The heavy and deep snowpack we had this winter means there is very little frost in the ground. Even though it has seemed as if winter will never end, and all the plants will wake up late, we just might see buds swelling at normal or slightly earlier than normal dates since many trees and shrubs will be able to have root systems activate in unfrozen ground.
The last day or two, I’ve noticed that puddles of melt water were disappearing rapidly. This also speaks to the large amounts of unfrozen ground beneath of those snowbanks. Crocuses on southern exposures are now blooming, so spring is right around the corner!
We all are looking out at our lawns that were hidden for so long. My lawn definitely needs a little TLC once it dries up. In addition to the light spring raking that we’ll need to do – we have many little mouse tunnels several places in the lawn. The mice were able to tunnel from place to place underneath the snow this winter and were safe from the predators. We have one little mouse racetrack off the corner of the house that we will actually need to fill with soil and seed.
Another thing we have noticed being very prevalent is “snow mold”. This white haze on the surface of matted grass usually does not kill the roots. When things dry out, rake very lightly to fluff up the grass, remove debris, and avoid pulling out grass by the roots. If in doubt, wait until a littler later to allow for more drying.
Resist the temptation to go out and rake your lawn yet or to work in your planting beds until the ground has dried more and firmed up. Even by walking across the soft wet ground, you will make impressions in the ground that won’t necessarily “pop” right back up again, causing your lawn to be uneven. Raking too early will pull the shoots of grass right out of the ground which isn’t what you want to happen. Then, lastly if you start playing in the dirt when it is more like mud than dirt, you will end up with hard clumps of dirt in your flower beds that will last all season. All indications are showing that we will be having an early spring so take heart – it’ll be here sooner than you think!
With the growing season finally upon us, I am also sharing my blogs with the Northfield News. You’ll see them posted here and on their website.
