I know that the "gardening implement" that I'm posing with is actually an ice pick, but I was too lazy to run to the garage for a rake. I'm not the only one to voice the fact that this April was a loser month to be a professional gardener. It snowed almost daily and temperatures rarely reached the double digits. BOOOOOOOO! Butt I did luck out and find Lois Hole's Trees and Shrubs book at the library so I have been post-it-noting the shrubbery that I like. I think that shrubs are the future of my yard; way less maintenance than perennials and less waste to clean up in the fall. NOW I'm thinkin'! I'll tell you what I'm leaning toward (and I linked the shrubs to pics): a Peegee Hydrangea in front of my bedroom window (summer flowering), or a double flowering plum and an orange or white flowering potentilla to go beside a sandcherry. And I love mock orange. . . actually, I have a mock orange but it's gnarly and hardly produces any heavenly-scented flowers, but the link that I just found says to chop it to the ground to "renew" it so I'll be doing that in the fall or next spring. Exciting!

Tomorrow I will transform into a naturalist and am looking forward to complaining about how hot it is on Sunday, when the temp. jumps to 21°C from the single digits. What does this city have against temperatures in the teens?!? I think that we'll go for a walk in the ravine!

I've actually gardened!! I regret not having filled the cold, snowy days of the month with READING about gardening or CHOOSING the shrubs that I want to plant in the spaces that we made for them last fall (and by "we" I mean that I charmingly pointed and DH dug - we're such a TEAM!). That would have been clever but frankly, I forgot what was awaiting me under the snow. I'm rather excited now that I've been reminded that I have shrubbery to select. Shrubbery! (Monty Python fans?)

So I spent 2.5 hours tidying up the raspberry canes and spring-ified the flower beds around the "courtyard". There are daffodils and tulips about a decimeter high (I know! - butt I live in Canada and we're supposed to use metric) and my favorite plant, flax, is everywhere. YIPPEE! AND the blanket flowers (gaillardia) seem to have survived the winter, for a change. They are native to the area thus supposedly super hardy and easy to grow and I just LOVE their fiery colors. . . I have had the worst luck with them. But this is the year. I can feel it.

DH and I spent most of Saturday in the yard. He got many of the ugly, looming chores done so I'm really looking forward to getting out there (thanks, Luv!). I picked up vegetable seeds and some amendments for the soil, and new cedar mulch. I'm going to plant snap peas and sweet peas tomorrow.

Do Not rototill

I had a balmy Easter long weekend 4 hours south, visiting the in-laws. My arms even got sun burnt. . . now it's snowing. Nice.

My DH picked me up a gardening magazine ("Grow; fine gardening's guide to vegetable gardening") to support my profession (he's a keeper) and I read that one shouldn't turn over the soil when preparing it for planting, because it upsets the delicate ecosystem. They recommended using a pick fork to just loosen the soil. "Remember that soil is a vibrant ecosystem that suffers if it's exposed to too much light and air. So just wiggle the fork around to make it easier for roots to penetrate."

snowbank gardener

Yippee! I can feel warmth radiating from the glowing orb in the sky! I've been a professional gardener for 6 days now but my yard has been covered in snow. . . it does pose a problem although DH and I have been cross-country skiing 3 times this month. Yesterday my soggy bottom boys spent a couple of hours racing toothpicks in the run-off streaming down the gutter toward the drain, so I'm optimistic that I will be able to get at the dirt this week.