Pretty in Pink
My granddaughter and I were browsing through some seed catalogs on Sunday when out of the blue she said “PINK “ in her tone that implies don’t argue with me. “Ok,” I agreed, we can try some pinks this year if you want. They probably won’t do too well with our soil, but maybe we can do a big pot full of them.” “NO! I want to plant all pink flowers this year.” Considering that this child is as “ungirly” as you can get, the demand for only pink threw me, especially since I had my heart set on a burst of vibrant colors this year. But if Holly wants a pink garden, pink it will be!
How To Mitigate An Early Spring
Over the course of the last century, seasons world-wide have advanced an average of 28 days. The last decade has seen the fastest gains, with the last two years breaking records for both highest and lowest temperatures ever recorded. Overall, amounts of annual precipitation have decreased, but at the same time, deluges of cataclysmic proportions are happening. 2023 saw more catastrophic weather related events than ever before, and so far, it appears that 2024 will simply repeat that disheartening pattern.
Why You Shouldn't Celebrate An Early Spring
Driving along Highway 70 today, I saw swaths of daffodils and tulips in bloom, groves of pear trees budding out and a warm breeze gave off that soft, earthy smell that signals spring has arrived. I should have been elated that winter was on the way out, but I wasn’t. March 4th is at least two weeks too early for springtime in our part of the Midwest.
