Is it Spring yet?

As hubby and I were sipping our first cup of coffee this morning, our local weatherman declared that we were under another winter warning advisory.  "Chance of snow and freezing rain," he said.  "With winds gusting up to 40 miles an hour."

"UGH!"  That was my response to this dreaded forecast.  Hubby, on the other hand, just shrugged.  "It's winter. What do you expect?"  Indeed!  What should I expect?

Well, for sure I can expect that winter isn't ending anytime soon.  Even though the calendar says Spring begins March 20th, that never is the reality here in the Midwest.  Here, winter ends when Mother Nature says it does.

I can also expect more snow, more blustery winds, and the depressing realization, that the closest I'll be to getting into my garden for awhile, is the daydreams in my head.

But, that's the magic of the long, dreary, cold days of winter.  You have plenty of time to daydream about Spring.  And to plan.  Which is exactly what I've been doing.

I started by looking through all the photographs I took last year.  (You can see some of those I uploaded, here on my Gardening page).

Having these photo's is very helpful in the planning process. Especially when, like I said earlier, winter is so long.  There is no way I could possibly remember what I've already planted and where it is located in the garden, without photo's and a plan.

After I've reviewed what I have, I can start putting pen to paper. This is when I decide what plants need to be rotated, or transplanted to a new garden entirely.  I can also see 'bare spots', and decide what existing, or new plants I can use to fill those areas in.

Color is also a factor.  Without those photographs I would have no way of knowing that one of my back gardens has way too much pink. ( I love pink- but not that much!)

Finally, I'm able to review what didn't work.  Like the hydrangea I planted in one of my side gardens.    

 See, it's that poor, very unhappy plant inside the circle.  (Don't you think Fox Sports Network should hire me on for how amazing I draw circles?)

Anyway, I really don't know why I didn't notice this when I originally took the picture. (I guess I was too busy transplanting, pruning and getting everything ready for winter!)   

If I remember correctly-I  transplanted  Mr. Hydrangea (yes, my plants are gender specific-I have many Ms. and Mrs too), because he wasn't producing any flowers in his old spot. I figured maybe he was getting too much sun, and needed a new home.  So, I planted him here.  At the time I guess I felt this spot was perfect.  It receives good morning sun and partial shade in the afternoon.

 As you can see- the variegated Hosta in the background, absolutely adores his spot!  Which brings me to the problem.  I transplanted four new Hosta's around that guy.  Four Hosta's that hopefully will grow just as big!  Where does that leave the Mr. Hydrangea?  Well, if I were to hazard a guess-he probably won't be producing flowers this year either.  Unless-I transplant him in the spring.  Which, thanks to my photo's- is exactly what I'm going to do!

Now, with all that said- there is one downfall of planning your gardens this early in the season.  You got it!  I have this overwhelming desire to grow something.  Not three months from now.  Not in Spring-but RIGHT now!  But never fear-that is what the internet is for.  To inspire.  And boy did I get inspired this morning.

 Thank you to White on Rice Couple for the photograph!  It not only inspired me-it made me giddy with excitement.  If you read my last post, you know how much I owe the amazing lemon for my new-found love of water.  But, in case I haven't told you-it's winter here.  Which means, that feeling of joy every time I take a slurp of H2O, is marred by the fact that those lemon diamonds are very expensive this time of year.
Problem solved, or so I thought.

After a bit of research (check out  Martha Stewart and Gardenista for more information) I learned that growing a lemon tree indoors, isn't exactly easy.

In fact-it might just be downright impossible!  Is that going to stop me from trying?  Heck no.  In fact, I'm making a call to my local nursery right now!

If you have any gardening tricks or tips-I'd love to hear from you!  Until then-Happy planning!