Northern Shade Gardening

Three days ago I had fantasies about the last snow piles melting this week and being able to do my spring gardening cleanup, even though I knew that some plants still needed the protective cover. However, this morning I woke up to a brand new blanket of snow, which is not unusual in April. Oh well, the moisture will be good for the trees and the perennials will be insulated from the cold. At least I can stop my persistent search for signs of early bulbs for a while. Here is a picture of part of the garden in my backyard.

The evergreen branches actually looked quite pretty out of my front window, covered in clean white snow. Here is a picture taken through my front window today.

These large spruce, planted by the previous owner, are probably too close to the house. From the front sidewalk they obscure and shade most of the house, but I love how they look in winter covered in snow and they do keep it private. They are also the home or resting spot to many birds. I can often stand at my front window and see the chickadees darting about on the branches and hear their chatter from inside the house.

After 5 months of snow cover, large patches of ground are now visible. Although I check them regularly, only a few green shoots of perennials are visible. The iris, which are south facing and near the warm foundation, are the first to brave the cold air. A few perennials such as Campanula (bellflowers) have remained semi-green throughout the long cold winter under their blanket of snow. As well, the Dryopteris expansa (wood ferns) have retained their green fronds. With the ground being so wet, I’ve mostly viewed the garden from the patio and sidewalks. I’m waiting for the last snow piles to melt and the ground to dry out before starting my spring gardening and actually cleaning up the last of the perennial foliage. The first job will be collecting the many fallen branches from the willow tree. Here are some photos of the winter accumulation before the spring cleanup. The leaf mulch is still covering many plants.