I live in the province of Québec, in Canada and it sure sounds like we have the same type of weather. I'm in zone 4b. Love your posts, your garden and your art, so interesting. Will have to discover more of your posts. Thank you!
Thank you, Jeannine! Nice to connect with you. Yes, we're in a similar zone. In my part of Wisconsin we had been zone 4b until the zones were revised last year and now we're 5a. We usually get snow in April at least once. Here's to a beautiful growing season!
Anne, I love your winter garden photo.It is such fun to see your garden grow! We are trying two raised beds - hope the rabbits stay out. I just got a library book, Life in the Garden by Penelope Lively. Looking forward to seeing everything green and growing! 🌻
Thank you, Marilyn. Glad you're getting your garden going. I love reading gardening memoirs. That one sounds (and looks) familiar but I can't remember if I've read it. You'll have to let me know how it is. I'm looking forward to seeing things growing, too! Hooray for spring!
A suddenly snowy day must have been a shock, Anne! I'm interested in the garden jourmal idea, it would be fun to track growth and weather. And, your seasonal classes are my favorites on Skillshare! So many good memories from taking those classes! My greens are planted, but the baby slugs have arrived, so now starts the daily dance of removing them to the forest, then repeat day after day! 🫨
It was a surprise because I hadn't kept an eye on the forecast, but snow in March and April are to be expected. Not that I like it. Haha.
Oh, I'm so glad you loved the seasonal classes. I think I may need to do more of them. My inspiration really flows with the seasons.
I recently saw some slug trapping ideas that I think I might want to try. One was to put a piece of wood in the bed and another was to use a hollowed out grapefruit half. Turn them over and remove the slugs. The slugs were bad here last year and I think I'll try both ideas!
Hi Anne! Hi Clara! Thank you for this encouraging post. This year for the first time I'm trying poblano peppers, garlic, new to me cosmos, delphinium, wild indigo, early sunflower and rocky mountain penstemon. There are some other new things as well. I always have an idea of what I hope for things to look like but they never do. I guess that's part of the fun though. Always learning and growing. How exciting that you harvested your lemons! Have you done anything with them yet? P.s. I let Substack read me your post. It was interesting.
Hi, Dana! I love hearing about your garden plans! Lots of beautiful (and yummy!) plants. It is fun to try and learn new things. Gardens are great teachers!
I gave one lemon to my mom and she cut into it this past weekend for her tea. Matthias requested that I make Dutch babies to eat with lemon juice but I think I'll also grate the peel to use in some scones.
I've never tried having Substack read a post... I'm not sure what I think about the idea! Haha.
Your lemons!! You must be tickled pink. Where does your tree live in the winter? Love the snow pic; you have some nice "borrowed landscape" at the upper left of the photo. Like you, I've tried before but never managed to keep a garden journal/planner going beyond the first few pages. I'd rather be in the garden than write about it, I guess. And I just learned that I really hate doing garden cleanup in the spring, but I'm doing my part to aid our over-wintering pollinators. If you fall behind, things start breaking dormancy then you're tromping on things you ought not, etc. Think I'm gonna do half and half going forward. When do you do it? For the last few years I've had so few Japanese beetles - it's such a relief, isn't it? I'm so pleased for your Poet's Wife rose! The crocuses and snowdrops have come and gone, but the early daffs and tulips are cheering me on. My plans for this year include getting rid of a lot of perennials, simplifying, etc. This old lady gardener is getting tired out, Anne!
Yes! The lemons have been wonderful to tend and cheer on. My little lemon plant and the lime both live in my studio in front of the sliding doors which face east (you can see a photo from last March here: https://www.mygiantstrawberry.com/blog/dreams-and-gratitude ). They're both on metal plant stands now and I have quite a few other plants in that space right now, most of which will go outside (geraniums, rosemary, double impatiens). Since I've cut the lemons my little tree has been sprouting lots of new growth. It bloomed all last winter but it put all its energy into the fruits this winter. I hope it will be happy outside this year. It didn't seem to like being outside last summer. We'll see!
I like to pretend our yard isn't surrounded by other houses. If you look just right you can just see trees. I love doing spring garden clean-up, though you're right that it can be a challenge not to damage the new growth. I don't really have a schedule, but keep a close eye on when things start growing. Too soon and things loose the cover and can be damaged by our late snows. I've done a tiny bit already. I think it helps that I grow a lot of annuals. It's a balancing act.
I'm holding my breath with the Japanese beetles. I was tempted to order a couple more roses, but I held off.
Simplifying is good! Our gardens need to bring us joy, not overwhelm us! Here's to a beautiful season ahead!
Oh my Snow! But your garden surely looks pretty in its blanket. We had enough here in VA and my spirit needed to see the snow drops up last week and Daffs blooming and Japanese Iris too! As a retired artist I finally have time to do a monthly garden journal of what blooms in 2025, Jan & Feb, were tuff pages but my Helebores peeked out blooms the last week of February for that page. I must ask WHAT do you attribute the scarcity of japanese beetles too??? I've put milky spore down last year and a half but boy no relief yet. My Roses in our new retirement cottage seem to have saw flies that have terrorized my blooms the past 2 years. And I hate to use strong chemicals... I have gardened my veg in big pots with a few blueberries and herbs, and a couple with cherry tomatoes, and peppers. BUT those darn squirrels have take every last tomato green, and all the green peaches on my patio peach tree the last two years. I tried netting last year but they weren't deterred, However I found a new netting for this year.
Thank you! Snow's not a surprise at this time of year here, though I'm ready for spring. We often get it into April. We didn't have much snow this winter and I'm worrying I may have lost some of my perennials because of it (my helebore isn't looking too lively and still no sign of my snowdrops).
I wish I could say I did something to keep the Japanese beetles away, but I didn't. They seemed to be absent in town here. Past years they kept getting worse and the fact that they were everywhere made me think putting down milky spore in my little yard wouldn't do much good. We'll see what happens this year! I dug out all but three of my roses because I couldn't deal with them!
Your garden sounds lovely, even with the sawflies and pesky squirrels. I'm grateful they leave my tomatoes alone, but I saw one munching my peaches. My tree was laden, so didn't mind sharing. Tomatoes would have been another story! Haha. Good luck with your netting!
We live at a high elevation and I haven’t had much luck at gardening here. I may try to find some veggie starts this summer though - and maybe bring them in at night?? as we live IN the forest and have a lot of critters that eat anything I have tried to plant haha.
Thank you, Lea! I try not to post too many photos of my dogs (I take a LOT of dog photos! hahah). I'm always amazed by how different every climate and location is (I hadn't thought of high elevation as a factor, but of course it is!). I hope you can figure out a good way to keep the critters away from your plants. Always tricky! I'm constantly battling squirrels here. They like to dig up my rows of seeds and uproot baby plants.
Love seeing your photos of your garden Anne and of course your doggie companion. You’ve had snow! Our garden has had the borders tidied ready for new growth and already the peonies are coming up. I’ve been inspired by the abundance of daffodils this year and there are tulips growing slowly. The Poet’s Wife rose is a stunner and the scent is just divine - I planted one by our front door so visitors get a waft as they arrive. Thank you for your gardening insights. 🙏💜
Hi, Clare! Yes, I remember you were growing The Poet's Wife. And how envious I am of your climate! Haha. Only the tiniest signs of bulbs have been showing up here. I hope I haven't lost my snowdrops. I've seen some blooming in town, but no sign of mine yet... except there was a tiny green bit that miiiight be the first shoot. We'll see. Thanks, as always, for being here! I hope we both have a beautiful gardening year (I'd love to see some photos from your garden and that wonderful greenhouse!). ☺️
Appreciate the inspiration, Anne! Your encouragement to "Grow what you love. Don't get caught up in the 'rules' or the 'right' way to garden" is perfect timing, as I'm trying to talk my husband into giving up a chunk of the front lawn for garden space (it's really the only place on our property that gets enough sun these days). I think we can make it a beautiful space, and I'm honestly not particularly concerned about it being unconventional. Ah, but my husband does love his lawn ...
I hope you create your front yard garden, Lauren! I can imagine it being a beautiful space. I'm so grateful that my husband doesn't like lawns. We've gotten rid of all the grass in our backyard. I don't like gardening in our front yard -- too much traffic and too many people and dogs, but I love seeing other people's front yard gardens (is that hypocritical of me?).
Ha! Not at all … I actually feel the same way, and we live on a busy road. We did put up a privacy fence a few years ago, which helps, but it still feels like living in a bit of a fishbowl. I’ll accept that downside if it means I get my garden! 😃
I'm limited to container gardening these days which is just fine with me. Except for the big copper tub which I always plant geraniums in, my various pots and containers will have something different in them most years, depending upon what my store garden center has to offer (always some different plants each year) and what catches my eye. Always looking for beautiful blooms, but this year I'm tempted to try a few veggies in one of the long ones. I used to sow radishes and green onions back when I had a serious vegetable garden and it was always a delight to see how quickly they sprouted up - almost instant gratification. And believe it or not, I haven't had any sources for zucchini for quite awhile, balk at buying it in the grocery store and miss fixing some of my favorite zucchini recipes. I may find a place for a single zucchini plant. :-)
Container gardening is wonderful, Sheila! I'm dreaming of adding a couple of stock tanks to my garden this year (we can bring them with us when we finally move!). I wasn't sure what exactly I wanted to plant in the stock tanks, but I thought I'd have a mix of things. Then I was looking through an old magazine and they'd grown potatoes in stock tanks and had a wonderful crop... I think the dreaming is one of the best parts of gardening! Oh, and yes, plant a zucchini. They can do wonderfully in pots. :)
Yes, stock tanks sound great for your space and yes, potatoes in them! I'd been toying with that idea too as I have one really big container that I couldn't even get onto the deck but sits beside it at a corner where it gets both morning and afternoon light and I was wondering if it would be good for potatoes. If not, then that zucchini. I think either would survive the deer that wander through and browse. :-)
I look forward to hearing what you decide to plant in your container! I AM grateful we don't have to worry about deer where we live. I know once we move we'll be battling them and other creatures, too. There's always something!
I live in the province of Québec, in Canada and it sure sounds like we have the same type of weather. I'm in zone 4b. Love your posts, your garden and your art, so interesting. Will have to discover more of your posts. Thank you!
Thank you, Jeannine! Nice to connect with you. Yes, we're in a similar zone. In my part of Wisconsin we had been zone 4b until the zones were revised last year and now we're 5a. We usually get snow in April at least once. Here's to a beautiful growing season!
Anne, I love your winter garden photo.It is such fun to see your garden grow! We are trying two raised beds - hope the rabbits stay out. I just got a library book, Life in the Garden by Penelope Lively. Looking forward to seeing everything green and growing! 🌻
Thank you, Marilyn. Glad you're getting your garden going. I love reading gardening memoirs. That one sounds (and looks) familiar but I can't remember if I've read it. You'll have to let me know how it is. I'm looking forward to seeing things growing, too! Hooray for spring!
A suddenly snowy day must have been a shock, Anne! I'm interested in the garden jourmal idea, it would be fun to track growth and weather. And, your seasonal classes are my favorites on Skillshare! So many good memories from taking those classes! My greens are planted, but the baby slugs have arrived, so now starts the daily dance of removing them to the forest, then repeat day after day! 🫨
It was a surprise because I hadn't kept an eye on the forecast, but snow in March and April are to be expected. Not that I like it. Haha.
Oh, I'm so glad you loved the seasonal classes. I think I may need to do more of them. My inspiration really flows with the seasons.
I recently saw some slug trapping ideas that I think I might want to try. One was to put a piece of wood in the bed and another was to use a hollowed out grapefruit half. Turn them over and remove the slugs. The slugs were bad here last year and I think I'll try both ideas!
Hi Anne! Hi Clara! Thank you for this encouraging post. This year for the first time I'm trying poblano peppers, garlic, new to me cosmos, delphinium, wild indigo, early sunflower and rocky mountain penstemon. There are some other new things as well. I always have an idea of what I hope for things to look like but they never do. I guess that's part of the fun though. Always learning and growing. How exciting that you harvested your lemons! Have you done anything with them yet? P.s. I let Substack read me your post. It was interesting.
Hi, Dana! I love hearing about your garden plans! Lots of beautiful (and yummy!) plants. It is fun to try and learn new things. Gardens are great teachers!
I gave one lemon to my mom and she cut into it this past weekend for her tea. Matthias requested that I make Dutch babies to eat with lemon juice but I think I'll also grate the peel to use in some scones.
I've never tried having Substack read a post... I'm not sure what I think about the idea! Haha.
Your lemons!! You must be tickled pink. Where does your tree live in the winter? Love the snow pic; you have some nice "borrowed landscape" at the upper left of the photo. Like you, I've tried before but never managed to keep a garden journal/planner going beyond the first few pages. I'd rather be in the garden than write about it, I guess. And I just learned that I really hate doing garden cleanup in the spring, but I'm doing my part to aid our over-wintering pollinators. If you fall behind, things start breaking dormancy then you're tromping on things you ought not, etc. Think I'm gonna do half and half going forward. When do you do it? For the last few years I've had so few Japanese beetles - it's such a relief, isn't it? I'm so pleased for your Poet's Wife rose! The crocuses and snowdrops have come and gone, but the early daffs and tulips are cheering me on. My plans for this year include getting rid of a lot of perennials, simplifying, etc. This old lady gardener is getting tired out, Anne!
Yes! The lemons have been wonderful to tend and cheer on. My little lemon plant and the lime both live in my studio in front of the sliding doors which face east (you can see a photo from last March here: https://www.mygiantstrawberry.com/blog/dreams-and-gratitude ). They're both on metal plant stands now and I have quite a few other plants in that space right now, most of which will go outside (geraniums, rosemary, double impatiens). Since I've cut the lemons my little tree has been sprouting lots of new growth. It bloomed all last winter but it put all its energy into the fruits this winter. I hope it will be happy outside this year. It didn't seem to like being outside last summer. We'll see!
I like to pretend our yard isn't surrounded by other houses. If you look just right you can just see trees. I love doing spring garden clean-up, though you're right that it can be a challenge not to damage the new growth. I don't really have a schedule, but keep a close eye on when things start growing. Too soon and things loose the cover and can be damaged by our late snows. I've done a tiny bit already. I think it helps that I grow a lot of annuals. It's a balancing act.
I'm holding my breath with the Japanese beetles. I was tempted to order a couple more roses, but I held off.
Simplifying is good! Our gardens need to bring us joy, not overwhelm us! Here's to a beautiful season ahead!
Oh my Snow! But your garden surely looks pretty in its blanket. We had enough here in VA and my spirit needed to see the snow drops up last week and Daffs blooming and Japanese Iris too! As a retired artist I finally have time to do a monthly garden journal of what blooms in 2025, Jan & Feb, were tuff pages but my Helebores peeked out blooms the last week of February for that page. I must ask WHAT do you attribute the scarcity of japanese beetles too??? I've put milky spore down last year and a half but boy no relief yet. My Roses in our new retirement cottage seem to have saw flies that have terrorized my blooms the past 2 years. And I hate to use strong chemicals... I have gardened my veg in big pots with a few blueberries and herbs, and a couple with cherry tomatoes, and peppers. BUT those darn squirrels have take every last tomato green, and all the green peaches on my patio peach tree the last two years. I tried netting last year but they weren't deterred, However I found a new netting for this year.
Thank you! Snow's not a surprise at this time of year here, though I'm ready for spring. We often get it into April. We didn't have much snow this winter and I'm worrying I may have lost some of my perennials because of it (my helebore isn't looking too lively and still no sign of my snowdrops).
I wish I could say I did something to keep the Japanese beetles away, but I didn't. They seemed to be absent in town here. Past years they kept getting worse and the fact that they were everywhere made me think putting down milky spore in my little yard wouldn't do much good. We'll see what happens this year! I dug out all but three of my roses because I couldn't deal with them!
Your garden sounds lovely, even with the sawflies and pesky squirrels. I'm grateful they leave my tomatoes alone, but I saw one munching my peaches. My tree was laden, so didn't mind sharing. Tomatoes would have been another story! Haha. Good luck with your netting!
Happy to see Clara in one of your photos!
We live at a high elevation and I haven’t had much luck at gardening here. I may try to find some veggie starts this summer though - and maybe bring them in at night?? as we live IN the forest and have a lot of critters that eat anything I have tried to plant haha.
Thank you, Lea! I try not to post too many photos of my dogs (I take a LOT of dog photos! hahah). I'm always amazed by how different every climate and location is (I hadn't thought of high elevation as a factor, but of course it is!). I hope you can figure out a good way to keep the critters away from your plants. Always tricky! I'm constantly battling squirrels here. They like to dig up my rows of seeds and uproot baby plants.
Love seeing your photos of your garden Anne and of course your doggie companion. You’ve had snow! Our garden has had the borders tidied ready for new growth and already the peonies are coming up. I’ve been inspired by the abundance of daffodils this year and there are tulips growing slowly. The Poet’s Wife rose is a stunner and the scent is just divine - I planted one by our front door so visitors get a waft as they arrive. Thank you for your gardening insights. 🙏💜
Hi, Clare! Yes, I remember you were growing The Poet's Wife. And how envious I am of your climate! Haha. Only the tiniest signs of bulbs have been showing up here. I hope I haven't lost my snowdrops. I've seen some blooming in town, but no sign of mine yet... except there was a tiny green bit that miiiight be the first shoot. We'll see. Thanks, as always, for being here! I hope we both have a beautiful gardening year (I'd love to see some photos from your garden and that wonderful greenhouse!). ☺️
Such amazing info here Anne!! Thank you! I have to restack this! Beautiful garden! Oops! My second comment here....but just had to!
Awwww... thanks!
Appreciate the inspiration, Anne! Your encouragement to "Grow what you love. Don't get caught up in the 'rules' or the 'right' way to garden" is perfect timing, as I'm trying to talk my husband into giving up a chunk of the front lawn for garden space (it's really the only place on our property that gets enough sun these days). I think we can make it a beautiful space, and I'm honestly not particularly concerned about it being unconventional. Ah, but my husband does love his lawn ...
I hope you create your front yard garden, Lauren! I can imagine it being a beautiful space. I'm so grateful that my husband doesn't like lawns. We've gotten rid of all the grass in our backyard. I don't like gardening in our front yard -- too much traffic and too many people and dogs, but I love seeing other people's front yard gardens (is that hypocritical of me?).
Ha! Not at all … I actually feel the same way, and we live on a busy road. We did put up a privacy fence a few years ago, which helps, but it still feels like living in a bit of a fishbowl. I’ll accept that downside if it means I get my garden! 😃
I hope you'll share some photos!
I'm limited to container gardening these days which is just fine with me. Except for the big copper tub which I always plant geraniums in, my various pots and containers will have something different in them most years, depending upon what my store garden center has to offer (always some different plants each year) and what catches my eye. Always looking for beautiful blooms, but this year I'm tempted to try a few veggies in one of the long ones. I used to sow radishes and green onions back when I had a serious vegetable garden and it was always a delight to see how quickly they sprouted up - almost instant gratification. And believe it or not, I haven't had any sources for zucchini for quite awhile, balk at buying it in the grocery store and miss fixing some of my favorite zucchini recipes. I may find a place for a single zucchini plant. :-)
Container gardening is wonderful, Sheila! I'm dreaming of adding a couple of stock tanks to my garden this year (we can bring them with us when we finally move!). I wasn't sure what exactly I wanted to plant in the stock tanks, but I thought I'd have a mix of things. Then I was looking through an old magazine and they'd grown potatoes in stock tanks and had a wonderful crop... I think the dreaming is one of the best parts of gardening! Oh, and yes, plant a zucchini. They can do wonderfully in pots. :)
Yes, stock tanks sound great for your space and yes, potatoes in them! I'd been toying with that idea too as I have one really big container that I couldn't even get onto the deck but sits beside it at a corner where it gets both morning and afternoon light and I was wondering if it would be good for potatoes. If not, then that zucchini. I think either would survive the deer that wander through and browse. :-)
I look forward to hearing what you decide to plant in your container! I AM grateful we don't have to worry about deer where we live. I know once we move we'll be battling them and other creatures, too. There's always something!
I well remember the extremely tall fences people put up around their gardens when I lived in Wisconsin. Those deer can really jump!