NOT YET MARCH, AND ALREADY BEHIND

Well, crud! Tomorrow's March 1st and, as usual, I haven't given any thought whatsoever to my spring garden. Well, hardly any. I do know that I will be planting more of that Magilla perilla -- the coleus-like plant you see nestled at the base of the planter above. I love that stuff, and you don't have that constant battle to keep it from bolting, as you do with coleus. Oh yeah, I have given some thought to the big red pots, too. For the past several years they've had a smallish red yucca as their centerpiece, surrounded by a bunch of succulents. Now that the yucca has grown so large it pretty much fills the pot, however, I plan to do a succulent grouping in the bed at the base of each pot, which is why I couldn't resist buying these two guys when I accompanied my hubby on one of his many plant-shopping excursions of late.

Euphorbia tirucalli 'Sticks of Fire Pencil Cactus'

I looooove this plant, too! These two will be the centerpieces of the two groupings, surrounded by all the succulent cuttings I took last fall and have been wintering-over indoors. I don't dare plant them until after our last average freeze date (mid-March here, I think) but I guess it wouldn't hurt to start hardening the cuttings off, by letting them spend a little time outside each day, starting in the shade, and gradually working their way towards full sun, so that they don't get a really bad "sunburn" when I do plant them out.

But that's it. That's all the thinkin' I've done so far! I should've had it all planned out by now -- should know exactly what I want to plant and where it's going to go, should have my beds weeded, amended and fluffed, and should have all my garden decor cleaned and repainted if necessary. That leaf birdbath in the picture above is #1 on my to-do list.  It looked like this when I made it, just a year and a half ago...

but already looks like this...

even though I used "durable outdoor paints' like Patio Paint and Yard & Garden, and topped them off with a coat or two of Indoor/Outdoor satin varnish spray.  Guess it's gonna be a yearly chore, unless any of you has hints for making it last longer. Anybody?

As for the failure to plan, it's not like I've had to wait for the snow to melt or anything, before I could get out there and reconnoiter. We've been out and about all winter long! Perhaps that's the problem. Maybe people who are snowbound all winter just make better planners than those who are outside playing. Or, maybe it's simply that, having worked in one for so long, my engines just don't get revved up until the garden center frenzy hits. I think maybe I need to see the parking lots jammed with cars, carts full of new plants waiting to be unloaded, and someone inside the shop surrounded by a mountain of boxes waiting to be unpacked, before my creative juices really get to flowin'. Whatever the reason, this is probably why I coud never be a truly dedicated veggie grower, and am drifting back to my original passion for natives and perennials, with a few veggies and herbs tucked here and there. Perennials don't care if I plan or not. They just wanna do their thing!