At last it’s time to get out, start growing
If you are anything like I am, by about mid April, you are ready to reach for the gin. In the middle of the day. Spring seemingly takes forever to arrive. Nary a bloom nor green shoots in sight.
This year, I thought the perfect way to get over the winter blahs, was a weekend jaunt to Vancouver Island to drink in the scents and colours of spring. Only problem? The island had experienced its coldest and latest spring in more than six decades! Sure, Butchart Gardens was a sight to behold, but telltale signs as to the lateness of spring were the hyacinths in full bloom and the tulips barely budding. Cherry blossoms were barely visible. Hyacinths should have finished blooming by the first of April and tulips should have been in full resplendence.
One of the many joys and challenges of gardening is that Mother Nature is always the boss. What worked one year, may not the next. So far, spring in YYC, such as it is, seems pretty normal. My only beef is that everything seems to pop all at once — not unlike a Janet Jackson wardrobe malfunction.
Extending spring can be achieved easily enough by utilizing containers filled with bulbs the likes of fritillaria, tulips, hyacinths and the ubiquitous daffodil. The latter is taking centre stage this year and has been dubbed the bulb of the year by the National Garden Bureau. Daffs are repellent to rabbits and deer and make a lovely cut flower but they should be stand-alones in a vase, meaning do not mix daffodils with other cut flowers as daffs secrete toxins that will kill, or greatly shorten, the bloom-life of other cut flowers. Containers featuring only bulbs need to be started in the late fall, so consider this for next spring.
Pansies can be planted anytime after about mid-April as they will tolerate low single-digit temperatures-and even a touch of frost. It is too early, however, to go full bore with annuals the likes of petunias, geraniums, bacopa and so on. Wise gardeners say wait until June 1 to plant. Annuals must be hardened off before being planted outdoors. This means taking the plants inside in the evenings and outside in the day until all danger of frost has passed (June 8 was the last frostfree day in 2016). If you choose to leave plants out 24/7, cover them with an old sheet, pillow case or tarp. Don’t cover with plastic, however, as this material conducts cold. Of special note is that we are in the gardening zone 4A — up a notch from what historically was a zone 3B. When you are buying perennials, anything above a zone 4A hardiness will not survive our winter. Sure, you can purchase a Japanese maple or a magnolia, but these are not hardy here and should be treated more like an annual.
By now, you should have seeded sweet peas and other cold-tolerant annuals the likes of spinach. And don’t be in a hurry to power-rake the lawn as doing so too early will damage the tender new shoots and cause more harm than good. Pruning of elms after April 1 is a no-no. Wait until late fall.
Cotoneaster will benefit from a good shot of Rage Plus now as this will keep fire blight at bay (little red dots on the leaves and branches). Prognosticators are calling this spring the year of black knot disease-a fungus that affects chokecherry trees, including the widely planted purple-leaved Schubert chokecherry. Infected branches should be removed now and ensure disposal of same into the garbage — not into the compost pile.
Lily beetles are already starting to appear and will make a meal out of true lilies and fritillaria (day lilies are not affected). Oriental, rubrum, tiger and trumpet lilies as well as Oriental trumpets and Turk’s cap lilies and native North American lily species are all vulnerable. I’m insecticide averse when controlling these pests as good beetles — lady bugs — will die as well. Better to hand pick off the lily beetle, but you must be vigilant and inspect plants often.
As the 2017 gardening season unfolds in all its glory, I think the iconic Etta James song sums it up best. At Last!