It Must Be Spring! Almost
Spring is Sprung, the Grass is Riz, I Wonder Where the Birdies Is?Not quite yet. But on the way. I believe. We saw a robin last week, sitting in one of our Sargenti flowering crab trees. We keep hearing the lilting, teasing song of the cardinal, and occasionally have the good fortune to even spot him in his scarlet attire looping through the trees. Poor robin. What can he possibly find to nourish him between now and the final melt? The crows are mobbing high in the trees of the ravine, their loud raucous cawing bringing promise to the near future. Squirrels have been chasing one another up tree trunks and around and about, leaping from branch to branch - catch me!
We've a stubborn and deep snowpack, not going anywhere in a great big hurry. We have lots and lots of ice everywhere, packing down the snow, doing its obvious best to ensure winter lingers. But the sun, when it is out, is palpably warmer, and it sends its comfortable rays deep into our wellspring of winter discontent. It's on the way, spring is coming.
A few weeks ago I set aside space in our sunny furnace room in the basement and set about potting up all of the begonia bulbs I'd wintered over from last year's garden. Some of the bulbs had already sprouted, and now there are green/red leaves on the stalks. I planted a potato vine, another holdover from last year's planting. Today I planted giant dahlias, one a cactus variety. To get a headstart on the garden, of course. So that, come the second week of May I can boldly set them out into the garden, already started, to make for a longer summer of bloom and colour.
The dread chill and winds of the past few weeks have suddenly abated and today we had sun and moderate temperatures, how wonderful. It isn't apochryphal then, spring really will come in soon; not the calendar spring, but the actual one we relish and enjoy. In our protected backyard I wandered coatless on the snow-free pathway peering down at the newly-liberated edges of the garden beds, and sure enough there are the icicle pansies, the heucheras, the grape hyachinths, crisp-green and ready to spring into action.
Button and Riley wandered about as well, sniffing and snuffling at the newly-released odours of seasons past. They know things are changing, and even though it's still too cold for them to be out for too long they agitate continually on sunny mornings to be let out onto the deck, where they search out the first little square of sun-illumined wood to lay upon and soak up the sun's warmth. As the snow melts off the deck they are able to do this earlier and earlier in the day, and it has become an absolute need for them.
We're all, I think, a little spring-feverish.
posted by Pieface @ Thursday, March 23, 2006
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