Spring is Near

Spring is right around the corner, it seems. The calendar says the equinox will occur on the twentieth, as it does every year, and for once, up here in northeastern Montana, we have hopes that it actually will mean spring has sprung.

We’ve been seeing the signs of spring: a killdeer has been heard; robins are hopping in the yard; skunks have been seen trundling alongside the highways (or have been smelled); the redpolls are frequenting the bird feeders again; and a gopher has been spotted sunning himself beside the road.

The snow has mostly melted away from my yard. I’m no longer having to chop the ice and compacted snow away from the walk-in door to our garage, which I was doing wearing flip flops last week. The disappearance of the snow has revealed green violas and dianthus. That green is all the more striking next to the dead brown foliage of the other plants. My trees and lilac bushes show signs of swelling of the buds where leaves will eventually emerge. This scares me a little, as I’m afraid they will suffer terribly if (when) it gets horribly cold again. And then maybe they won’t be as healthy once summer comes.

The mailbox has been bursting with seed, plant, and gardening catalogs. Those have been stockpiled for the day I’ll feel like ordering seeds. I’m just not ready to start any seeds of my own. I like seeding directly into my garden. If I want plants that will produce sooner, I’ll purchase them from our local greenhouses. But those catalogs are always fun to dream over. I’ll pick out a fortune’s worth of seeds and plants, then have to winnow my wish list down to those I would actually be able to grow in the space I have and that my pocketbook can afford. Damn reality anyway!

In the meantime, my yard is a spectacular mess. There’s been plenty of wind during the winter. The disappearance of the snow has revealed an appalling amount of downed tree branches. I’ll have to spend a few days removing those. Then there are the leaves that need to be raked off the lawn. I’ll tackle those chores when we have some days that aren’t too windy and when the sun is shining. I’ll wait until after the late snows come before clearing off the flowerbeds. I hope to get those done before new growth pops up from the perennials.

For now, I’m going to continue crocheting whilst doing my best to ignore the political quagmire.