Spring Fever, Tiger Lilies, Onions and more

Tiger Lily
Originally uploaded by zizzybaloobah

Do you have spring fever yet?

I think all gardeners get this feverish condition as soon as sunny days appear. When I lived in Wisconsin, all the snow had to melt before spring fever occurred.

Here in California, mid-February and cold sunny days means all the gardeners I know are quietly asking each other “Did you plant anything yet?” Actually that is a big topic at work. We all say “No not yet. But soon. Soon.”

Last week I told my green thumb buddies, I plan to plant sweet pea seeds, and onion sets and garlic sets.

Sure enough, today I went to my local nursery and bought 100 sets of Red Weatherfield Onions, and 3 bulbs of California Garlic. I added a giant bag of Cocoa Bean Hulls for mulch, and 3 bulbs of "Tiger Orange" Lily. The picture on the package shows bright orange petals with speckles, which is the signature plant that reminds me of my mom, so I had to buy that!

How do you handle this sweet malady called spring fever? I think the best cure is planting things that you love. What are you planting as the cure?

This photo is from zizzybaloobah at creativecommons

Song Birds and Garden Plants

You can help song birds by planting trees, shrubs and flowers that give them food and shelter.
Great suggestions are fruit and nut trees, like pecan, walnut and mulberry (Cedar waxwings love these sweet berries). Wax Myrtle, blueberries, and California Hollyberry are beloved by your garden birds. Salvias or Sages provide colors including brilliant blue and flaming crimson for your garden palette, hummingbirds will discover them as food sources, and song birds birds will eat their seeds.
When you visit your favorite nursery, keep the birds’ needs in mind, buy extra plants or trees for them, and enjoy the ballets the birds will perform for you.
For San Diego gardeners my article “Flowers for your feathered friends” is in the February 2008 “San Diego Family Magazine”, and has lots of info.

Carbon Fast For Lent

The Church of England leaders are suggesting that people have a carbon fast, rather than a chocolate fast this year, for Lent.
The link below has a 40 day action plan that is easy to implement.
The first idea is to remove a light bulb for all 40 days, and on the 40th day, replace it with an energy efficient bub.
One thing that I already do is to carry canvas grocery bags with me! Another is to unplug battery chargers when you are not actually using them, since they drain electricity all the time when plugged in.
Let's be kind to our planet!

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/feb/05/tearfund

Black Squirrel Storing Up For Winter

Black Squirrel Storing Up For Winter
Originally uploaded by audreyjm529

I have a volunteer gardener. A black squirrel visits and plants peanuts in the shell, which have sprouted. Our neighbor feeds him/her raw peanuts in the shell.
Little Blackie scoots over to our house and buries extra peanuts in our vegie garden, and in flower pots.
Most recently he planted a walnut in the shell.
I think he is awfully cute.

Garden catalogs point toward spring

Garden catalogs are places where your creativity can run wild. I encourage you to use the website versions, rather than the paper, to be environmentally friendly.

Territorial Seed Company.
Their motto is “Seeds and plants for wherever you live” and they pay special attention to people with tiny gardens, and offer seeds, including Oriental greens and vegetables, Pole and bush beans, Popcorn, and Flower mixes. http://www.territorialseed.com/ 800 626-0866

Victory Seed Company
Victory Seed sells open-pollinated and heirloom seeds. They offer theme gardens: 18th century kitchen garden, Bible-themed garden, Moon garden, World War II Victory garden. http://www.victoryseeds.com/ They prefer online or fax orders: 503 829-3126 or email info@victoryseeds.com.

Wayside Gardens
Another well known company that offers perennials, roses, trees and shrubs, and has been in business since 1916 is found at http://www.waysidegardens.com/ 800 213-0379.

Brecks
Brecks “Direct to you from Holland since 1818” specializes in the best bulbs, spring blooming like tulips, daffodils, crocus and alliums, summer blooming plants like dahlias, begonias, iris and perennials and collections of bulbs. http://www.brecks.com/ 513 354-1511

Stokes Tropicals
For those of you truly dreaming of warm tropical isles and plants, visit http://www.stokestropicals.com/ where they offer banana plants, plumerias, hibiscus, bamboo and beyond. 1 866 478-2502

Iris the 'flower of light"

Photo from Martin LaBar, Flickr.com

Blue and white iris
Originally uploaded by Martin LaBar (going on hiatus)

Are you a fan of the bearded iris? They are available in a rainbow of colors, and my friend talked enthusiastically to me about iris today. But, oops, although they are gorgeous, we can't plant them until July 1 to October 31 here in California, and at the earlier part of that season for colder climates.

Iris is named for the Greek goddess, Iris, who is the personification of the multi-hued rainbow and a messenger. In the language of flowers, receiving Iris means the sender has a message for you. Another name for these flowers is fleur-de-luce or "Flower of light." The Iris is said to have been brought from heaven to Clovis I, the first Christian king of France.

As the season approaches for planting these colorful garden "flowers of light" I will post more details for planting them.

sweet peas

sweet peas
Originally uploaded by nuanc

Photo uploaded on September 24, 2005by nuanc

Sweet peas are such perfect plants, with their range of colors, delectable scents, and ease of growing. As soon as your climate and soil allow, plant sweet pea seeds. The widely known types are vines, however I always plant knee high or bush sweet peas. These don’t need fences or trellises to climb on.

Since the seeds are as hard as pebbles, you may want to nick each one slightly with a nail clipper or metal nail file, or soak them for an hour or more. Some years I skip this step and just plant the seeds and keep them well watered. I recommend for bush type sweet peas, Little Sweetheart, Heirloom Cupid, Bijou and Knee-Hi.

For information on the Irish tradition of planting sweet peas by lamplight in the dark hours between sunset the evening before Saint Patrick’s Day, and sunrise that morning, I wrote an article you can read at http://www.positivelyfeminine.org/Creative/garden/th/sweetpea.htm