Almost frostless
The average last day of frost for Charlottesville generally occurs in mid-April, but out here in the hollow we sit in a frost pocket—a low spot where cold air settles—and can get nipped as late as the first week in May. Cool crops like lettuces, spinach, cauliflower, cabbage and broccoli thrive with spring freezes, but the fruits of summer don’t like it chilly. Tomatoes, peppers, marigolds and zinnias sulk in cold soil even if it doesn’t freeze, so you don’t really gain any time by putting them out early.
Go ahead and buy plants now to get prime pickings from the garden centers’ first spring eruptions, but unless you’re willing to go the extra mile by laying black plastic to warm the soil or covering plants with lightweight floating row covers on frosty nights, you’re better off keeping them watered in their pots until the first weeks of May while the sun settles into the ground and soil temperatures rise.
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When setting out young transplants, the prime directive is to keep them from drying out, so pick a cloudy day later in the afternoon when the wind tends to die down. Be gentle with the roots and after tamping the soil around them and building a small berm to keep water from running off (release your inner child); muddy them in by saturating each little planting hole with a watering can or slow hose.
The one persnickety garden chore I perform, in memory of the great plant hunter, E.H. Wilson, who brought the bulbs out of Szechuan, China, in the 19th century (surmounting a broken leg, gangrene and mule trains picking their way along precipitous trails), is covering the Regale lilies. It’s the least I can do.
By late April, the feathery stalks have poked up three or four inches, but there’s always one more good frost to come. If their plumy fronds get burnt, they won’t flower in June. Row covers like Reemay don’t weigh down the plants and are simply draped over them, but since I use old sheets, I have to support them with stakes so they don’t break the tender lily stalks.
Most of the herbs in my half barrels weathered the winter well. Chives’ tender foliage and plump purple flowers were up by mid-April; lemon, variegated and English thymes were cut all winter for the kitchen; the sages got a good hard cut back to basal foliage. The rosemary in the barrels closest to the creek burnt, and have been cut back, but the one planted higher up against the potting shed’s south wall came through fine.
Once warm weather settles in for good, we can relax and succumb to the pleasures of late spring, one of which is the first flush of roses before the inevitable black spot and Japanese beetles storm Paradise. Monticello’s Center for Historic Plants at Tufton Farm has an open house Saturday, May 24, from noon until 4pm (984-9816) that features its rose, iris and dianthus collections in full glorious bloom. Bring cuttings from mystery roses to confound the experts.
Local rose lovers will be sorry to hear that Sherando Roses (sherandoroses.com) in Lyndhurst will be closing its doors in June. Long a local repository of roses grown on their own roots along with an array of clematis vines to clamber through them, this nursery has occupied a valuable niche. It will be selling plants at sale prices through June, so if you’re intrigued by perhaps the most persnickety flower of all, this is your chance to start off with the best.—Cathy Clary
Garden questions? Ask Cathy Clary at garden@c-ville.com.
Beantown basic
Many people shy away from the Boston fern because of the attention these plants require to remain green and healthy. But they’ve been a houseplant favorite since the Victorian era and are great-looking when happy and healthy.
Their propensity for humidity makes them highly suited for porches during the summer months. But don’t be fazed if they don’t flourish so well indoors during the winter. To maintain the illusion of humidity, spray with water or place ferns in a pebble tray with water.
Ferns flourish when root-bound, so only re-pot them if they are spilling out of their current residence. Organic peat moss is the best type of soil because it allows proper drainage while staying moist. Although they breed through spores when outdoors, with indoor plants it is more effective to divide new shoots or clumps by hand and re-pot them.—Lily Robertson
May in the garden
Wait for soil to warm
Muddy in transplants
Smell the roses