Winter’s shortest month almost over
The shortest month of winter is not far from being over. There is still a lot of winter remaining. Even with the arrival of spring in late March, the possibility of snow, ice, freezing rain and cold days will be with us for quite a while. Don’t let cold weather hinder you from sowing seeds of mustard greens, spring onion sets, broccoli, cabbage, Alaska green peas, lettuce, radish and carrots. As long as winter soil is not frozen it can be worked and cool weather vegetables can be sown and planted.
Staying ahead of the wild onions
Cold temperatures cause wild onions to sprout on the lawn. They have deep roots and it is difficult to destroy their bulbs. You can help solve the problem without disturbing the lawn by using the weed trimmer to cut the onions to ground level every ten days. This will stunt their growth and improve the appearance of the lawn. The mower will help but will not cut onions down to ground level.
Still time to feed the dormant lawn
As February ends, there is still time to feed the lawn for healthy and greener grass this spring. Do not use any 10-10-10 fertilizer but apply a specially designed lawn food that will feed over an extended period of the growing season. Apply on a day when snow or rain is in the forecast for the week. Clean the spreader with fresh water when task is finished to prevent rust.
Repairing bare spots on the lawn
As February leaves us, it is an opportune time to repair bare spots on the lawn and sow new grass seed to improve the appearance of the lawn by reseeding and feeding bare spots. Dig around bare spots to loosen soil, apply lime and fertilizer and seed. Rake in the seed and apply a layer of hay on the spots. Water once a week when no rain falls.
Jonquils brighten the winter landscape
The golden blooms of jonquils, daffodils and narcissus glow in the late winter sun and brighten up the cold porch at the close of February. They are a beautiful sight that announces that spring is on the way. Combined with the fragrance of colorful hyacinths in colors of white, pink, purple and lavender, yellow, and red, we enjoy the color, aroma and also the brightness of spring.
Graceful buzzards fly on a winter day
When we were kids, we called these birds of prey “country airplanes.” They are defiantly not the most beautiful of birds, but they are certainly most graceful when in flight on a clear winter afternoon. They glide through the air and ride the currents of the wind, soaring higher and higher with seemingly no effort, searching for a meal or road kill as they sore.
Starting a row or bed of mixed greens
March is only two days away and the garden plot soil is workable enough to sow a row or bed of mixed greens or mustard greens for an early spring harvest. They will grow quickly in the soil of winter and produce a harvest in about 50 to 60 days. The hardware or seed shop will mix the greens or sell them to you already premixed. You can choose from rape, kale, curly mustard, tender green, Florida broad leaf, spinach, and leafy turnip. Dig a shallow furrow and sow the tiny seed and cover with a layer of peat moss and apply a layer of Plant-Tone organic vegetable food on top of peat moss. Hill up soil on each side of furrow and tamp down with the hoe blade for good soil contact. When greens develop two leaves, apply an application of Plant-Tone and hill up the Plant-Tone on both sides of the row.
Setting out a row or bed of spring onion sets
As February comes to end, a row or bed of spring onion sets can be set out in the cold winter soil and they will thrive in late winter. You can choose from white, yellow or red bulbs. A pound costs less than $3. Plant sets in a furrow about four or five inches deep and place sets about four or five inches apart with the root side down. Apply a layer of peat moss and an application of Plant-Tone organic vegetable food on top of the peat moss and hill up soil on both sides of the furrow and tamp down with the hoe blade for good contact with the soil. They should sprout in about 20 days. Side dress with Plant-Tone once a month and hill up soil on both sides of the row.
Stocking up on plant foods for garden plot
You will notice we mentioned “food” not fertilizer. Gardens need more food (organic) than they do fertilizer (chemical). Chemical fertilizers are only shots in the arm, gardens need organic material. As cold weather is still the norm, most hardwares, garden shops, Home Depot, Lowe’s Home Improvement and Ace Hardware are well stocked with supplies and organic plant foods such as Holly-Tone evergreen and azalea organic food, Flower-Tone organic flower food, Plant-Tone organic vegetable food, Garden-Tone organic plant and herb food, Tomato-Tone organic tomato food, Rose-Tone organic rose food. Miracle-Gro liquid plant food, Alaska fish emulsion in quart bottles, Dr. Earth natural plant, vegetable and tomato foods. These foods are easy to apply and a little goes a long way because it is not filled with hard pellets, but finely textured plant food that quickly absorbs into the soil and provides quick response and results. The Holly-Tone products are available in four- and ten-pound bags.
Making a broccoli and rice casserole
There are a lot of broccoli casseroles and this one is good because it has a lot of flavorful ingredients. You will need an eight-ounce bag of finely shredded sharp cheddar cheese, one can Campbell’s cream of mushroom soup, one stick light margarine, two cups Success minute rice, one envelope Recipe Secrets onion soup mix, one very large head of broccoli or a twenty ounce box of chopped frozen broccoli, two eggs. Cook rice according to the directions on box, boil broccoli until tender but not over cooked, melt margarine and set aside. Combine broccoli and rice and mix together. Add mushroom soup, shredded cheese, onion soup mix and two eggs. Mix all ingredients well. Spray a large casserole dish with Pam baking spray. Pour mixture into casserole dish and bake at 350 degrees for half hour or until firm and golden brown on top.
Still plenty of snow opportunity remains
As we end February, the opportunity for snow is still promising. As we are on the doorstep of March, always remember that huge back-to-back snowfalls have occurred during March in past years with several dumping more than ten inches. We would certainly love to see several snows before the winter ends. Snow would be a great benefit to the dormant lawn and give a boost to the garden plot, add nutrients to the soil and build up excitement for the kids and grand kids as they await a snow day.
Signs of spring at the end of February
The cold month of February is almost at an end and the month of spring’s arrival will soon be here. Some signs are appearing including bees visiting Carolina Jasmines, buds forming on dogwood trees, jonquils and hyacinths ready to bloom, some trees already have tiny leaf buds forming, frogs are croaking down at the creek and days are getting longer by a minute per evening.
Ordering from the 2022 seed catalogs
As we approach March, it’s a great time to place your order for the seeds from the seed catalogs. Several important things to remember about ordering catalog seeds are: 1) Don’t purchase seed varities you can purchase locally. 2) Remember that most seed packets only contain 30 seeds or less. 3) Some seeds originate from other countries. 4) You have to pay shipping, handling fees and state taxes. 5) Most catalog seed costs more for less seeds. 6) Order only proven seed varieties that you have tried before and seed varieties you can’t buy locally.
Hoe hoe hoedown
-Hair-raising sermon. This pastor was well known for his long-winded sermons. One Sunday morning, he noticed a man get up and leave during the middle of his sermon. The man returned just before the service concluded. After the service, the pastor asked the man where he had gone. The man said he went to get a haircut. “But, why didn’t you get it before the service?” said the pastor. “Because I didn’t need it then,” the man explained.
-Self paying windows. A window salesman phoned one of his customers and said, “I’m calling because our company replaced all the windows in your home with triple glazed, weather tight windows more than a year ago, and you still haven’t sent a single payment.” The homeowner replied, “but you said they would pay for themselves in twelve months.”
-A horse of a different color. You can lead a horse to water and most folks can, but if you can get a horse to float on his back, then you are on to something.
Source: https://www.mtairynews.com