Receding Snow

I have been recently considering how the snow cover affects our lawn, perennials and gardens.  Sometimes the tough winters for us are those that are cold and have lots of snow.  But do the greater depths of snow really equate to a "hard" winter? 


In my core course for Master Gardening last year, I read some factual information as to what I had already observed.  A deep cover of snow acts as a significant insulation for the ground and plants.  I am in the process of looking for a factual representation of this.  Common thought on this is that ten inches of new "fluffy" snow equals roughly six inches of fiberglass insulation.  A food of snow can allow the ground to retain 32-degree temperatures.

No wonder my strawberry plants look good!

In my observations, I have seen how green the grass is when it emerges from the snow cover.  But where we make paths through the yard, and therefore the insulation is less, the grass is less green.

The above is a picture of our backyard, showing the footpath we keep clear for walking to the bus, skating, and church.  You can clearly see the brown that was the main path.  For most of the winter, it was covered with a couple of inches of packed snow and ice.

Spring has sprung!  Now, if it would just hurry up to planting time!

Seeds!

It must be late winter!  I have been going through seed catalogues and really looking forward to the spring thaw.  I also had information for the U's seed trials program and was going to sign up for that.  But as luck would have it, I got distracted by some other things and missed the deadline!  So, I will be starting only my own seeds and will be able to share with anyone in the area - I'm sure I'll have some extras.

I ordered from Burpee's in February and think I'll be ordering from Johnny Seeds soon.  My order from Burpee included the following:
Cantaloupe (Sweet N Early)
Watermelons (Georgia Rattlesnake and Carolina Cross 193)
Gourd (Orn Luffa)
Tomatoes (Brandywine, Super sweet 100 hybrid, Cherokee Purple, Tye Dye hybrid, Black Krim heirloom)
Pumpkin (Rouge VIF D'Etampes)
Squash (SuperZuke hybrid)

Cabbage (Salad Delight)

Celery (Tall Utah 52)

Eggplant (long purple)

Lettuce (Iceburg A for Joe)

Pepper (Sweet Maxibelle)

My order from Johnny Seeds will probably be mostly herbs, as I am considering moving and expanding my herb garden.