I am constantly amazed at the number of attendees that come to our pruning classes no matter what time of year we offer them.  Of all the classes we teach this is by far the most popular one so for those of you that weren’t able to attend on the 10th you have one more chance this Saturday the 24th.

While I realize that many of you aren’t quite to the point of visiting your favorite garden center, the fact is that all of us have been hard at it bringing in new stock.  One of the early arrivals is bare root plants.  These can be shrubs, roses, trees, berries and assorted perennials including vegetables.  So let me explain just exactly what a bare root plant is.

I don’t know about you, but for me as soon as we pass the Winter Solstice I start getting more and more excited about the gardening season knowing that with each passing day there is a little more day light and a little less night time.

I first penned this piece in 2001 and 13 years later it still feels relevant.  It’s encouraging to know that the true attributes of a “real gardener” haven’t changed.  Enjoy! 

Now that the snow and ice have melted and it is safe to go back into our gardens there are several things we can do to make us feel better.

Yup, that’s twice now in less than 30 days that we have plunged into the low 20’s and even high teens for 5 days or more and I suspect that most of us were not prepared for it.

Here's a short list of the things I am thankful for (horticulturally speaking). 

My job gets really tough this time of year.  Here I am trying to motivate you to get out into the garden and clean up the beds, replant the containers, plunk some bulbs into the ground and spread mulch everywhere to control weeds and insulate the soil...

If you are looking for a sturdy perennial that will grow in shade or morning sun then look no further than Hellebores.  These perennials are tough as nails and rarely need to be divided once they are planted.

Having just finished presenting a class on “Putting the Garden to Bed” I am feeling like this check list is a bit redundant.  If you missed the class this will serve as a good reminder.