Keeping warm?

Brrr! As you may know, I write a gardening column for the Lynden Tribune each month, and without fail, if I make any sort of a statement about the weather, it suddenly turns on its head and proves me wrong the next week. Recently, I made mention of how mild the winter had been...and this week, well, you know what happened! I'm thinking this spring I should complain about how dreary and cloudy and rainy the weather is--do you think it might get us some sun?

Anyway, this cold weather hasn't been the greatest if you have shrubs or trees starting to bud out already. Chances are, you'll have at least some damage evident--but unless all your plants are movable, there wasn't a whole lot you could do. And you know what? They will grow back. It's been cold, but nothing that should kill most plants.

So, what's to be thankful for with the weather this week? Chances are, it killed a bunch of bugs! Now, I'm not going to stick my neck out and say that we'll be free of insect problems in the year ahead--that would be a bit presumptuous--but the more cold we have, the more bugs die. Last winter we had such a mild winter...and we had lots of bug issues through the summer. Let's hope that this cold snap took care of that problem!

Next week the weather is supposed to warm up again, and with the more seasonable temperatures, we'll be bringing in our first loads of shrubs, trees and perennials. It's about to get very colorful at Vander Giessen's, and after the last few days, we're ready to see some signs of spring! For today, though, bundle up, wrap your hands around a steaming mug of coffee, and enjoy the last hurrah of winter!