Photo by Guy L. Adams

Gardening by the Yard By Tom Corbin A Fairlington Gardener Questions and comments can be directed to tomrcor@aol.com - please reference: "Gardening By the Yard Column." February - Early March Gardening The unusually warm and long-lasting "January Thaw" has made gardeners eager to get outside to prepare for spring. The best advice is to hold off! Most of us who have lived in this area long enough know that many times mother nature pushes the envelope for spring only to reseal it dramatically with a severe cold spell and yes, snow in February and even March.

And remember, poet T.S. Eliot reminded us that April is the cruelest month. We are not out of the winter woods yet, and the best advice is to be patient and wait for the "real" spring.

Experience teaches that spring and her accompanying steady temperatures do not really settle in here until after Easter Sunday, which, in the natural cycle (not calendar date) is always at the same time - the first Sunday after the first full moon after the spring equinox (March 21).

And do not be misled by the early appearance of any summer annuals at the local market. Summer annuals require steady night temperatures of 50 degrees.

The very early flowering plants and shrubs are making headway and may get zapped! You have probably seen winter jasmine (a trailing shrub with yellow flowers similar to forsythia), japonica, helleborus, snowdrops, crocus, and glory of the snow about to flower, and pansies are in full flower. The jasmine and japonica flowers will be blackened by severe cold, but not all the flower buds open at the same time, so some buds will flower later.

Helleborus will "take a hit" and "go limp" but will revive with warming temps; the same goes for the other early flowering plants. Snowdrops and glory of the snow (chionodoxa sardensis) (both bulbs) can easily withstand a cold snap. (I have bleeding heart showing growth; this is not good as this plant is easily damaged by freezing temperatures. It is also not a good sign in terms of how far along the unseasonable temperatures have brought plants.)

Daffodils are showing much growth. Fortunately the flower buds are still concealed in the plants and will not be hurt by any cold spell unless the well developed buds and/ or flowers are subjected to severe temperature drops. Do not mulch the foliage thinking you are protecting it. It is best to "let nature take her course." And never cover with plastic bags!

Trim off the old, leathery leaves of helleborus, so the flowering stems can be seen amidst the new leaf growth. Dead head (remove the spent flowers) pansies and trim off any winter kill as the weather allows. Pansies, planted in the fall, benefit from a light dressing of fertilizer now if the ground is not too wet to work. Cold weather makes the pansy put its energy in the roots and the plants revive well with warming temperatures. It is important to keep your pansy plants deadheaded and trimmed for continuous bloom.

Hydrangeas might be damaged by this recent warm spell as some of the buds are showing green. Do not do any pruning to hydrangeas until the plants leaf out and the temperatures settle; only then remove any dead wood.

The general rule of thumb for pruning flowering shrubs is (1) prune any shrub which blooms before May 15 AFTER it flowers (azaleas fall into this category); and (2) prune summer flowering shrubs (flowering after May 15) in early spring. Early flowering shrubs bloom on last year's growth, and summer flowering shrubs (hydrangeas are an exception) bloom on new growth. The butterfly bush (buddleia) is a good example of a shrub blooming on new growth and as such needs to be severely pruned in the spring to encourage strong growth and summer flowers.

Keep up with the tidying chores as a clean garden is a happy and pest-free garden!

• Maymont Flower and Garden Show - Richmond, VA, February 9 - 12
  www.maymont.org (804-358-7166)
• Philadelphia Flower Show - Philadelphia, PA, March 5 - 12
  www.philaflowershow.com
• Leesburg Flower and Garden Festival - Leesburg, VA, April 22 - 23
  www.idalee.org
• Garden Club of Virginia (www.gcvirginia.org) events include the 72nd Daffodil Show on April 5 -6 and Historic Garden Week (www.vagardenweek.org ) April 22 - 29.

Echinacea (coneflower) 'Sunrise' (yellow) and 'Sunset' (orange) - perennial Echinacea (coneflower) 'Fancy Frills' (white, fragrant) - perennial Hydrangea macrophylla 'Lady in Red' apple blossom white lace cap blooms on red stems and leaf veins; blooms fade to pink - summer flowering shrub Hydrangea macrophylla 'Lemon Daddy' - yellow foliage with pink or blue flowers - summer flowering shrub Hydrangea macrophylla 'Endless Summer' - blooms of new and old growth for six months if deadheaded Buddleia 'Bicolor' (butterfly bush) yellow and lavender on the same bloom stalk! Summer flowering shrub

• Wayside Gardens www.waysidegardens.com 1-800-845-1124 (Great resource!)
• Parks Seeds www.parkseed.com 1-800-845-3369 (Unusual seeds!)
• White Flower Farm www.whiteflowerfarm.com 1-800-503-9624 (A Must Have Catalogue!)
• Plant Delights Nursery, Inc. www.plantdelights.com 1-919-772-4794 (Great resource! Great "political" covers!)

Late Summer Photos of Tom's Garden Click Here for Photo Gallery Posted August 26, 2005

Photo from Tom's Garden by Commons Resident Guy L. Adams (Click on Photo for More Images)

Winter is Here Check out Our Gardening Page PLUS Photos of Tom's Garden Click Here for January 2005 Column Click Here for March 2005 Column Click Here for May 2005 Column Click Here for August 2005 Column Click Here for October 2005 Column Click Here for December 2005 Column