High Desert Spring Gardening

Right now in the High Desert it literally feels like Spring. The days are getting warmer and the plants are reacting to the unseasonably warm weather. I noticed a few days ago, some flower buds on the branches of the Sweet Almond Tree in my front yard and I am excited to see the tree all covered in delicate White flowers. The Almond Tree is always the first to blossom after Winter around here; however, the Tree is blooming too early this year compared to the previous years. The weeds too, are coming on strong as they rob my yard of its beauty.

This year, my Sweet William Dwarf (Dianthus) are the first to bloom.

For Spring Colors, plant the following (just to name a few):

Plants with the * next to the name (as well as some species of the plants) are poisonous and/or toxic (either to Humans, Livestock or both). Click here for a list of Toxic Plants.

How can you tell if your Garden is ready for Spring?
According to OrganicGardening.com, the best way to tell if a garden has dried out enough to be worked is to pick up about half a cup of earth in your hand. Now squeeze the soil together so that it forms a ball. If the ball of earth can readily be shattered by pressing with your fingers or dropping it from a height of 3 feet or so, it is dry enough to dig. If the ball keeps its shape or breaks only with difficulty into solid sections rather than loose soil, it still contains too much water. Clay soil that is too wet will feel slick when rubbed between thumb and forefinger and working soil that wet can spoil its texture for the whole season.

Since my soil is not quite ready for Spring Gardening yet, I am focusing most of my time and energy on various activities and yard tasks:

• Planning a Fairy Garden
• Researching Native Plants
• Building Bird Houses
• Cleaning Bird Feeders and Baths
• Getting my Gardening Tools ready
• Servicing my Weed Eater
• Starting seeds indoors
• Preparing new Sunken Garden Beds for Native Plants
• Tending to my Perennials (pruning, trimming, cutting back, dividing)
• Revitalizing my Mint Plants
• Maybe start a compost pile.

With the weather this warm, it’s definitely time to Start Planning your Spring Garden.

Linking up to Beverly’s Pink Saturday.