While Spring may have officially arrived, it hasn’t made much of an entrance yet in my Zone 5 garden. Which is not unusual at all. While warmer parts of the country undoubtedly have trees and bulbs already in bloom, my region of Colorado has a short growing season and thus there is not a whole lot going on here, and there won’t be for several weeks.
That doesn’t mean, however, that there aren’t things that can be done around the garden. While I would never say that spring cleaning my yard is fun, there is certainly a feeling of accomplishment that comes from cleaning up the ruins of last years garden. I have discovered as I have gotten older that spring cleanup is definitely more enjoyable, and less painful, if I take my time and not rush it. All that bending and stooping can make my hamstrings suffer for days if I’m not careful
The first thing that I do when I start the cleanup is to take a stroll around the yard and look for damage to….ok, the first thing I need to do is pickup all the dogshit! Dammit, all over my new shoes.
Alright, with that out of the way, the second thing I do is take a stroll around the yard and look for obvious signs of winter damage. This includes looking for broken stems on trees and shrubs, plants that heaved out of the ground due to cycles of freezing and thawing temperatures, and searching for damage to fences and other hardscaping. Once I have done my walk-around, I then devise a plan of attack on where to begin the cleanup and repairs.
This year there wasn’t too much damage evident, so I will spend the next couple of weeks chopping, raking and mulching all the plant beds. Once that is accomplished I’ll get the lawn aerated and fertilized. By late April and early May my yard is going to hopping with plants, animals and bugs getting it on! It will be like a giant swingers party out there, and I’ll be the peeping Tom sitting on my patio observing it all. Can’t wait.
Below are some photos of the work I managed to get done before the latest round of snow hit the Front Range. Ah, springtime in the Rockies, where a heavy coat and gloves are needed in the morning, but shorts and a t-shirt can be enough attire in the afternoon.
If you have any pictures of your yard or garden you would like to share, please send them to me at MrVintageMan2@gmail.com, and I would love to post them.
