The Four Gardening Seasons – Spring

Though I realize this will be of more interest to readers from Northern Climes, where we actually get a winter, but wherever you’re reading this from, I hope you enjoy my musings.

The Cycle of the Seasons

For me an integral part of gardening is the cycle of the seasons. In our part of the world we get four very distinct seasons, whereas in some of the more southern climates I have lived in, the line between spring & summer, fall and winter gets a bit blurred, as the temperature is so much more stable, whereas we certainly do get the extremes.

I guess it wasn’t until I chose to live in Canada that I came to appreciate the distinct seasons, as my growing up years were in a country where the temperatures were mild enough that you could indeed grow stuff year round, something you certainly can’t do north of the 49th!

Spring – My Favorite of all Seasons

For me my favorite time of the gardening season is certainly spring, there’s something inspiring about watching new life appear from the frozen earth, the crocus’s under the apple trees, the rhubarb on the warm corner of the house, then tulips and daffodils pushing through their mulch cover.

Spring brings with it longer days, and after almost 6 months of frigid temperatures, and worse, little daylight, I just get so much enjoyment out of being outside. The long winter’s routines of watching soap opera’s, indoor hobbies etc., get forgotten and I’ll find myself outside from dawn till dusk if I get the chance, just willing Mother Nature to hurry up and get everything green again.

I recall having friends from Down Under visiting us, and being absolutely amazed at us getting up after finishing our evening meal , at after 9 pm and going out on the deck and bringing out last years flower towers and starting to plant them. Why not? After all we’ve been cooped up all winter, and we’re just yearning to hang out the squirrel proof bird feeder, maybe spending an hour or so sharpening a garden spade , and simply enjoying the long spring evenings.

Ah, Spring, yes it’s my favorite season for gardening, but Summer is a pretty close second.

Read on about why I also love summer…..