crocus, which is waiting for the -11C of this week to go away so it can bloom the purple ones under the living room window here in Waterloo. I really want to pull all the leaves off my beds, but it is still getting to cold, and I am worried about die back, which happened with my strawberries last year. It is always a challenge because the ground warms more quickly without the mulch, but the plants die more quickly if it gets too cold. I always want to take the rise because I really want to see the green. It is a tough exercise in delayed gratification.

When I get home next weekend, I need to finish the last of my transplanting. I have to do my peppers, the basil and the last of the squashes.  That will completely fill my planting bench until I can move things outside to the greenhouse near the end of April. I love looking at the thick leaves of the peppers, which grow so slowly that they barely need transplanting even though they have been growing since February. Once I have everything transplanted and out in the greenhouse, I'll know spring is really here and I have moved past the 'Ws'.

Let out

I have a cat, Pippin, who would really like to go outside. She sits by the door, bursts outside on a sunny day if you aren't careful, and will suffer the indignity of a harness just to be be able to go out. This week, I felt a lot like Pip.

I have been contenting myself with my grow table. A weekend ago I planted the rest of my various squashes, which have now mostly come up, and thinned my tomatoes. I am always excited as as the new plants start coming up, because I can just feel the potential of each plant (view grow table album).  But nothing comes anywhere close to when the weather lets me out for the first time.

Last Saturday was a sunny and warm by late March in Saskatchewan standards. Mike was at work, the girls were off helping at Greta and Gus' and I had the sunny day all to myself. I racked the front yard, cleaned some of my leaves off my beds and examined everything.

I found bulbs peeking up, ground covers greening, trees budding - well, just about everything a happy Wendy needs.  I literally bounced about the yard picking up sticks.  The weather was so warm (about 14 degrees C) that I dried 4 loads of laundry on the lines. I also ate lunch outside, read a novel in the sunshine and dug through all my pots.  In short, I was finally let out after a long winter inside.