April showers are suppose to bring May flowers but if this April is anything like last year’s April, April showers will be non existent as it was warm, even hot & dry last April.
I’m rooting for a cool, wet, “normal” April that will let the spring advance more slowly so that later spring frosts don’t beat up new growth and flowers that have been forced along earlier than normal by a too warm April.
Another problem at the nursery is that all our plants, at least those on the outside are not all available until at least mid-April as we don’t receive many items or pull them out of our winter storage houses until we’re sure the severe cold is done.
Well do I remember the spring of 1982 when we started to bring plants from our polyhouses at the end of March only to have to put them away again because of the severe single digit temperatures coming on April 5th, 6th and 7th of that year! So remember, if the weather is exceptionally nice very early in April we may not have everything on display that you think we should have out already.
The tulips we planted last October are coming out of the ground so that they will need a spray of Liquid Fence very soon as I have no doubt the nursery deer herd has spotted them and is waiting until the plant’s leaves grow a little taller so that the tulip’s foliage will become a salad ready made for deer.
The days are almost long enough that the incandescent lights over the non-stop begonia and dahlias can be turned off. We use the lighting in order to “fool” these plants that the day length is actually 14 hours or more so that they will produce growth and flowers instead of tubers in which the tubers would only be beneficial when the plants are ready to go into winter dormancy.
See you later.
Tom
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