Snow Removal

Thursday, April 29, 2010

A beautiful morning here on the mountain if you aren't a gardener. The sun has pushed the temperature from 26 degrees on up to 31 and the day has promise. Gardeners need "promise", especially after a day like yesterday that brought 18" of heavy wet snow and a bucket full of concerns for what damage all that weight did to pots of perennials that were growing so well in early spring sun.

Karl the Wonder Dog has me off track today as he shows no interest of a morning walk in the snow. I thought that the noise of me cleaning off the truck would get him in gear but he is still snoring away like my old hound dog, Bear. About the time I head out the door for the nursery he'll wake up and want to walk but by then he'll be left to accept a shortened version of our morning walk with Alex.

Difficult to believe that two days ago I was taking pictures along the Winooski River at the nursery. The Bloodroot were going by sooner than I wished as the temperatures were in the sixties for several days and the wind almost never stopped drying things out. Today the Bloodroot are long gone for this year but picture memories are nice.

Gail and I like trilliums and we do what we can to pick off the seed pods and plant them before the ants get to them each summer. I have moved a number down to the nursery but planted them randomly and haven't had a chance to see how they are doing. They are hardy plants, easy to move in August during dormancy. Even digging the rhizomes in August, cutting them in pieces and replanting will compound your collection with about 90% success. These are Trillium erectum pictured below. I'd estimate the plants are about 7 years old. This is not a plant to grow for $$$ as they are slow to mature.


I just confirmed a delivery with Fed Ex--it's finally making its way from St Paul, Minnesota-- so I have to head out to the nursery. I'm hoping for a warm day to melt the snow so we can get set up by this afternoon to start potting. It may not happen. 18" of snow is a lot to melt.


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where the mourning doves are sitting atop a shrunken 10" of snow on the platform feeder looking for cracked corn. With sympathy for a difficult-to-find morning breakfast, I'll scatter some corn before I head out.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm
On Facebook at Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens
Look on Twitter for vtflowerfarm