The longer I’m confined indoors by snow-covered ground and freezing temperatures, the more fantastical garden renovations become as I plan for spring. Of course, I continue to trudge through snow or mud or over frozen soil, but outdoor jaunts are more brief in the winter months. Still, in these few minutes, as I search out…

From the moment years ago when I saw the dormant, yellow twigged ‘Bihou’ Japanese maple (Acer palmatum ‘Bihou’, below) at a garden center tradeshow in January, I knew I had to have one. Unfortunately, our company did not work with this specialty maple grower, so I waited several years before finally accepting a mailorder tree…

Take shelter feathered friends. Move beneath evergreens to protect from chunks of ice falling from the garden’s many trees. Seeds and berries will still be here when the danger has passed. I dare not venture into the garden until temperatures rise to melt the last of the icy coating. The sun will appear this afternoon,…

A chilly January and a cover of snow have delayed flowering that is anxiously monitored in winter’s closing weeks. No doubt, more cold will follow this welcome spell of mild temperatures, but now I anticipate one favorite bloom after another until spring’s arrival. I haven’t a clue how many hellebores are in the garden, but…

To this date in early February, the winter’s temperatures have fit precisely into the definition of zone 7a with a recent overnight low of three degrees (Fahrenheit). By a long shot, this can not be called a severe winter, though it has been considerably colder than ones in recent years. While winter temperatures have not…

The upper rear garden is a flurry of activity. Robins have discovered ripe berries on the ‘Mary Nell’ holly that is readily viewed from the sunroom. In recent weeks, the earlier ripening berries of the Koehne holly along the driveway were harvested, and for a few days, robins plucked berries from nandinas. Not to worry,…

The worst of this winter is over, I presume. I recall more prolonged stretches of cold, including a full month, decades earlier when temperatures did not rise above freezing in my first year working outdoors (nearly fifty years ago). Of course, that included multiple days falling below zero (Fahrenheit), while happily, our overnight low recently…

It’s cold out there. I’ve seen colder, much colder, but it’s been a while since we’ve had such an extended stretch of days staying below freezing. Snow has covered the garden for nearly two weeks, and even as the neighborhood thaws in milder temperatures in the next week, snow will linger in this mostly shaded…

I hesitate to mention this for fear that my wife might read this entry (a rarity). But if she did, it could lead to trouble. The plantings on both sides of the driveway entrance are out of control. Occasionally, I debate chopping everything out and starting over, but I greatly prefer lush and overgrown to…

With snow covering the garden for two weeks, I’m becoming increasingly anxious to get out to do something. Shoveling the driveway gets me outside, but this deepens mounds of snow covering hellebores along the drive that could begin flowering in the next few weeks. I refuse to expend additional effort to toss the snow further…

Happily, I no longer wake before 5 AM when I would check the overnight low temperature as I dressed for the workday. This morning, I woke to a toasty nineteen degrees (Fahrenheit) and bright sunshine, but afternoon temperatures are expected to rise to a mild forty degrees. Colder weather will soon return, but I have…

The pristine cover of snow is now interrupted by many footprints, some mine as I walked the garden to dislodge heavy accumulations from arching branches, but also from deer prospecting for their next meal. I’ve recently become aware that the double strength, November application of deer repellent that typically carries through until spring was waning…