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Too Early To Sprout

Mother Nature is one big practical joker, isn’t she? Case in point, the warmer weather of late. It feels good to you and makes you think about those things you want to do this spring. But you know better! The problem is, your plants don’t know better. In the plant kingdom: warm = spring, no matter if it’s January or May.

So now you have bulbs poking up through the ground and a hint of swelling buds on your shrubs. You’re worried about the future health of your plants. As hard as it sounds, you shouldn’t be. Winter bulbs are tough customers. It’ll take a lot more than a cold spell to damage them. (Someone “tip-toeing” through them - yes, cold - no.) For the other plants, the buds that have swelled might be nipped, but unless we meet up with a real deep-freeze for an extended period, there won’t be any real damage. Early bloomers like forsythia and quince might not bloom but the overall health of the plant will not be called into question.

But we know there are some of you out there (you know who you are!) that will not accept this course of action (or inaction in this case). You have to be doing something just to be on the safe side. That’s fine for you, and it won’t kill anything. Here’s what you can do: Put a light layer of some sort of mulch (leaves, straw, cypress, etc.) around that which has sprouted. For the buds on the woody plants that are swelling, a spray of Wilt Pruf is what you’ll want to do. Wilt Pruf will form a clear protective covering that will lock in moisture. And if there’s snow in the forecast, so much the better, your dirty work will be done for you. Snow is a great insulator from the cold.

So, Mother Nature, let’s have the punch line, we’re ready - BRING ON THE COLD!!!!!